Linguistic practice and identity work: Variation in Taiwan Mandarin at a Taipei County high school

Abstract

This article examines variation in the use of two Taiwan Mandarin features, de‐retroflection of sibilant fricatives [ʂ] → [s], and labial glide deletion [wɔ] → [ɔ], in the speech of Taipei County high school students. The features become resources for the negotiation of identity positions within the highly structured school institution. I discuss the correlations between the use of Taiwan Mandarin and two social factors: membership in the small culture (Holliday ) of a particular bānjí or class, and individual aspirations. Holliday's concept of small cultures is proposed as a variant of the Community of Practice. I refer to Bucholtz and Hall's () tactics of intersubjectivity framework as a possible tool for explaining variation at the school. I argue that the two Taiwan Mandarin features are invoked to perform different social goals, which is possible because they are imbued with related but significantly different sociocultural meanings (Brubaker ; Baran ).