Chapter 31 Quiz: Language, Dialect, and the Politics of How You Sound
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following best describes the linguistic status of Appalachian English?
a) It is a degraded form of Standard American English, resulting from lack of education b) It is a legitimate dialect with its own systematic rules, historical roots, and internal logic c) It is identical to the English spoken in Shakespeare's time d) It is a creole language combining English and Cherokee
2. The feature of Appalachian English in which a speaker says "he was a-hunting" is called:
a) Glossolalia b) Code-switching c) A-prefixing d) Dialect leveling
3. A-prefixing in Appalachian English derives historically from:
a) A Cherokee grammatical structure b) A reduced form of the preposition "on" or "in," reflecting an older English construction c) A German grammatical influence d) A twentieth-century slang innovation
4. "Double modals" in Appalachian English ("might could," "might should") are inherited primarily from:
a) Latin grammar taught in colonial schools b) Scots English, brought by Scots-Irish settlers c) African American Vernacular English d) Spanish-speaking immigrant communities
5. The myth that Appalachian English is "Elizabethan English" is best described as:
a) Completely accurate — Appalachian speech is identical to Shakespeare's English b) Completely false — Appalachian speech has no connection to earlier English c) An oversimplification: some archaic features are preserved, but the dialect has also evolved and draws on multiple historical sources d) A conspiracy theory promoted by linguists
6. R-retention (pronouncing the "r" at the end of words like "car" and "farm") in Appalachian English is:
a) A recent innovation that appeared in the twentieth century b) The historically older pattern, inherited from Scots-Irish and Northern English dialects c) Evidence of poor pronunciation skills d) Unique to Appalachian English and found in no other dialect
7. The term "code-switching" refers to:
a) Using a secret code to communicate with union organizers b) Switching between computers and handwriting c) Alternating between two or more languages or dialects depending on the social context d) Learning a foreign language in school
8. According to sociolinguistic research, when listeners hear an Appalachian accent they tend to:
a) Rate the speaker as more intelligent and trustworthy than speakers of other dialects b) Rate the speaker as less intelligent, less educated, and less professionally competent, regardless of what was actually said c) Show no measurable reaction to the accent d) Assume the speaker is from New England
9. Walt Wolfram is a sociolinguist known for:
a) Inventing Standard American English b) Conducting rigorous studies demonstrating that Appalachian English features like a-prefixing are rule-governed and linguistically legitimate c) Arguing that Appalachian English should be replaced with Standard American English d) Writing the first Appalachian English dictionary
10. "Dialect leveling" refers to:
a) The process by which all dialects maintain their distinctiveness b) The process by which regional dialects become more similar to each other over time, typically converging toward a standard variety c) A method of teaching dialect in schools d) The measurement of dialect differences using laboratory equipment
11. The Appalachian English word "poke" (meaning "bag" or "sack") comes from:
a) Cherokee vocabulary b) Scots and Northern English dialects c) German immigrant speech d) Modern American slang
12. Which of the following is a rule governing a-prefixing in Appalachian English?
a) It can attach to any word that ends in -ing, including adjectives b) It attaches only to verb forms (not adjectives) and only before consonant sounds c) It is used randomly, with no consistent pattern d) It can only be used by women
13. The chapter describes linguistic discrimination against Appalachian speakers as:
a) A problem that was solved in the 1960s b) Something that only affects elderly speakers c) One of the last socially acceptable forms of prejudice in American life d) A minor issue with no measurable consequences
14. The chapter argues that the difference between a dialect "feature" and a "mistake" is:
a) Features are used by educated people and mistakes are used by uneducated people b) Features follow systematic rules; mistakes do not — and the stigma attached to dialect features is social, not linguistic c) There is no difference; all nonstandard speech is mistaken d) Features are found only in written language
Short Answer
15. In two or three sentences, explain why the chapter argues that the Elizabethan English myth, despite being "flattering," can function as "a different kind of condescension."
16. Define code-switching and explain why Appalachian speakers feel compelled to practice it in professional settings. What is the psychological cost?
17. Describe at least three specific linguistic features of Appalachian English (other than a-prefixing) and explain the historical origin of each.
18. The chapter states that "the problem is not how Appalachian people speak — the problem is how other people react to it." In your own words, explain what this statement means and why it matters.
Answer Key Location
Answers to selected questions can be found in Appendix: Answers to Selected Exercises.