Re: CHAT: Ebonic Xmass

At 10:53 PM 01/12/2000 -0600, you wrote:

>>     I have heard "ax" for ask a zillion times. This, FWIW, is not inaccurate.
>
>Well, I think the problem was that it gives the impression that ALL blacks
>speak this way.  While it is certainly true that many (those who speak
>African American Vernacular English) might use this variant of the word,
>that does not mean (a) that most use it, or (b) that it is a form exclusively
>used by them.  Many people of all backgrounds use the form in many
>parts of the English speaking world.
>
To me, the offensiveness was in the racial stereotypes of
attitudes and behavior depicted in the poem.  If someone attempted to
render the original "Night Before Christmas" in Ebonics (or whatever) and
did a straight translation (not changing the content), I don't think this
would be quite so bad.

-- Terry

http://www.geocities.com/teresh_2000
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