Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation

Willie Mushing Tamfuh

doi:doi:10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12

| Peer-Reviewed

Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation

Willie Mushing Tamfuh

Published in Communication and Linguistics Studies (Volume 6, Issue 3)

Received: 26 September 2020 Accepted: 12 October 2020 Published: 21 October 2020

Views: Downloads:

Download PDF

Share This Article

Twitter
Linked In
Facebook

Abstract

In our time, casual conversations and political speeches as well as written productions in English in Cameroon are, to a greater extent, replete with ugly expressions full of sheer cloudy vagueness, inaccurate and debased language, consisting largely of euphemisms, pretentious dictions and sometimes meaningless words that depict a people’s experiences of resentment and bitterness as a result of tribalism and hatred. This investigation sets out to observe manifestation of tribalism and hatred in their speech, and to collect typical communicative acts in this light, analyze these as manifestations of tribalism and hate speech acts in contemporary Cameroon English speech. The objective is analyse this form of linguistic impoliteness in order to denounce and decry its devastating stigmatizing effects on living together and national integration, and which if not checked early and appropriately constitute a time-bomb. Different linguistic, sociological, ethnomethodological and psychological methods have been used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from informants, and analyze based on well-established sociological and pragmatic theories referred to as sociopragmatics; one of which is the critical discourse analysis that identifies and exposes the ways in which language, political ideology and tribal power are constantly instantiated and enacted in the everyday conversational discourse in Cameroon, politics and the media. It is important to be note that the words we use have power. Often, speakers are not conscious that the words they use does influence and affect the listener’s thoughts, actions, moral and emotional state and feelings, perception, hence his general behaviour. After the analysis, findings reveal that love for one another, decent speech, and upholding of human moral values are needful among Cameroonians. It builds human relations, mutual self-respect and a stronger nation. Nevertheless, from a purely linguistic perspective, tribalism and hatred have enriched contemporary Cameroon English vocabulary. In conclusion, a multilingual and culturally diversified nation as Cameroon needs a more inclusive participation of all the people for the construction of a better society.

Published in	Communication and Linguistics Studies (Volume 6, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12
Page(s)	47-64
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Tribalism, Politics, Media, Hate, Contemporary English, Usurpation

References

[1]	Pennycook, A & Makoni, S (2020). Innovations and Challenges in Applied Linguistics from the Global South, 1, Routledge, UK.
[2]	Bitja'a Kody, Zachée Denis (1999) ‘Problématique de la cohabitation des Langues". In: Mendo Ze, Gervais (éd.): Le français langue africaine: Enjeux et atouts pour la Francophonie. Paris: 80-95.
[3]	Breton, R. and Fohtung, Bikia (1991) Atlas Administratif des langues nationales du Cameroun, Yaoundé, Paris.
[4]	Boum Ndongo-Semengue, M. A. & Sadembouo, Etienne (1999) "L'Atlas Linguistique Cameroun: les langues nationales et leur gestion". In: Mendo Ze, Gervais (ed.): Le français langue africaine: Enjeux et atouts pour la Francophonie. Paris: 67-79.
[5]	Ethnologue (2017) Languages of the World; Twentieth Edition, Summary by country, Cameroon, the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL) International, www. ethnologue. Com.
[6]	Wolf, H. (2001): English in Cameroon. Berlin, New York.
[7]	Wolf, H. (1997): "Transcendence of Ethnic Boundaries: The Case of the Anglophones in Cameroon". Journal of Sociolinguistics 1 (3): 419-426.
[8]	Skinner B. F. (1957) Verbal Behaviour, Appleton Century, New York, USA.
[9]	Chomsky, N. (2012). with James McGilvray, The Science of Language, Cambridge University Press.
[10]	Chomsky, N. (2004). Language and Politics Cambridge: Polity Press.
[11]	Schwarz, W. (1966). Tribalism and Politics in Nigeria, The World Today, Vol. 22, No. 11, pp. 460-467.
[12]	Rotberg, R, I. (1967). Tribalism and Politics in Zambia, African Report, New York, Vol. 12, Iss. 9, Dec. 1, p. 29.
[13]	Orwell, G. (2006). Politics and the English Language. Peterborough: Broadview Press.,
[14]	Carroll et al (2012). Language, Thought and Reality; Selected Writing of Benjamin Lee Whorf (2nd Ed.) The MIT Press.
[15]	Pennycook AD (2016), The Cultural Politics of English as an International Language (Classic edition: 2016), Re-release (Classic Edition: 2016), Routledge, London.
[16]	Fairclough, N. (1995). Critical Discourse Analysis: The critical study of language. London: Longman, 1995. Pp. 265.
[17]	Saville-Stroike, M. (2013); The Ethnography of Communication. An Introduction (3^rd Ed.) Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 108 Cowley Road, Oxford, UK.
[18]	Garfinkel, H. (2017) in Jacobson, Micheal Hviid; The Interactionist Imagination studying Meaning, Situation and Micro-Social Order, London, Palgrave-Macmillian, PP. 233-261.
[19]	Grice H. P. (1981) Studies in the Way of Words, Harvard University Press, 1989, 385 pp., Vol. 65. Issue 251.
[20]	Austin J. L (1962) How to do Things with Words, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
[21]	Leech, G. N. 1. (1983), Principles of Pragmatics, London, England, Longman, p. 11.
[22]	Lucy, J. A. in International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioural Sciences.
[23]	Selma K. S. (2003) The Local Politics of Global English; Case studies in Linguistic Globalization, Lexington books, USA, The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group Inc.
[24]	Ngolle Ngolle, E (1991)"Ethnicity or Tribalism in African Politics, Implications for Democracy in Cameroon", CAMEROON. TRIBUNE, 27 May 1991, p. 7. 32.

Cite This Article

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Willie Mushing Tamfuh. (2020). Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation. Communication and Linguistics Studies, 6(3), 47-64. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Willie Mushing Tamfuh. Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation. Commun. Linguist. Stud. 2020, 6(3), 47-64. doi: 10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Willie Mushing Tamfuh. Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation. Commun Linguist Stud. 2020;6(3):47-64. doi: 10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12,
  author = {Willie Mushing Tamfuh},
  title = {Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation},
  journal = {Communication and Linguistics Studies},
  volume = {6},
  number = {3},
  pages = {47-64},
  doi = {10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.cls.20200603.12},
  abstract = {In our time, casual conversations and political speeches as well as written productions in English in Cameroon are, to a greater extent, replete with ugly expressions full of sheer cloudy vagueness, inaccurate and debased language, consisting largely of euphemisms, pretentious dictions and sometimes meaningless words that depict a people’s experiences of resentment and bitterness as a result of tribalism and hatred. This investigation sets out to observe manifestation of tribalism and hatred in their speech, and to collect typical communicative acts in this light, analyze these as manifestations of tribalism and hate speech acts in contemporary Cameroon English speech. The objective is analyse this form of linguistic impoliteness in order to denounce and decry its devastating stigmatizing effects on living together and national integration, and which if not checked early and appropriately constitute a time-bomb. Different linguistic, sociological, ethnomethodological and psychological methods have been used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from informants, and analyze based on well-established sociological and pragmatic theories referred to as sociopragmatics; one of which is the critical discourse analysis that identifies and exposes the ways in which language, political ideology and tribal power are constantly instantiated and enacted in the everyday conversational discourse in Cameroon, politics and the media. It is important to be note that the words we use have power. Often, speakers are not conscious that the words they use does influence and affect the listener’s thoughts, actions, moral and emotional state and feelings, perception, hence his general behaviour. After the analysis, findings reveal that love for one another, decent speech, and upholding of human moral values are needful among Cameroonians. It builds human relations, mutual self-respect and a stronger nation. Nevertheless, from a purely linguistic perspective, tribalism and hatred have enriched contemporary Cameroon English vocabulary. In conclusion, a multilingual and culturally diversified nation as Cameroon needs a more inclusive participation of all the people for the construction of a better society.},
 year = {2020}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation
AU  - Willie Mushing Tamfuh
Y1  - 2020/10/21
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12
T2  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
JF  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
JO  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
SP  - 47
EP  - 64
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2380-2529
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12
AB  - In our time, casual conversations and political speeches as well as written productions in English in Cameroon are, to a greater extent, replete with ugly expressions full of sheer cloudy vagueness, inaccurate and debased language, consisting largely of euphemisms, pretentious dictions and sometimes meaningless words that depict a people’s experiences of resentment and bitterness as a result of tribalism and hatred. This investigation sets out to observe manifestation of tribalism and hatred in their speech, and to collect typical communicative acts in this light, analyze these as manifestations of tribalism and hate speech acts in contemporary Cameroon English speech. The objective is analyse this form of linguistic impoliteness in order to denounce and decry its devastating stigmatizing effects on living together and national integration, and which if not checked early and appropriately constitute a time-bomb. Different linguistic, sociological, ethnomethodological and psychological methods have been used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from informants, and analyze based on well-established sociological and pragmatic theories referred to as sociopragmatics; one of which is the critical discourse analysis that identifies and exposes the ways in which language, political ideology and tribal power are constantly instantiated and enacted in the everyday conversational discourse in Cameroon, politics and the media. It is important to be note that the words we use have power. Often, speakers are not conscious that the words they use does influence and affect the listener’s thoughts, actions, moral and emotional state and feelings, perception, hence his general behaviour. After the analysis, findings reveal that love for one another, decent speech, and upholding of human moral values are needful among Cameroonians. It builds human relations, mutual self-respect and a stronger nation. Nevertheless, from a purely linguistic perspective, tribalism and hatred have enriched contemporary Cameroon English vocabulary. In conclusion, a multilingual and culturally diversified nation as Cameroon needs a more inclusive participation of all the people for the construction of a better society.
VL  - 6
IS  - 3
ER  -

Copy | Download

Author Information

Willie Mushing Tamfuh

The Department of English, Faculty of Arts, Letters and Social Sciences, The University of Ngaoundere, Ngaoundere, Cameroon

Download PDF

Sections

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Willie Mushing Tamfuh. (2020). Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation. Communication and Linguistics Studies, 6(3), 47-64. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Willie Mushing Tamfuh. Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation. Commun. Linguist. Stud. 2020, 6(3), 47-64. doi: 10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Willie Mushing Tamfuh. Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation. Commun Linguist Stud. 2020;6(3):47-64. doi: 10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12,
  author = {Willie Mushing Tamfuh},
  title = {Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation},
  journal = {Communication and Linguistics Studies},
  volume = {6},
  number = {3},
  pages = {47-64},
  doi = {10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.cls.20200603.12},
  abstract = {In our time, casual conversations and political speeches as well as written productions in English in Cameroon are, to a greater extent, replete with ugly expressions full of sheer cloudy vagueness, inaccurate and debased language, consisting largely of euphemisms, pretentious dictions and sometimes meaningless words that depict a people’s experiences of resentment and bitterness as a result of tribalism and hatred. This investigation sets out to observe manifestation of tribalism and hatred in their speech, and to collect typical communicative acts in this light, analyze these as manifestations of tribalism and hate speech acts in contemporary Cameroon English speech. The objective is analyse this form of linguistic impoliteness in order to denounce and decry its devastating stigmatizing effects on living together and national integration, and which if not checked early and appropriately constitute a time-bomb. Different linguistic, sociological, ethnomethodological and psychological methods have been used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from informants, and analyze based on well-established sociological and pragmatic theories referred to as sociopragmatics; one of which is the critical discourse analysis that identifies and exposes the ways in which language, political ideology and tribal power are constantly instantiated and enacted in the everyday conversational discourse in Cameroon, politics and the media. It is important to be note that the words we use have power. Often, speakers are not conscious that the words they use does influence and affect the listener’s thoughts, actions, moral and emotional state and feelings, perception, hence his general behaviour. After the analysis, findings reveal that love for one another, decent speech, and upholding of human moral values are needful among Cameroonians. It builds human relations, mutual self-respect and a stronger nation. Nevertheless, from a purely linguistic perspective, tribalism and hatred have enriched contemporary Cameroon English vocabulary. In conclusion, a multilingual and culturally diversified nation as Cameroon needs a more inclusive participation of all the people for the construction of a better society.},
 year = {2020}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Tribalism, Politics and Hate Discourse in Contemporary Cameroon English; a Linguistic Usurpation
AU  - Willie Mushing Tamfuh
Y1  - 2020/10/21
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12
T2  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
JF  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
JO  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
SP  - 47
EP  - 64
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2380-2529
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20200603.12
AB  - In our time, casual conversations and political speeches as well as written productions in English in Cameroon are, to a greater extent, replete with ugly expressions full of sheer cloudy vagueness, inaccurate and debased language, consisting largely of euphemisms, pretentious dictions and sometimes meaningless words that depict a people’s experiences of resentment and bitterness as a result of tribalism and hatred. This investigation sets out to observe manifestation of tribalism and hatred in their speech, and to collect typical communicative acts in this light, analyze these as manifestations of tribalism and hate speech acts in contemporary Cameroon English speech. The objective is analyse this form of linguistic impoliteness in order to denounce and decry its devastating stigmatizing effects on living together and national integration, and which if not checked early and appropriately constitute a time-bomb. Different linguistic, sociological, ethnomethodological and psychological methods have been used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from informants, and analyze based on well-established sociological and pragmatic theories referred to as sociopragmatics; one of which is the critical discourse analysis that identifies and exposes the ways in which language, political ideology and tribal power are constantly instantiated and enacted in the everyday conversational discourse in Cameroon, politics and the media. It is important to be note that the words we use have power. Often, speakers are not conscious that the words they use does influence and affect the listener’s thoughts, actions, moral and emotional state and feelings, perception, hence his general behaviour. After the analysis, findings reveal that love for one another, decent speech, and upholding of human moral values are needful among Cameroonians. It builds human relations, mutual self-respect and a stronger nation. Nevertheless, from a purely linguistic perspective, tribalism and hatred have enriched contemporary Cameroon English vocabulary. In conclusion, a multilingual and culturally diversified nation as Cameroon needs a more inclusive participation of all the people for the construction of a better society.
VL  - 6
IS  - 3
ER  -

Copy | Download