Insulting Problems in a Second Language

Abstract

Whether you adhere to the strong, weak, standard, revised, or no version of the contrastive analysis hypothesis, the fact remains that second language learners experience both positive and negative transfer of linguistic form. Work on transfer has usually focused on the linguistic codes of the two languages, for example, examining the extent to which certain phonological systems contribute to phonetic interference in the second language. Recently, however, investigators have begun to consider transfer of functional ability from the first to the second language. Transfer of communicative competence has become relevant. Research in this area has dealt primarily with particular speech acts, such as requesting, suggesting, and apologizing. Under investigation is how social variables such as sex, age, and status play a role in influencing the learner's choice of strategy for performing a given speech act. This article differs from these efforts in two important ways. First, the focus of this paper is the act of insulting, certainly a type of speech act, but not an illocutionary one. Second, the present research does not explore those social factors which condition insulting. Rather it looks at the nature of insulting and the techniques used to insult, and it also provides a comparison among several languages of a small part of the insulting repertoire. My purpose is to focus attention on this aspect of language use, one which I see to be a real and important part of the acquisition of a second language, but one totally overlooked in the research literature. It is a significant area which, if better understood, will permit teachers to both develop effective materials and recognize where communication disasters can occur.