This comedy sketch depicts acts of code-switching. When I saw this video, I could not help but think of our early class discussions about different English dialects. In the video, Keegan Key is depicted as speaking “proper” English while on the phone. When Jordan Peele’s character approaches him while also on the phone, Keegan Key’s character begins to speak in the same vernacular as Jordan Peele’s. Once the two are far enough apart, Jordan Peele’s character begins speaking how Keegan Key’s was earlier, though. This is interesting because it outlines (in a very exaggerated in order to be funny) the nature of code-switching and the small social cues that can set it off.
Language Preservation
https://www.npr.org/2014/08/09/338975625/effort-to-preserve-yiddish-works-not-bupkes
The above link is for an article written by Jon Kalish for NPR. It discusses an ongoing language preservation effort being conducted by the National Yiddish Book Center. This is interesting because it ties into much of what we discussed in class about language preservation as a key to cultural preservation. I used this specific article for my language preservation project, and it gave me a lot of great insight on the purpose of preservation. It also outlines how this preservation effort is attempting to shift into a revitalization effort, which is a really cool prospect for the study of language and politics and how they intertwine.