The following articles explore speakers' varying attitudes towards different usages of English. In VCE English Language, we discuss both prescriptivist and descriptivist attitudes:
Prescriptivist attitude: The belief that there is a 'correct' way of using language, and that any usage which fails to conform to the rules of Standard English is wrong.
Descriptivist attitude: The belief that language is not a matter of right vs wrong, but rather that it encompasses a variety of usages for different purposes. There is therefore no 'incorrect' way of using English, only usages that do or do not conform to the Standard. This attitude is observational rather than judgmental.
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Useful quotes from the article:
'Recently, it came to my attention how many of us lapse into purist/prescriptivist mode when we're in a social setting and the common grumble aids bonding.'
'I don't know how you can be a real purist about language. You have to accept that language changes. If you don't, exactly what's the point at which English should've stopped changing? Shakespeare? Before the Norman Conquest? I suspect that so-called purists are unhappy with any deviation from what they were taught was correct at school.... So, I'm definitely an evolutionist. For one thing, I'd be out of a job if English wasn't constantly changing.'
- Alison Moore, chief editor of the Macquarie Dictionary
'In language, the discourse of the "pet peeve" is especially dishonest, as it allows people to invalidate the speech of others by presenting their own aesthetic preferences as so many harmless personality quirks. Never mind that the peeves are often ahistorical! You can tell people that "over" has been used in place of "more than" since the 14th century. Nobody cares; they love the rule. For Australians, who are otherwise keen to emphasise this country's anti-authoritarian or larrikin streaks, it's especially galling.'
- Tiger Webb, ABC's language research specialist
'[Prescriptivism vs descriptivism] is a bit of a false dichotomy. Most now agree on basic precepts long codified in education systems: that language changes; that language change is normal; that speech counts as language; that usage is relative, and so on. Purist, though, is a woeful term, because motives here are often impure. It's no surprise that the objects of the purist's scorn are often young, or female, or lack institutional power.'
- Tiger Webb, ABC's language research specialist
'[Linguistic 'pet peeves'] often don't reflect the language as it's spoken by most people, but they provide a way for people to show their education. If you're writing in a formal genre you will likely learn and apply many of these rules, but I don't tend to "peeve" about them because there are plenty more important things to worry about in the world.'
- Lauren Gawne, linguist at LaTrobe University
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The Guardian Australia - Annoying mispronunciations: do they make you go nucular? Probly
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