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The Centripetal and Centrifugal Forces of Englishes in South Korea

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Korean Englishes in Transnational Contexts

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Abstract

This chapter examines the centripetal and centrifugal forces of Korean Englishes constructed in South Korean young adults’ translingual dialogues at language exchange sessions. While centripetal forces unify the forms of languages and their associated verbal-ideological worlds, centrifugal forces decentralize the norms and ideologies of language. Qualitative analysis of the dialogues revealed the following: on the one hand, the young adults construct centripetal ideologies in dialogues, resulting in the isolation of native speakers of English, the privileging of their varieties, and an unequal distribution of linguistic authority among Koreans; on the other hand, centrifugal forces diversify the norms of Englishes, embed the voices and identities of Koreans, and allow for transgressing boundaries across codes. The two forces intersect in dialogues, simultaneously shaping Korean Englishes in unifying and decentralizing ways.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Penn State University, State College, PA, USA

    Miso Kim

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  1. Miso Kim
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of English, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, South Dakota, USA

    Christopher J. Jenks

  2. University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA

    Jerry Won Lee

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Kim, M. (2017). The Centripetal and Centrifugal Forces of Englishes in South Korea. In: Jenks, C., Lee, J. (eds) Korean Englishes in Transnational Contexts. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59788-1_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59788-1_7

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-59787-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-59788-1

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

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