PhDr. Jitka Vlčková, Ph.D.
Katedra anglistiky a
amerikanistiky
Immigrants‘
Integration Into The Mainstream Culture
In Australia
(As Reflected In Personal
Advertisements)
Co
je možné vyčíst ze seznamovacích inzerátů o integraci přistěhovalců do Austrálie
Keywords: Australian
English, media, advertising.
Annotation: By
advertising in current Australian newspapers, the immigrants signal they signal
their willingness to accept and conform to the values of the majority.
The wording of their ads,
however, does not testify to their full acculturation: they understand words
but not comprehend all their
connotations. Immigrants and Australian women wish for a Caucasian partner
(pref. of Anglo-Saxon origin), while Australian men prefer an Asian.
Australians value the qualities of character more than intellect. Immigrants,
on the other hand, value education, which obviously means for them a ‘secured
living’.
Anotace: Inzerováním v běžných australských novinách
dávají přistěhovalci najevo, že chtějí přijmout za své hodnoty sdílené
vládnoucí většinou, která je Anglo-saského původu. Jejich inzeráty však
prozrazují, že nejsou s majoritní
kulturou zcela v souladu. Vědí, co znamenají slova, ale nespojují je se
stejnými konotacemi.
Přistěhovalci –
muži i ženy a australské ženy dávají přednost
partnerům bílé rasy ( kódem je „národnost“ -‘Australian‘, ‘European‘,
‘British‘,‘American‘) , zatímco australští muži hledají Asiatky. Australané
upřednostňují charakterové vlastnosti,
přistěhovalci uvádějí spíše intelektové schopnosti a vzdělání, které je
pro ně zřejmě symbolem zabezpečeného života
Immigrants‘ Integration Into The Mainstream Culture In Australia
(As Reflected In Personal
Advertisements)
Numerous magazines and newspapers currently
contain pages of personal advertisements. Self-advertising in various kinds of media, including the radio
and the internet, has become a popular way of
meeting prospective partners.
Some studies explain the increase in the
popularity of personal advertising by alienation and lonelines which stem from high population
density in urban areas. Other studies view
personal advertising as ”a healthy
and innovative adaptation to rapid social change” (Bolig, Stein &
McKenry In:Tither) and as ”relationally
efficient and ‘natural‘ response” to the
work centred, time-pressured and mass-mediated circumstances of modern
life (Coupland in: Tither ).
The presented pilot study considered
advertisements submitted by immigrants to Australia in current newspapers, i.e.
The Age, The Daily Telegraph and Weekly Southern Courier,. The aim was to determine how these people align
with the values and their linguistic manifestations in advertisements submitted
by other Australians. As M.Merleau-Ponty says, ”I may speak many languages, but
there remains one in which I live.”At stake is
their acculturation, i.e. whether they are still in ”the ‘permanent
immigrant ’ state, where one is always able to understand the words but is
never completely capable of comprehending all their connotations” (in:Valdes
21), or whether they passed beyond that
threshold and became virtually ‘native’. The paper discusses only statistically
interesting differences between the two groups.
In spite of Australia’s being home to many ethnic
groups, Caucasians are in the majority, as recent statistics of 1999 show:
Anglo-Celt 70%
Indigenous 2%
Other 1%
It is known that individuals reveal their social identity in communication. When communicating, people unwittingly demonstrate how they feel about their position in society and how they want to be perceived and viewed by other people.
Personal advertisements are pieces of phatic communication, the main goal
of which is to establish social contact (Jakobson 1960). Personal
advertisements are habitually limited in space. The advertisers - in the attempt to conform to the
established requirements - put in their advertisements
things and values they consider most important in life. They attempt to
give their devices
maximum efficiency, valid for an unlimited number of addressees with a
potential focus on a single reader. The writer
is preoccupied with the way s/he want his/her message be decoded by the
reader so that not only the meaning but the attitude to what is being conveyed
is shared by the reader. This attempt may not
be successful because the authors of personal advertisements are not
experts in writing and are not always fully aware of the complexity of
interplay between mere communication and
the expressive, affective and aesthetic connotations.
For the above reasons, the research also considered male and female advertisements separately, as there is a recognised ‘asymmetrical semantic filter’(Tannen in: Langsdorf 11). This means that words may be understood differently by men and by women and also bring different associations (e.g. ‘blonde‘ may be just a description of ‘fair hair’ but may bring up associations of ‘sex appeal’) (cf. Stolt & Trost 1976).
The usual structure of a personal advertisement consists of two parts, i.e. the writer’s self-description (SD) (attractive, outgoing, sincere…), including self-identification (SI )(guy, gent, male, lady…), a bridging verb (seeking, looking for…) and a partner’s description (PD) (slim, educated…) and identification (PI) (lady, girl, male..).This information is frequently complemented by ‘viewed relationship’, (for friendship, lasting relationship…) :
Ex.1.: OUTGOING 24 Aust.guy, 5′8″, brown hair, blue
eyes, sense of humour, likes outdoor activities, movies, would like to meet
slim lady 21-26 years of age for friendship, view relationship if suited. (D. .T.)
The first part of the advertisement is most important as it should encourage the reader to read on.
Ads submitted by Australian men frequently refer to Australian
nationality (in 26%), less inwomen (6%). This is especially so among the
advertisers in
Reference to nationality
can be found only in 14% of men who come from other ethnic backgrounds and 7%
of women. To be able to say that a person is ‘Australian’ seems to be highly
desirable when looking for a partner.
For this reason, some advertisers from other ethnic backgrounds stress
their Australian affiliation:
Ex.3: GREEK AUSTRALIAN 55yo,
interested in going to movies…(W.S.C.)
The following table giving the most frequently
wished nationality in the prospective partners (if stated) indicates that
Australian partners are preferred by
females from other ethnic backgrounds and by Australian women while Australian
men prefer Asian partners. Rumours say that it is so because Asian women are
less assertive, more obedient and perhaps better homemakers. Men from other
ethnic backgrounds look for a European if they themselves come from a European
bacground, usually Greek or Italian.
|
MAU |
Moth.nationality |
FAU |
Foth.nationality |
|
Asian
(26%) |
European (16%) |
Australian (20%) |
Australian
(25%) |
|
Australian (10%) |
Asian (13%) |
British/Anglo-Saxon (20%) |
European (12%) |
|
European (3%) |
Australian (13%) |
European (10%) |
American/ Canadian (12%) |
MAU = male Australian; Moth.nationality = male
other nationality
FAU = female Australian; Foth.nationality = female
other nationality
‘Asian’ incl.Chinese, Thai, Japanese
While there is not much difference between the groups as to the
described physical qualities both in self and partner’s descriptions, and therefore the issue is not
discussed here, the category of character qualities and skills offers a
different picture. Females of other nationalities stress their being
intelligent, educated and caring, while Australian women prefer having fun and
say they are romantic and warm. They value qualities of character rather than
intellect. Men do not consider education in their partners as being important,
nevertheless, some of them would like
their female partner be intelligent, and they also would like their partner
have a sense of humour, none of the qualities mentioned by Australian women.
Women from other ethnic backgrounds stress education in their partners, most
probably because they look for security and protection and consider an educated
partner to have a secure job with reasonable income. The same would apply to a
professional. Australian women, on the other hand, stress character
qualities which do not have a materialistic overtone.
(For explanation of abbreviations see above)
Females
|
FOthSD |
FAUSD |
||
|
Educated |
24% |
fun-loving |
20% |
|
intelligent |
24% |
warm(personality) |
10% |
|
Caring |
20% |
active |
10% |
|
Loving |
8% |
romantic |
10% |
|
Sense of humour |
8% |
sense of humour |
0 |
|
FOthPD |
FAUPD |
||
|
Educated |
24% |
genuine |
20% |
|
intelligent |
20% |
sincere |
20% |
|
professional |
20% |
sense of humour |
20% |
|
Caring |
16% |
secure |
10% |
|
Honest |
16% |
educated |
0 |
|
Sincere |
16% |
intelligent |
0 |
|
non-smoker |
16% |
caring |
0 |
Males
|
MOthSD |
MAUSD |
||
|
non/social smoker |
12% |
non/social drinker |
23% |
|
sense of humour |
10% |
non/social smoker |
23% |
|
professional |
7% |
caring |
17% |
|
Romantic |
7% |
secure |
17% |
|
Caring |
0 |
educated |
8% |
|
MOthPD |
MAUPD |
||
|
Romantic |
20% |
intelligent |
10% |
|
sense of humour |
10% |
affectionate |
7% |
|
intelligent |
3% |
sincere |
7% |
|
affectionate |
3% |
sense of humour |
5% |
|
educated |
0 |
educated |
1.5% |
Hobbies/Interests
The
advertised hobbies and interests which
rank at the top among Australians are given little attention among the ‘other
nationalities’ groups. Apart from
travel, which is popular both among Australians and other ethnic groups
(MAu 23%, MOth 13%, FAu 20%, FOth 24%), and which may be a code for sufficient
means, ‘other nationality’groups would
rather be engaged in some sort of socializing, such as dining, movie going,
dancing, and cooking, than activities connected with Australian open spaces.
None of them mentions bush walking, camping or BBq, i.e. activities which are
popular among other Australians.
Viewed
Relationship
Though the purpose of personal advertising is clear to all involved, more than half of the advertisers mention the goal of their looking for a partner; they do so in describing the viewed relationship, whereby friendship and relationship occur most frequently (Au men 79 %, MOth 50%, FAu 30%, FOth 60%).
Wierzbicka (1997) includes ‘friendship’ in her study of key words that are culturally revealing. She looks at collocations with ‘friend’ and finds that they may be controversial, such as a ‘faithful friend’ but also a ‘false friend’, a ‘steadfast friend’ but also a ‘fair weather friend’ or a ‘summer friend’. ‘Friendship’ is viewed as something permanent, as reflected in collocations such as ‘eternal friendship’. Other collocations included the words ‘steady’ and ‘constant’.
The advertisers in our sample challenge Wierzbicka’s claim of ‘friendship as something permanent’ as they do not see ‘friendship’ as something ‘eternal’ or ‘steady’. ‘Friendship’ seems to have slipped into the same usage as Wierzbicka (51/52) describes in ‘friend’:”… in the old usage of the word friend, people were usually expected to ‘love’ their friends... (Now) there is a qualitative difference, which roughly speaking, can be linked with the contrast between ‘affection’ and ‘enjoyment’…. In the older English literature, people ‘loved’ their friends, or felt and thought of them as ‘dear’ and ‘dearest’. By contrast, in contemporary English ..., people are more likely to talk about ‘friends’ in terms of ‘enjoyment’ ‘pleasure’ and ‘fun’.” These terms can be observed in collocations such as fun & friendship. The collocation casual friendship even denies the fundamentals of the traditional concept of ‘friendship’: casual does not presume ‘commitment’ and ‘faithfulness’ to another person.
Ex.4: CHARMING AUSTRALIAN
BUSINESSMAN … seeks casual friendship… (W.S.C.)
Nor do the advertisers who leave friendship
unspecified bring any evidence to their understanding of the word in its
traditional meaning, as most of them see it as the ‘first stage’ which may
develop into relationship.
Ex.5: AUSSIE MALE … female 18-20
with similar interests for friendship view permanent relationship. {D.T.)
Relationship thus seems to be understood as involving
more commitment, as being lasting or permanent, as a word that substitutes for
the ‘old fashioned’ ‘marriage’. And indeed, the most frequent collocate is permanent,
i.e. permanent relationship. One can thus presume that ‘relationship’
may, in some situations replace the traditional ‘friendship’. Western culture
sometimes denies the existence of lasting friendship between the opposite
sexes. This may be the reason why Australian women do not use the word ‘friendship’; they only say ‘relationship’
without any further attribute, i.e. ‘for r’ship’.
There are, however, also examples which contravene the hypothesis of stability and permanency of ‘relationship’. Some advertisers do not see ‘relationship’ be limited in the terms of time and/or commitment as most collocates suggest, but allow it a rather free course even allowing the interpretation of ‘an occasional date’:
Ex.6: AUSSIE 40, seeks Aussie or
Asian, 30-40, casual to permanent relationship. Sports, beaches, … (W.S.C.)
Marriage is almost a ‘taboo’ word among the viewed relationships, used by only 5% MAu and 3% Moth. and 0% Fau and 12% FOth. ‘Marriage’ seems to be out of date: its place has been taken over by ‘permanent relationship’ and ‘lasting relationship’. ”‘Marriage’ is a legal union of a man with a woman for life”. (Macq.Dict.) Words suggesting life-long commitment are not popular today in that they suggest the loss of ‘personal freedom’. Unlike marriage, one can always walk out of a relationship as there are no documents, no authorities one would be liable to. ‘Relationship’ is not the final stage. Most (80%) advertisers who mention marriage see it as the culmination of some preceding phase, i.e., of companionship, friendship or relationship:
Ex. 7: ASIAN LADY good looking
…well educated, ...seeks educated man - preferably businessman 39-46 y/o with
similar interests for a long term rel/ship, marriage … (S.T.)
All the females who mention marriage are of foreign origin, usually Asian. We can presume that they are affected by their ethnic culture that is not so open to free cohabitation. Marriage may also ensure permanent residency and some income in case the marriage breaks up. On the other hand, men who advertise for marriage are looking for an Asian or a partner of any nationality.Thus they convey that they respect the traditions of other cultures and that they are ready to make the commitment. Other advertisers mention their Christian religion. The Church does not approve of cohabitation in a ‘relationship’ without marriage. By saying marriage the advertisers signal they are practising believers.
|
Friendship
–permanent relationship |
Relationship |
|
|
MAu |
32% |
47% |
|
MOth |
10% |
40%
/marriage 3%/ |
|
FOth |
20% |
40%
/permanent/ marriage 12% |
|
FAu |
|
30% |
Advertisements submitted by people from other cultures do not exhibit striking differences in vocabulary or structure It is rather the offered and required qualities, such as education, intellectual activities, socializing and permanent commitment in relationships which point at the values recognized in their home cultures, thus contrasting with the easy-going, laid back attitudes which can be traced in advertisements submitted by other Australians. Though not ”fully in line” with Australians, people from other cultures enrich Australian society with traditional values.
Works
cited:
Jakobson,Roman
(1960): Stylistics and Psychology. Sebekok.T.E.(ed.)Lingusistics and
Poetics.Selected Writings Ca CS.W.III
Langsdorf,
Virginia.(1994) The Language of Personal Advertising. Unpubl. M.A. thesis.University of
The
Stolt,Brigitte.
(1976): Hier bin ich! – Wo bist du? Kronberg: Skriptor Verlag
Stubbs, Michael.
(1996). Text and Corpus Analysis.
Tither,
M.Jacqueline (2000): elling yourself and procuring another:Investigating gender
differences in NZ dating advertisements.
Vlčková,
Jitka (1999). Do They Mean What They Say? Nationalism and Racial Coding
in Australian Personal Advertisements.
In: Wimmer, A.(ed.): Australian Nationalism Reconsidered.
Stauffenburg Verlag.
Vlčková, Jitka
(2002): Social Values, their lingusitic coding and changes through time:Australian
personal ads over the span of one hundred years. BSE S8,
91-102
Valdes,
Joyce Merrill (1986): Culture Bound. Bridging the cultural gap in language
teaching. CUP
Wierzbicka,
Anna (1997): Understanding Cultures Through Their Key Words. OUP
Programs
used:
Wordcruncher.(1989).
ETC
Bibliografický
údaj: VLČKOVÁ, J. Immigrants’Integration into the
Mainstream Culture in