FUCK THE NEW WORLD ORDER: THE EMERGENCE OF ENGLISH AS A LANGUAGE OF SOCIAL PROTEST AND CONTESTATION IN LLEIDA - Carme Cervelló and Sílvia Torres
FUCK THE NEW WORLD ORDER: THE EMERGENCE OF ENGLISH AS A LANGUAGE OF SOCIAL PROTEST AND CONTESTATION IN LLEIDA
Carme Cervelló Garcia
Sílvia Torres Turmo
INTRODUCTION
The token we will analyse here is a piece of graffiti, which belongs to the domain activity of urban art, posted on a wall in a bottom-up manner, and written in English (which semiotically predominates) as well as Catalan, monoglosically, in the Roman script. Reading “Fuck the new world order (transfeminisme, contra el liberalisme)”, we will argue, in the analysis, that it is indexical of how global languages are getting accommodated into the Catalan sociolinguistic landscapes of Lleida, for social protest and contestation, through the use of aesthetic and identity values.
English is used extensively on a variety of (non-)institutional communicative inscriptions in the public realm as the global language of communication and lingua franca (ELF) that it has come to be, even in areas which are non-English speaking and where the process of Englishisation is relatively new, as in Lleida, Catalonia, where we conducted the study presented below. Given that English is thought to be closely related to globalization, it is being adopted into all civilizations more and more as a tool for global advancement (Phillipson, 2001). This can be clearly observed in this can be clearly observed in Linguistic landscapes (LL), which now encompass words and images exposed in public spaces via banners, handwritten notes, traffic signs, flags, posters, receipts, graffiti and other public communicative inscriptions (Wallach, 2020).
The LL often gives a more realistic picture of the sociolinguistic reality of a specific community than official language policies do, and it offers significant hints about the nature of multilingualism in society (Ndimulunde, 2019). By adopting this perspective, we regard the LL as a crucial location for the examination of the effects of mobility on the linguistic hierarchy of specific locations and regions. This is relevant for the analysis of local and global language contact in Catalonia, particularly, the interplay of English and Catalan/Spanish, and its social uses and meaning.
The main goals of this language landscaping project are to use tools we need to produce information about sociolinguistics phenomena and to grow as multilingual and multicultural intellectuals and citizens (committed people). More specifically, the purpose of this project is trying to examine the Englishization of the city of Lleida by looking at how the English language is gaining strength and blending into the street culture of Lleida.
Graffiti in Lleida (Catalonia, Spain) serves as the project's chosen LL. The area where it was found is alive and undergoing sociolinguistic change as a result of the social, and cultural activity involved in the neighborhood where it was found: Cappont (see Figure 1). The graffiti inscription read: graffiti entitled "FUCK NEW WORLD ORDER (TRANSFEMINISME, CONTRA EL LIBERALISME)", which includes a) English as the dominating language and b) as a "cool" adapted language that can be used to react and protest towards the heterosexist patriarchal (Koyama, 2000) c) also English since it is the international language of this global protest, d) Catalan in "Transfeminisme, contra el liberalisme", which is a simple and inexpensive way to reach a big audience, and also displays a feeling to upholding Catalan identity. In addition, the banner is monoglossic, since it solely uses the Roman alphabet.
Figure 1- Map of Lleida.
Source: Sabaté-Dalmau 2023, Appendix 1.
The phrase "new world order" has historically been used to refer to the necessity of altering the balance of power in international relations. The political concept alludes to the notion of a world government in the sense of fresh cooperative endeavors to recognize, comprehend, or address global issues that are beyond the capacity of individual nations to address (Slaughter, 2009). In our words: the authors of this graffiti (unknown), we believe, wished to communicate their thoughts on the following subjects; an ideology known as liberalism that works to uphold civil liberties and works to combat enlightened despotism, absolutism, and other currents in which the person does not have complete freedom. In short, it is a political fight concerning a cry against a view of the economy that reproduce social inequality. Taking a close look at the subject of transfeminism as it is represented in this LL, a movement that promotes the support of other (non-)trans women from various backgrounds and embodies feminist coalescence politics (Koyama, 2000). Also, the modern feminism that transsexual persons have impacted believes that gender is a system of power that sustains inequality rather than just a social construct. So, in plain words: The LL under analysis is a cry against the socioeconomic order and also a call to join the transfeminism global cause against present-day discriminations.
CONTEXTUALISATION
Our Linguistic Landscape is situated in the city of Lleida, precisely in Cappont’s neighborhood, near Jaume II street. More specifically, it was found in a wall near Pasarel·la del Liceu Escolar that connects C/ Jaume II with C/ Madrid. In this street we can also find the statue Fita (see Figure 2), which commemorates the International Day of the Holocaust in memory of the 45 people who lived in Lleida and were deported to the Nazi camps.
Figure 2- Fita. C/ Jaume II, Cappont, Lleida
Source: https://www.behance.net/gallery/86705377/for-the-Spain-they-believed-to-be-better-in-Lleida
This neighborhood has, for some time, now, been growing due to new businesses and leisure activities that have been recently open. Furthermore, its location is near the river Segre, one of the most attractive places in the city of Lleida (see 13 in Figure 2). Camps Elisis park is near the river, where the two most important local fairgrounds known as "Fira de Lleida" are at the end of these and where “Aplec del Cargol” is celebrated (see Figure 3).
Figure 3- Photo of the surroundings.
Source: Photo taken by the authors of the blog. 16th of March 2023.
Cappont is rather old and is currently getting a number of repairs. As a result, it is developing into a brand-new, contemporary neighborhood. It is also one of the few areas that is expanding in terms of housing stock, land, and people (La Paeria, 2023). With the construction of the major hypermarkets and brand-new shopping centers in the city, Cappont is quickly becoming one of Lleida's most modern neighborhoods. It is both middle class and lower class, with some family life but primarily college life, both cohabiting it.
In 2012, there were 16.27% of immigrants living in Cappont (see figure 4). This accounts for the various languages and cultures that are present within the community of this area. It should be taken into account that the two main languages in Lleida are Catalan and Spanish, but there are also other languages that can be heard, including English and Arabic among others. Ever since, there have been more immigrants and non-native Catalan speakers in the area. As a result, the presence of several languages in a single community raises the possibility that these individuals play a substantial part in modern society.
Figure 4- Lleida neighborhoods.
Source: Maria Sabaté 2023, Appendix 1.
METHODOLOGY
In the current paper, we used a critical sociolinguistics methodology and method to understand the social meanings and uses of local and global languages in contact and in contrast. We used an ethnographic observation method to gather the data we needed in order to get a general idea of how society works and interacts with its surroundings.
We first visited the place on the 14th of February 2023, at 6:15pm. Without having a specific destination in mind, we were strolling along the riverwalk, when we noticed numerous graffiti there. We made the decision to select the one that caught our attention because of the languages it contained and the message it attempted to transmit. Due to the fact that the linguistic landscape selected was graffiti, we decided to return to the location on the 8th of March 2023, at 12:46pm. Since graffiti is not permitted without permission, we tended to assume that it had already been removed when we arrived there, but nothing changed. On March 14, 2023, at 6:44 p.m., we went back a third time to see if they had ultimately removed it, but it remained untouched.
While we were there, we considered a variety of factors, including the various racial and linguistic backgrounds of the local people. We also observed that many of the nearby businesses and graffiti contained various languages, English being the most notorious one. Because of Englishization, it is now unusual to find English monolingual linguistic landscapes that, since they can be understood by connotation, can be reflected in brand names, shop names, or even slogans, according to Gorter (2013).
After a few days of observation, we came to the conclusion that the area is very popular for those people looking to exercise or enjoy some time outdoors surrounded by nature without going too far. Additionally, we noticed that there was a large amount of graffiti nearby, and became aware of the neighborhood's ethnic and cultural variety.
The LL addressed in this project is identified as a bottom-up discourse because it is graffiti, a transgressive sign. It violates the conventional semiotics of the place. In Catalonia and Lleida, there are some bottom-up and top-down language policies that must be followed. Public signage should only be written in Catalan or used as the primary language so as to comply with the legislation (Sabaté, 2023. Article 17.2. Appendix 2), but upon closer inspection, we discovered that this was not the case.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Figure 5- Picture of our token.
Source: Photo taken by the authors of the blog. 17th of February 2023
Following the values of the European Linguistic Landscape observatory (Linguistic Landscape Observatory, 2023), we spotted two main values: The choice to include English in the graffiti may have been for aesthetic and identity reasons in order to draw passersby's attention and express gender identity. In terms of identity, it highlights English as a language presenting internationality, modernity, cosmopolitanism (for a global protest), progress, and also open mindedness (Gorter and Cenoz, 2009). This graffiti (see figure 5) is like a window into how English has taken roots in Lleida. This demonstrates a linguistic worldview that assigns the English language to positive stereotypes concerning the construction of a better Lleida and a better world.
Still with regards to identity, the token does not only index global identity. On the other hand, Catalan appears as a regional language that caters to local audiences. It is conceivable that the graffiti's creators are of Spanish nationality and that Catalan is their native tongue rather than English. We believe the authors of this graffiti chose Catalan to say “transfeminisme” since they wanted to display a Catalan identity that is pro-feminist and also anti patriarchist.
Our chosen LL (see "Figure 5") reveals a value established by the European Landscape Observatory. It shows an aesthetic effort because the graffiti, as a means to make it more visually appealing, is created with a range of colors (black and purple, which aligns with the pro-feminism protest) and typographies (capital letters, underlined words, “Order” has more elongated letters, detailed “O” letter for “Order”). In other words, the LL token denotes an aesthetic function that aims to provide a work of art or a natural feature with emotional or spiritual qualities as a result of its beauty, in this case expressed through subversive urban art. Although just one alphabet is used, there are two different codes, English and Catalan. Its arrangement is not random, instead, it shows a desire to reach out to various communities since part of it is written in English.
The current prevalence of multilingualism is a result of numerous reasons. Globalization, international mobility, and the development of new technology are a few of them that have a significant impact on various political, social, and educational situations (Cenoz, 2013). In this particular multilingual setting, the interference of English borrowings advances the idea that English is adjusting to the Catalan sociolinguistic context and is being utilized as a sign of alignment with global social issues. The graffiti phrase "Fuck new world order" exemplifies the English language's dominance in terms of aesthetics. It makes sense that the ideals associated with the English terms used in the LL token serve to market modernity, internationality, creativity, and entertainment.
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
Overall, this project has been helpful in gaining insight into the linguistic situation of Lleida and its Englishization process. It has given us the opportunity to conduct collaborative and empirical research while actively deepening their understanding of sociolinguistic aspects. We have also been able to put the subject “English language in context” into practice, particularly in our local environment. Our metalinguistic reflection about the contact and competition of local and global languages in Lleida has also increased.
Linguistic landscaping projects are an effective pedagogical tool for the integration of the TKA/TEP (Technology of Knowledge Acquisition, and Technology of Empowerment and Participation) skills after real observation with citizen sociolinguistics for pedagogical purposes. By doing ethnographic research based on citizens' own experiences, this enables individuals, particularly us, the students, to adopt a hands-on approach to the social life of the space inhabited and to develop a critical sociolinguistic consciousness of the place formed.
By examining how multilingual ideologies are reflected and reproduced in the streets (in this case, in the form of a graffiti), and how English is used to convey to the target audience sociocultural values assigned to the language, the present study has succeeded in translating what was observed in the LL token into a broader context. Furthermore, this project has raised our consciousness of how prevalent English is in our daily lives and how it has taken its roots in Lleida. The deep meaning that linguistic landscapes contain is now more apparent to us, and we can identify it much more rapidly. In addition, we now understand the significance and operation of sociolinguistics.
REFERENCES and WEBSOURCES
Cenoz, J. (2013). Defining Multilingualism. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 33, 3-18. https://doi.org/10.1017/S026719051300007X
Gorter, D. (2013). Linguistic landscapes in a multilingual world. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 33, 190-212.
Koyama, E. (2000). The Transfeminist Manifesto. C. McCann, S. Kim, & E. Ergun (Eds.), Feminist Theory Reader. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003001201-12
Linguistic Landscape, (2023). The Landscape Observatory: Glossary. Olot. http://www.catpaisatge.net/eng/glossari.php
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Slaughter, A.-M. (2009). A New World Order. Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400825998
Wallach, Y. (2020). A City in Fragments: Urban Text in Modern Jerusalem. Stanford University Press.
https://www.studysmarter.co.uk/explanations/politics/political-ideology/transfeminism/
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