Ingroups are defined as groups with which people identify with strongly. I liked how this article referenced the concept of intersectionality on page 143 because it emphasizes that a large number of factors determine the ingroup, that aspects of a person’s identity contribute to one another versus overpowering one another. I also thought that that the link between language and ingroup vs. outgroup was very interesting because we talk more about race, religion, gender, sexuality and don’t tend to consider language a large factor. However, looking at examples from our class, it makes more sense. MLK was praised for his ability to “code switch,” and communicate in a way that reached both white and black people. While not every single white person listened to his message, his ability to permeate the ingroup even slightly is unique and made his more well known.<\/p>\n
In my own personal experiences, I did not realize that I use language to hang onto my Midwestern identity. At home, I did not think about how I spoke because everyone spoke in the same way. In fact, I didn’t think about it at all until I came home fall break of freshman year and my mom told me sadly that my accent was faded. This is an example of what Giles says on page 145: “the importance of language as a component of a person’s social identity can change over the lifespan.” Now at a school where the Midwestern population is low and the majority of my friends have never actually been there, I find that I value my Midwestern accent more and even lean into it at times. I use my language as a tie to home and my home ingroup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ingroups are defined as groups with which people identify with strongly. I liked how this article referenced the concept of intersectionality on page 143 because…<\/p>\n