ABSTRACT

This paper explores the position of ‘linguistic expert’, and how being positioned as an expert affects the linguistic and ethnic identity construction of a group of Polish-English bilingual adolescents living in the UK. Findings indicate that while the participants are often positioned as linguistic experts in English and/or Polish, this may not correspond with their own feelings of linguistic competency. In the UK, the adolescents engage in language brokering, a practice which presumes an expert knowledge of each language that the participants do not always feel they possess. At school, the adolescents resist being regarded as fluent in English; when visiting Poland, they find their knowledge of Polish lacking. Closer examination of the participants’ narratives suggests that the concept of linguistic ‘expert’ is open to negotiation, and that the adolescents both challenge and exploit notions of expertise as they negotiate their own linguistic and ethnic identities.

摘要

本文探讨了“语言专家”的定位，以及专家定位如何影响居住在英国的一群波兰-英语双语青少年的语言和种族认同构建。调查结果表明，虽然参与者通常被定位为英语和/或波兰语的语言专家，但这可能与他们自己对语言能力的感觉不相符。在英国，青少年从事语言中介，这种做法假定参与者并不总是觉得自己拥有每种语言的专业知识。在学校，青少年拒绝被视为英语流利；在访问波兰时，他们发现缺乏波兰语知识。对参与者叙述的仔细研究表明，语言“专家”的概念是可以协商的，