Language and Identity

Language not only expresses identities but also constructs them. Starting from that point, this book examines the interrelationships between language and identities. It finds that they are so close, words themselves are inscribed with ideological meanings. Words and language constitute meanings within discourses, and discourses vary in power. The powerful ones reproduce more powerful meanings and ideologies, colonizing other discourses and even silencing marginalized smaller discourses. We therefore have marginalized communities on the fringes of dominant discourses with impotent voices. This amounts to a 'war of the words', resulting in a silent injustice of the voiceless that needs our attention and assistance. This book is for students and academics and forms an attempt to redress social injustice by supporting language identities and communities. It explores the construction of identity through and within various language discourses and the way in which identities in turn shape language. The theoretical perspectives draw upon Bakhtin, Vygotsky, Foucault, Gumperz and others. It shows readers that language does not just express identity but also ideologically creates and then continues to shape it.