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Not Your Cup of Tea? : An exploration of attitudes towards English as a lingua franca in Europe's cultural sector.

Payne, Victoria Rachel LU (2013) EUHR18 20131
European Studies
Abstract
Over the past two decades, English has undeniably become the lingua franca of Europe, making it the language of choice for intercultural exchange between speakers of different native languages. However there is something of a dearth of research on attitudes towards this language phenomenon. This thesis investigates perspectives and opinions towards English, with a focus on the cultural sector of Europe. Using material from personal and Skype interviews with European cultural workers, I attempt to build a picture of how English as a lingua franca is viewed and expressed in narrative and discourse. I also explore the idea of suitability in relation to English as a lingua franca. A 2005 journal article in English Today by author Ross Smith... (More)
Over the past two decades, English has undeniably become the lingua franca of Europe, making it the language of choice for intercultural exchange between speakers of different native languages. However there is something of a dearth of research on attitudes towards this language phenomenon. This thesis investigates perspectives and opinions towards English, with a focus on the cultural sector of Europe. Using material from personal and Skype interviews with European cultural workers, I attempt to build a picture of how English as a lingua franca is viewed and expressed in narrative and discourse. I also explore the idea of suitability in relation to English as a lingua franca. A 2005 journal article in English Today by author Ross Smith concludes that “English is a poor lingua franca”. I argue against this claim using ideas from the interview material and Bourdieu’s concept of linguistic capital to assert that English is an effective lingua franca for Europe. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Payne, Victoria Rachel LU
supervisor
organization
course
EUHR18 20131
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
linguistic capital, attitudes, culture, Europe, English, Lingua franca
language
English
id
3807003
date added to LUP
2013-06-10 16:23:41
date last changed
2015-12-14 13:23:23
@misc{3807003,
  abstract     = {{Over the past two decades, English has undeniably become the lingua franca of Europe, making it the language of choice for intercultural exchange between speakers of different native languages. However there is something of a dearth of research on attitudes towards this language phenomenon. This thesis investigates perspectives and opinions towards English, with a focus on the cultural sector of Europe. Using material from personal and Skype interviews with European cultural workers, I attempt to build a picture of how English as a lingua franca is viewed and expressed in narrative and discourse. I also explore the idea of suitability in relation to English as a lingua franca. A 2005 journal article in English Today by author Ross Smith concludes that “English is a poor lingua franca”. I argue against this claim using ideas from the interview material and Bourdieu’s concept of linguistic capital to assert that English is an effective lingua franca for Europe.}},
  author       = {{Payne, Victoria Rachel}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Not Your Cup of Tea? : An exploration of attitudes towards English as a lingua franca in Europe's cultural sector.}},
  year         = {{2013}},
}