Language Investigation #1

The use of language depends on similarities and differences among the members of a community. In a setting where people have diverse backgrounds, communication is easier to achieve if the language exchanged is simple. In these communities, going back to the roots and basics of language ensures comprehension. Within the communities of my small group of five friends, my work, and my cheerleading squad, I have experienced three different uses of language according to similarities.
There is a time and place to be casual with language. Within the community of your small group of friends, there is no better place. My friends and I have ages that range no more than two years apart and have many similarities. We all share the same neighborhood, school, ethnicity, and experiences. Within our group, we have words and phrases we have our own meanings to. Our group is very connected through music. When any of us have had a bad day or experience, we tell each other “just dance, it will be ok”. These are the lyrics of a song we all listen, dance, and sing to in the car together. Hearing these words brings you back to those good times and instantly makes you feel better. In regular conversation, we look to the most basic way of words. We speak the way we text. We say “brb” and “omg” to each other to communicate we will “be right back” or that we are surprised. We are comfortable to use abbreviations, incorrect tenses, and a simple vocabulary. This language would not be appropriate or understood in a sophisticated setting.
In a professional environment, language use is formal. I work at a small pizza restaurant called Il Vicino in Denver. For the sake of being courteous and suitable to a business surrounding, one must adapt to proper language. We must use formal and appropriate language around customers and managers. Within the restaurant, we have phrases and terms that employees are familiar with that would confuse the public. We have positions of runners, register, and barista, which would confuse anyone unfamiliar to restaurant work. The titles are straightforward, but what each job description requires if assigned is something only the employee would know and understand. As a runner, the employee runs the drinks, salads, and pizzas to tables while the barista prepares the drinks, takes care of To Go orders, and buses empty tables. The person on register takes the customer’s order and manages sales. We have labels for tables (A1-D9) that only employees would be able to indicate. We have terms such as “as a calzone”, “sos”, “as an entrée”, “1st outs” and many more that is part of our common language during a shift. These terms tell the cook to make the pizza a calzone, to put the sauce on the side (salad dressing or marinara sauce), and to time a salad or bowl of soup to come out with the meal. “First outs” is a term servers use to indicate what jobs need to be done before clocking out for a shift. Everyone who understands and uses these terms has the commonality of being employed at Il Vicino. Every member of a sports team or club becomes engaged in a language only that group or sport has to offer.
The language of a cheerleading squad is impossible to decode without being familiar with the terms that accompany the sport. The language usage on a cheerleading squad is jargon. Some terms for stunting include flyer, base, back spot, full, arabesque, liberty, extension, elevator, heel stretch, cradle, pop, re-load, and basket-toss. To explain a few, the flyer is the person who stands on her bases, the people holding her up, and has a back spot behind her to catch her. A full is twisting in the air before cradling, which is where the bases and back spot catch the flyer. For tumbling, or gymnastics, the labels round off back-hand-spring, back tuck, full, and layout are used. The counting, the motions, the uniforms and more are all included in the language of practices, games, and competitions. All cheerleaders can speak this language and comprehend what everything is because they have being a cheerleader in common. To any outsider, the terms and phrases used would sound like a different language.
Types of language use have their time and place. Based on similarities or differences, a person can judge how well a community will comprehend the type of language they use. The environment and connections around a person are the source to determining what type of language will be appropriate and understandable. Without different communities in our lives, the many wonderful aspects of language would be left unexplored.