As human beings we are bound to society. Many times we let society influence us in the way we speak. Sociolinguistics is the study of language as it functions in society. In America, for example, we have a variety of cultures crammed into one country. This clash of cultures makes one language seem like twenty. A girl raised in Camden is going to speak English differently than a girl from the Valley. Your surroundings actually influence you greatly.
A girl raised in the streets of Camden will not know "you be trippin" is not acceptable English. The education in Camden is not a priority, therefore the way people speak is not scholarly. Because of the way she speaks, she will be known as a 'ghetto' girl. Ghetto is used to describe "the hood" or people from "the hood". It is also used to describe uneducated people. The following video is an example of how ghetto girls speak using improper grammar along with an accent that doesn't come from speaking another language.
Please note: Videos contain PG-13 material and are totally worth watching.
Now, there are various types of white girls. Each one has their own way of speaking and acting. For example, a Valley girl speaks using 'like' and 'ohmygawd' every five seconds. They also speak in a perky matter and add an extra vowel at the end of their words. For example, whatever would be pronounced like whateverrruhhh or stop would be pronounced like stopppuhhh. This video also shows us dumb blondes, rocker white girls, southern belles, spoiled brats and much more.
Latinos are also part of our culture and society nowadays and they also have their own way of speaking English. They speak Spanglish- Spanish and English combined. For example, when we don't know a specific word in English, we say it in Spanish. A common habit is replacing 'you know' with 'tu sabes'. Hispanics also have a heavy accent. Instead of saying 'whatever' they say 'guatever' or 'peeczah' instead of 'pizza'. The following video shows a few examples of how Hispanic girls speak Spanglish with heavy accents.
Note: 'Pica' means spicy and 'novela' means soap opera
These examples covered most American dialects but not all. Thankfully, we still have people like Michael Carty, who speaks and teaches proper English. I know that these descriptions are stereotypes but unfortunately, it is part of our culture nowadays. Whether or not, you are okay with the way you speak, you should be able to talk proper English. People don't always take you serious if you sound like you're whining when you speak, don't know a lot of English, or speak in a ghetto manner. It's not good for our futures and its not good for America's future. Even if you grew up in Camden and hoodrat things were the only things you knew, you still have the opportunity to fix that. I am guilty of saying 'peeczah' and speaking Spanglish. I am also a bit of a Valley white girl. I think a lot of us girls fall under the Valley girl stereotype. Although we might not be it to the full extent, we definitely use 'like' as fillers when we speak and say 'ohmygawd' at least twenty times a day. What matters is whether or not we can speak proper English when we need to. These sociolinguistics define us in ways both good and bad. This is our culture; its who we are. Even though that may not be right or proper.
