2010年12月英語四六級考試閱讀提高練習(25)

　　Models and Monuments

　　It is fashionable nowadays to talk about "Englishes"—surely one of the least attractive of recent coinages. But it is an indication that the great community of users of English are now conscious of the fact that they do not all have exactly the same accent, or habit of grammar and idiom, or vocabulary. They have a choice, and they intend to use it. How does Britain stand in this comparison? What is the role of the British Council, and other British educational interests? How does a major initiative like the Cobuild project further the image of Britain abroad? Born with English

　　In Britain on the whole we do not have much of a choice. We can take steps to modify our language a little, and there are some famous recent examples of the perils attending that policy. But by and large we just use the language that somehow emerges in early development and usually seems adequate for our daily communication needs.

　　We should never forget what an asset it is to us all that this language is English. Everyone who has English as a birthright has an inbuilt (固有的) advantage in international communication. Not only are we spared the trouble and expense of mastering the language later on, we also have access to a mastery of it which is of such high quality that few foreigners ever reach the same level.

　　Such an asset beats North Sea Oil hands down. It must be worth billions of pounds a year and it is renewed solely by the operation of normal social processes. Only English

　　There are some disadvantages which must at least be mentioned. We in Britain are in danger of turning this asset into arrogance, insularity and complacency. Since there is no commercial pressure on us to learn any particular foreign language, we tend as a nation to be very bad learners of other languages.. This cuts us off from the ability to appreciate fully the culture of others, and denies us the ability to make the wonderful outward gesture of using someone else's own language. Both personally and commercially, most British people do not know what they are missing, and our competitors are well able to take advantage of this weakness.

　　Busy and important people nowadays travel a lot and find themselves frequently attending meetings and giving talks, which have to be in English although everyone else shares a common language. It would improve the situation if on each occasion the unfortunate monolingual were to give a simple and sincere apology. The old adage (格言) » that if you just speak English loudly enough everyone will understand, is truer than ever before, but is getting less and less effective.

　　In practical terms, of course, the person restricted to English could not be expected to speak all sorts of other languages, and this is an inhibiting factor— anyone else knows exactly which language is best worth investing in. But we native speakers of English should always be kept conscious of the fact that we frequently force our friends, customers and colleagues into a disadvantageous position. Which English?

　　The English language has been so successfully exported round the world that the native speakers no longer have control over it. They are now in a snow minority, for a start, and today's learners of English are not learning it particularly to talk to Englishmen, but also to talk to each other. The very features that distinguish native speakers disqualify them from key discussions like "Which is the best English?"

　　There are a lot of good models of English available. As well as British English there is American English, the other world-wide model,. with Canadian, Australian, New Zealand and South African English also available as prominent models.

　　And what about the English which is established as a second language in many Commonwealth countries? Indian English, West African English, West Indian English, Singaporean English and others have adapted to local circumstances over many years and are in the process of being re-exported. Because they are used in the everyday lives of millions of non-native speakers, they have features which could make them very attractive as practical alternatives to a native speaker variety. When native speaking teachers are not welcome politically in a country, for example, there will be found plenty of well-qualified and experienced colleagues from such countries.

　　Further, we are witness at the present time to the development of English as an additional language in a number of communities which have a common language already and which are under no political pressure to adopt English. People from Scandinavia, West Germany and Holland, for instance, have English available as a matter of course. Their way of teaching it is moving from the concerns of access to a foreign culture—the great literature etc. —to the priorities of a working language in a community—how to get things done. Gradually, for international matters, it will be more sensible to use English rather than translate. English language films will not be dubbed (配音) or subtitled any more. English language journalism will be edited and read by foreign communities, and gradually written by them also.