What Is Language?
Christopher W. Anderson-Krome

Language can be defined in many ways. [lose the 'can be defined in many ways.  It' and link these first two sentences together] It can be the speech of a particular nation or any means of passing on ones thoughts or feelings to others. What is language? [lose the question, especially as you've already partially answered it and therefore don't need to ask it again--make declarative statements that strengthen and advance your points] Language can have many different aspects to many different people.[get more specific as you move through your intro, not less] Language can be compared to a human being in the way it changes over many years. [lose this sentence, as this is the point of your first body paragraph--clarify it there] Unfortunately, language can also be used as another way to classify people. Language is just like a weapon, [either put a coordinating conjunction here or a semicolon--you have two independent clauses linked by a comma] it can hurt a person in many ways.

Language is like a person, [either put a coordinating conjunction here or a semicolon--you have two independent clauses linked by a comma] it grows and develops over time. Language has come a long way from A.D. 600 to A.D. 1999. There is even language before A.D. 600 but it is considered pre-history because there is no record [careful--there's no record of English? before 600 A.D. or there's no record of language before that date?--remember, the Romans were writing and publishing books in Y0K and a thousand years before that, the Greeks and the Egyptians were doing likewise]. Our ancestors, the Anglo-Saxons, spoke a dialect of Low German. The dialect that is spoken today is nothing like that of our ancestors. Language has grown and developed over the past 1300 years, just as a person develops over their average 80 [use a hyphen here] year life span. "For the most part, language changes because society changes" (Crystal 105). [nice parenthetical citation] Children try to be like the people that they are around [insert a comma] which in turn makes them who they are. By borrowing traits from others you [lose the second person] become who you [lose the second person] are just like a language. "It is supposed also-indeed, it must be true-that the Norsemen influenced the sound structure and grammar of English" (Roberts 92). [give me a sentence telling me how this quote is important to the idea it is supporting.] Language is a living body. [nice try at closure, but you've merely restated your intro sentence--tell me why it's important to the thesis that it is a living body and you'll have better closure]

Language is used to classify people. The most common classification is "bad English," or Black English." Middle-class whites and Negroes alike scorn it as low-class poor people’s talk" (Seymour 123). The way a person talks reflects who that person is.

But there is another point of view, one held in common by black militants and some white liberals. They urge that middle-class Negroes stop thinking of the inner-city as something to be ashamed of and repudiated. Black author Claude Brown, for example, pushes this view. Some modern linguists take a similar stance. They begin with the premise that no dialect is intrinsically "bad" or "good," and that a non-standard speech style is not defective speech but different speech. (Seymour 123)

People should not be segregated by the different forms of the English language that they use. A person[insert an apostrophe]s speech is a trait that they inherit from their [pronoun/antecedent disagreement--a person/their] family and or culture. So to say that a person has "bad" dialect, [lose the comma here] is to say that they have a "bad" family or culture. There is no reason at all to classify people by their race, origin, ethnicity, or even their dialect because we are all the same. [according to whom?  and in what sense?  linguistically? stay focused on the idea of language] We are just taught different dialects or beliefs. Living in such a diverse society as we do today we have to learn to respect everyone’s dialect. [why?--make your case if you mean to, but maintain the focus on the issues the articles explore]

Language or words can also be used as weapons. By saying something harmful about someone you [lose the second person] could really hurt that person. You [lose the second person] could possibly hurt that person[apostrophe]s feelings or even damage that person[apostrophe]s reputation. The most common example of this is a person calling another person a name because of their [pronoun/antecedent disagreement--a person/their] background or race. It really hurts a persons feelings and self esteem when they [pronoun/antecedent disagreement--a person/they] are called names especially when it has to do with their background which they have no control over. This is just like hurting someone with a weapon, a knife for example, it is going to cause a serious problem. [clarify, how so?]

Language,[use a dash, not a comma here] it is hard to say exactly what it really is. [by this point, your paper should have explained it, at least if that was your thesis] Language could be a living thing since it grows and develops over time. Language can be used as a classification tool. This means that language is just another prejudice.[here, you're summarizing all your points--don't do that--focus on the impact of recognizing or not recognizing variant forms of English.] If used in the wrong way language is a weapon or another way to hurt a person. Any of these statements are true about language.[lame sentence, delete it] Language is just one of those words with a variety of meanings. Another person could come up with multiple definitions of language.[that doesn't leave me with a very healthy sense of closure, or why the thesis is important] 

What Is Language?
Annotated Bibliography 

Thesis Statement: Language can be defined in many ways. [strengthen this thesis--what in particular can you prove concerning that? reread the last line of your intro paragraph]

1) Crystal, David. "The Prescriptive Tradition." Language Awareness. Ed. by Paul Escholz,     
            AlfredRosa, and Virginia Clark. New York: St. Martin’s Press,1994: 101-106.

This article states that there is more than on[e] form of language and eventually all of them have to be recognized even if it means [a] change to one of the languages.

2) Naylor, Gloria. "The Meaning of a Word." Language Awareness. Ed. by Paul Escholz,
            Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark. New York: St. Martin’s Press,1994: 305-307.

This essay talks about how a word is used to classify people and how a word has split meaning depending on who it comes from.

3) Roberts, Paul. "A Brief History of English." Language Awareness. Ed. by Paul Escholz,
            Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark. New York: St. Martin’s Press,1994: 89-98.

This selection talks about the development of language from prehistory to present day.

4) Seymour, Dorothy Z. "Black Children, Black Speech." Language Awareness. Ed. by Paul
              Escholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark. New York: St. Martin’s Press,1994:
              122-128.

As the title states, this essay is about the difference between Standard English and Black English which is not lazy english as thought of, but actually a development of African dialect.

REVISION: [Not Micro-Edited] Final Grade: C-

What Is Language
Christopher W. Anderson-Krome

Language can be the speech of a particular nation or any means of passing on ones thoughts or feelings to others. Language can have many different aspects depending on how it is being used and who is using it. Language is our personal history; it tells people our historical background, our societal classification, and our ethnic culture.

Language is like a person; it grows and develops over time. Language has come a long way from A.D. 600 to A.D. 1999 thus forming our historical background. Language was even developed before A.D. 600 but it is considered pre-history. Our ancestors, the Anglo-Saxons, spoke a dialect of Low German. The dialect that is spoken today is nothing like that of our ancestors. Language has grown and developed over the past 1300 years, just as a person develops over their average 80- year life span. "For the most part, language changes because society changes" (Crystal 105). Children try to be like the people that they are around, which in turn makes them who they are. By borrowing traits from others a person molds who he or she is just like how a language establishes its own uniqueness. Language is a living body and can be used to classify different types of people.

Many times languages are used to classify our stance in society. The most common classification of language is "bad English," or " Black English." "Middle-class whites and Negroes alike scorn it as low-class poor people’s talk" (Seymour 123). The way a person talks reflects who that person is.

But there is another point of view, one held in common by black militants and some white liberals. They urge that middle-class Negroes stop thinking of the inner-city as something to be ashamed of and repudiated. Black author Claude Brown, for example, pushes this view. Some modern linguists take a similar stance. They begin with the premise that no dialect is intrinsically "bad" or "good," and that a non-standard speech style is not defective speech but different speech. (Seymour 123)

Often, society uses language or words as weapons. In many circumstances, a person will use harmful words against someone else in order to feel superior to them or higher up in society. By doing so, a person’s feelings could be hurt or their reputation could even be damaged. The most common example of this is a person calling another person a name because of his or her background or race in which they have no control over. Along with our societal classification, language relates to our ethnic culture.

A person’s culture reflects on the type of language he or she uses. Unfortunately, however, people are segregated by the different forms of the English language they use. A person’s speech is a trait that is inherited from his or her family and culture. To say that a person has "bad" dialect is to say that they have a "bad" family or culture. In my opinion, there is no reason to classify people by their race, origin, ethnicity, or even their dialect because we are all human. Everyone is taught different dialects or beliefs because of their ethnic culture. Living in such a diverse society as we do today, we have to learn to respect everyones dialect. Without that respect a barrier will be created between people which in time will cause segregation and conflict.

Language defines who we were, what we are, and where we are going. Language can be living since it grows and develops over time and can be used as a classification tool; thus, it is just another prejudice. If used in the wrong way language is a weapon to devastate others. Language is ever-changing, and with its power for influence, that is a plus in the world today.

What Is Language
Annotated Bibliography

Thesis Statement: Language is our personal history; it tells people our historical background, our societal classification, and our ethnic culture.

1) Crystal, David. "The Prescriptive Tradition." Language Awareness. Ed. by Paul Escholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark. New York: St. Martin’s Press,1994: 101-106.

This article states that there is more than on form of language and eventually all of them have to be recognized even if it means change to one of the languages.

2) Naylor, Gloria. "The Meaning of a Word." Language Awareness. Ed. by Paul Escholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark. New York: St. Martin’s Press,1994: 305-307.

This essay talks about how a word is used to classify people and how a word has split meaning depending on who it comes from.

3) Roberts, Paul. "A Brief History of English." Language Awareness. Ed. by Paul Escholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark. New York: St. Martin’s Press,1994: 89-98.

This selection talks about the development of language from prehistory to present day.

4) Seymour, Dorothy Z. "Black Children, Black Speech." Language Awareness. Ed. by Paul Escholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark. New York: St. Martin’s Press,1994: 122-128.

As the title states, this essay is about the difference between Standard English and Black English which is not lazy english as thought of, but actually a development of African dialect.

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