Give them Hell! - Transgressive multilingualism advertisement in Lleida
GIVE THEM HELL!
Transgressive multilingualism advertisement in Lleida
by Alex Just, Paulina Hajdamowicz, Danina Cristurean
1. INTRODUCTION
The project we have been working on is mainly about the globalization of English in the world, focusing on the city of Lleida, Catalonia, Spain. The whole project started with "Multilingual Lausanne", developed by the University of Lausanne with the aim of spreading awareness about the globalization of languages and the existing cultures in every city (Garrido-Sardà, 2018). The principal idea of the project consists of understanding the roles and meanings of local and global languages in contact. This also helps to comprehend the Englishization process worldwide, particularly in non-English- speaking societies.
Our Linguistic Landscape (which we will be referring to as ‘LL’ from now on) token was found as we were walking around town. “Give them Hell” is a type of transgressive and commercial graffiti art (text typology) that is painted on a business (on the security gate) and a social organization known as ‘Bronca’, which we believe is involved with revolutionary ideologies, punks’ beliefs, pro-feminist attitudes, etc. We believe this is significant due to the fact that the city is situated in an autonomous community that is well known for its independence movements, sending a message to the rest of the world with this graffiti about the daily fight concerning local politics and economy that we, in Lleida and Catalonia, have to go through. The use of English in this token has a social and mobilization meaning as well as the idea of globalizing the protest and the ideals it fights for. Therefore its production is bottom-up and monoglossic.
On the token, “Give them Hell” can be observed with a raised blue fist which stands out next to the words "Turn it into revolution....And give them hell" written in English (which uses the Roman alphabet). Above are the words "Associació d'autoedició i autogestió cultural", which is the logo and slogan of the organization written in Catalan (also Roman alphabet), indexing lay citizenship mobilization and self-organization. The colors used also convey great meaning and emotions, through multimodal/semiotic, visual images and signs that have a connotation. The color blue (which is found in the fist) is usually characterized by peace and calm, which means that the fight has to be peaceful, while the red (found in the background and in some words) can relate to the exclusion by reason of economic, political, gender or language background. Lastly, black is usually related to sadness, but by the position in which it is placed in the background, it could be associated with the fact people have gone through many sorrowful moments which have encouraged them to fight. (Hynes, 2009).
2. CONTEXT
It has been a city with a lot of historical weight in terms of ‘revolutionary’ movements, an example would be during the post-war period this is also partly due to the fact that it was considered (and continues to be considered) as a great agrarian source (Sagués, 2002). It has also been a city that during 2017 showed great support for the independence of Catalonia, in which 64.2% compared to 35.2% were in favor of it (Llano, 2018)
The first time we saw the graffiti, we (all the group members), were convinced it would be perfect and extremely suitable for the project because of both its visual attractiveness - as it is extremely colorful and contrasts with Lleida’s old-town landscape -, and the social implication and meaning of the message, which invites those reading the message in the painting to fight for their rights, empowering anyone who is looking at the graffiti to start a “revolution”.
The case of this graffiti is a great example of emphasizing the importance of language choices and use. English is being used as a way of internationalizing the protest, while at the same time, Catalan serves as a way to claim Lleida’s identity. When we refer to the use of English as a way of internationalizing the message, we mean that it is intended to reach more people. But with the use of English, messages do not only become internationalized, but do as well as give a sense of prestige to the message. Martín-rojo & Díaz de Frutos (2014), taking as an example the 15M movement that took place in Sol, Madrid, further develop this idea, explaining how English becomes a language of revolution and protest, a language that serves a social function of visualization and identity making.
In the case of the chosen graffiti, the message, still, is kind of cryptic in terms of for whom it was intended. Yet, we consider that this is what makes it a good example and also somehow gives it a poetic quality. The painting can be interpreted in many ways, where each individual might relate to different referred causes, yet all of them will always convey the same meaning: “fight for your ideals”.
Just by looking at the graffiti, though, we will perceive that, most likely, it was not done illegally as most graffiti is, but rather, the owners of the place asked for the painting.
Graffiti is considered to be transgressive, as they are mostly viewed as a violation of societal norms and rules regarding property ownership and public behavior. This causes graffiti to be delegitimized and silenced, which contributes to the reinforcement of its transgressive nature. With or without permission, though, graffiti is meant as a way of using urban art in order to call for change or to try to make the population more conscious about a sensitive topic. Pennycook (2006) in Language as a Local Practice elaborates further on the term “out-of-placeness”, explaining how encountering language or discourse that is unfamiliar causes discomfort to arise in the population. Thus, we consider that keeping in mind this idea of out-of-placeness is important for correctly understanding this specific LL.
When we first saw the graffiti, the curiosity to know what this association was rooting for is what led us to the next step of analyzing the linguistic token: To search for what was “Bronca”. And here is where another of the important parts of this linguistic token lies. The fact that by looking at the graffiti we became interested in the place exemplifies how with the use of a cryptic graffiti and a brief - and not much clarifying - explanation about the place (association of self-publishing and cultural self-management), they got us to search for what really was this place.
Through archival work, we got to know it was a drawing studio that also offers exhibitions, art workshops, and drawing classes. The place, yet, also functions as a gathering point for people who share similar interests, being this the main purpose. As it is a self-managed place, it is no surprise that the drawings, published books, goods… Everything that this commerce offers is related to criticizing society according to those who form this community’s ideologies and points of view. Different economic, political, gender or ethnic ideologies are present in their works, such as standing strong and supporting the feminist cause.
By analyzing this linguistic landscape, we realized how something as simple as graffiti can be used as a way of searching for more people to gather. Bronca’s main purpose is not commercial, as more than a shop it serves as a gathering point, yet, they offer different kinds of services as a means of sustaining the place, fostering the use of alternative circuits of self-managed economic exchanges. And how with the use of English, the message conveyed a more powerful impact on the reader, reinforcing this idea of the use of English as the preferred language in social vindication.
Firstly, the message it conveys is one that encourages a revolutionary ideology that helps us observe the identity of this organization. As their style is inspired by the punk movement we can understand that their beliefs are of subversive and of an anti-capitalistic nature (Dunn, 2008). The fist drawn onto the shop's metallic door reinforces, in a way, their identity although it also has aesthetic values, making the message more visible and interesting to the passersby. This transgressive piece of art has a powerful message of empowerment and solidarity.
Secondly, this shop is devoted to the social and cultural aspects of the city of Lleida, thus their social value is extremely present and noticeable. It is a meeting point for like-minded groups of the alternative sub-culture, thus it contributes to the city’s social scene. Additionally, as an art shop, it also supports local artists and gives recognition to less-known comic authors around Catalonia when arranging meetings with such artists. However, we can see that the organization has an involvement with the English language to some degree, because of the linguistic repertoire combinations used in the LL, so their identity is considered a global one. Therefore, this establishment does not only want to promote its ideology to Catalan speakers but rather to an international degree and the various nationalities in the area. After analyzing their purpose, we can say that between the Bronca group’s interests, there is also a desire to grow into multiple communities including immigrants, minority groups, gender equality advocates, the LGBTQ+ community, and anti-patriarchy individuals. Furthermore, the use of English also gives the message a memorable and more impactful theme, especially with the ‘’...and give them hell!’’ catchphrase which has an extremely alluring sound to it.
Although it may appear as a youth-directed association, most of its participants and contributors are middle-aged or of adult age. This makes us suppose that despite using an appealing phrase to catch the attention of the city’s youth, these young adults might have a low interest in politics, social change, and such organizations. It has been concluded that younger people engage in political aspects mainly when it can be done online or through social media (Keating & Melis, 2017). In spite of the group Bronca's social media usage and participation in networking services such as Twitter and Instagram, there is not a big engrossment towards their revolutionary message coming from the youth in Lleida. This might be a reason for the use of English in their propaganda as English is an important part of today’s youth's day-to-day life, especially online (Goldie & Walker, 2008). Notwithstanding, the organization has a big correlation to the youth identity of the city, but has an even bigger community of adult followers.
Lastly, we should not forget that this association is also a business so its main value is a productive one. Their products range from anything related to art including comics, books, posters, photos, and even music records. On their website (Bronca, 2023), they categorize themselves as an ‘’independent business which helps small artists of the city distribute their craft’’. On top of that, there is a list of associates on their website where we can see that they are linked to another organization called Glitter Critter (stylized: GRITTER CRITTER), an antifascist, LGBTQ+, queerpunk, indie book editorial, presented too, in English for a more global reach. Finally, the Bronca group organizes a lot of their meetings outside, on the streets of Lleida, as well as exhibitions at their shop, thus we can say that it is an alternative business.
As a result, this LL is a great example of the importance given to identity and social values by minority groups and people who want a change in society, while making sure their ideals are clear and inviting others to join their ‘revolution’. Nevertheless, because of its productive values, it would be categorized as a business with a bottom-up production.
On a final note, this project has helped us, students, launch into and organize a sociolinguistic assignment on our own, which has not only made us more aware of the linguistic landscapes of our surroundings but has also sparked our interest in linguistic matters in a broader view. With the help of ethnography, direct observation, and evenly distributed research, we have deduced the importance of English and ELF (English as a lingua franca) in our city, Lleida. Besides, we have become more aware of the multilingualism and globalization of the city alongside its social value and importance.
The self-reliant nature of this piece of work, and the spotlight put on the students as knowledge generators and informants is a great example of practice-induced knowledge acquisition in didactics. This enactment and use of LLs could potentially help students become accomplished propagators of knowledge. Other than that, LLs are a great tool that sparks interest in students, ergo its connection to TEP ( Technology of Empowerment and Participation) and TKA (Technology of Language Acquisition).
Bronca. BRONCA. (2023). from https://bronca.es/
Domingo, S. C. (2019). Los resultados de las elecciones generales, por barrios de Lleida. Segre.com. https://www.segre.com/es/noticias/panorama/2019/04/30/esquerra_impone_todos_los_barrios_excepcion_del_seca_mariola_magraners_74878_1106.html
Dunn, K.C. (2008) Never mind the bollocks: The punk rock politics of global communication: Review of international studies, Cambridge Core. Cambridge University Press. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/review-of-international-studies/article/abs/never-mind-the-bollocks-the-punk-rock-politics-of-global-communication/82599C249256E64BEBD43FE65EBAF2C6
Garrido-Sardà, M. R. (2018) https://sepia2.unil.ch/wp/garrido/ Multilingual Lausanne: A linguistic landscape project.
Goldie, K. R., & Walker, L. (2008). Our space: Online civic engagement tools for youth - luke walker. http://www.lukewalker.org/raynesgoldiewalker.pdf
Hynes, N. (2009). Colour and meaning in corporate logos: An empirical study. Journal of Brand Management, 16, 545-555. https://doi.org/10.1057/bm.2008.5
Keating, A. and Melis, G. (2017) Social Media and youth political engagement: Preaching to the converted or providing a new voice for the youth? - sage journals. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1369148117718461
La Paeria. (2014). http://www.turoseuvella.cat/es/el-conjunto-monumental Presentación — Turo Seu Vella (accessed 12/03/2023)
Linguistic Landscape Observatory. (2023). Glossary. Olot. http://www.catpaisatge.net/eng/glossari.php
Llano, C. (2018). Cuadro: El comercio inter-provincial catalán y la división territorial mostrada por el 21-D. Transportation Research Part A, 95, 334-355. http://www.c-intereg.es/Actualidad/Cuadro_comercio_interprovincial_catalan_21D.pdf
Martín-Rojo, L., & Díaz de Frutos, M. E. (2014). The role of English in the discursive construction of social actors and their practices in times of crisis. Journal of Language and Politics, 13(3), 431-456. doi:10.1075/jlp.13.3.04mar
3. METHODOLOGY
The first time we saw the graffiti, we (all the group members), were convinced it would be perfect and extremely suitable for the project because of both its visual attractiveness - as it is extremely colorful and contrasts with Lleida’s old-town landscape -, and the social implication and meaning of the message, which invites those reading the message in the painting to fight for their rights, empowering anyone who is looking at the graffiti to start a “revolution”.
The case of this graffiti is a great example of emphasizing the importance of language choices and use. English is being used as a way of internationalizing the protest, while at the same time, Catalan serves as a way to claim Lleida’s identity. When we refer to the use of English as a way of internationalizing the message, we mean that it is intended to reach more people. But with the use of English, messages do not only become internationalized, but do as well as give a sense of prestige to the message. Martín-rojo & Díaz de Frutos (2014), taking as an example the 15M movement that took place in Sol, Madrid, further develop this idea, explaining how English becomes a language of revolution and protest, a language that serves a social function of visualization and identity making.
In the case of the chosen graffiti, the message, still, is kind of cryptic in terms of for whom it was intended. Yet, we consider that this is what makes it a good example and also somehow gives it a poetic quality. The painting can be interpreted in many ways, where each individual might relate to different referred causes, yet all of them will always convey the same meaning: “fight for your ideals”.
Just by looking at the graffiti, though, we will perceive that, most likely, it was not done illegally as most graffiti is, but rather, the owners of the place asked for the painting.
Graffiti is considered to be transgressive, as they are mostly viewed as a violation of societal norms and rules regarding property ownership and public behavior. This causes graffiti to be delegitimized and silenced, which contributes to the reinforcement of its transgressive nature. With or without permission, though, graffiti is meant as a way of using urban art in order to call for change or to try to make the population more conscious about a sensitive topic. Pennycook (2006) in Language as a Local Practice elaborates further on the term “out-of-placeness”, explaining how encountering language or discourse that is unfamiliar causes discomfort to arise in the population. Thus, we consider that keeping in mind this idea of out-of-placeness is important for correctly understanding this specific LL.
When we first saw the graffiti, the curiosity to know what this association was rooting for is what led us to the next step of analyzing the linguistic token: To search for what was “Bronca”. And here is where another of the important parts of this linguistic token lies. The fact that by looking at the graffiti we became interested in the place exemplifies how with the use of a cryptic graffiti and a brief - and not much clarifying - explanation about the place (association of self-publishing and cultural self-management), they got us to search for what really was this place.
Through archival work, we got to know it was a drawing studio that also offers exhibitions, art workshops, and drawing classes. The place, yet, also functions as a gathering point for people who share similar interests, being this the main purpose. As it is a self-managed place, it is no surprise that the drawings, published books, goods… Everything that this commerce offers is related to criticizing society according to those who form this community’s ideologies and points of view. Different economic, political, gender or ethnic ideologies are present in their works, such as standing strong and supporting the feminist cause.
By analyzing this linguistic landscape, we realized how something as simple as graffiti can be used as a way of searching for more people to gather. Bronca’s main purpose is not commercial, as more than a shop it serves as a gathering point, yet, they offer different kinds of services as a means of sustaining the place, fostering the use of alternative circuits of self-managed economic exchanges. And how with the use of English, the message conveyed a more powerful impact on the reader, reinforcing this idea of the use of English as the preferred language in social vindication.
4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Figure 4. Chosen LL
Source: Associació Bronca, n.d
Firstly, the message it conveys is one that encourages a revolutionary ideology that helps us observe the identity of this organization. As their style is inspired by the punk movement we can understand that their beliefs are of subversive and of an anti-capitalistic nature (Dunn, 2008). The fist drawn onto the shop's metallic door reinforces, in a way, their identity although it also has aesthetic values, making the message more visible and interesting to the passersby. This transgressive piece of art has a powerful message of empowerment and solidarity.
Secondly, this shop is devoted to the social and cultural aspects of the city of Lleida, thus their social value is extremely present and noticeable. It is a meeting point for like-minded groups of the alternative sub-culture, thus it contributes to the city’s social scene. Additionally, as an art shop, it also supports local artists and gives recognition to less-known comic authors around Catalonia when arranging meetings with such artists. However, we can see that the organization has an involvement with the English language to some degree, because of the linguistic repertoire combinations used in the LL, so their identity is considered a global one. Therefore, this establishment does not only want to promote its ideology to Catalan speakers but rather to an international degree and the various nationalities in the area. After analyzing their purpose, we can say that between the Bronca group’s interests, there is also a desire to grow into multiple communities including immigrants, minority groups, gender equality advocates, the LGBTQ+ community, and anti-patriarchy individuals. Furthermore, the use of English also gives the message a memorable and more impactful theme, especially with the ‘’...and give them hell!’’ catchphrase which has an extremely alluring sound to it.
Although it may appear as a youth-directed association, most of its participants and contributors are middle-aged or of adult age. This makes us suppose that despite using an appealing phrase to catch the attention of the city’s youth, these young adults might have a low interest in politics, social change, and such organizations. It has been concluded that younger people engage in political aspects mainly when it can be done online or through social media (Keating & Melis, 2017). In spite of the group Bronca's social media usage and participation in networking services such as Twitter and Instagram, there is not a big engrossment towards their revolutionary message coming from the youth in Lleida. This might be a reason for the use of English in their propaganda as English is an important part of today’s youth's day-to-day life, especially online (Goldie & Walker, 2008). Notwithstanding, the organization has a big correlation to the youth identity of the city, but has an even bigger community of adult followers.
Lastly, we should not forget that this association is also a business so its main value is a productive one. Their products range from anything related to art including comics, books, posters, photos, and even music records. On their website (Bronca, 2023), they categorize themselves as an ‘’independent business which helps small artists of the city distribute their craft’’. On top of that, there is a list of associates on their website where we can see that they are linked to another organization called Glitter Critter (stylized: GRITTER CRITTER), an antifascist, LGBTQ+, queerpunk, indie book editorial, presented too, in English for a more global reach. Finally, the Bronca group organizes a lot of their meetings outside, on the streets of Lleida, as well as exhibitions at their shop, thus we can say that it is an alternative business.
As a result, this LL is a great example of the importance given to identity and social values by minority groups and people who want a change in society, while making sure their ideals are clear and inviting others to join their ‘revolution’. Nevertheless, because of its productive values, it would be categorized as a business with a bottom-up production.
5. CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
On a final note, this project has helped us, students, launch into and organize a sociolinguistic assignment on our own, which has not only made us more aware of the linguistic landscapes of our surroundings but has also sparked our interest in linguistic matters in a broader view. With the help of ethnography, direct observation, and evenly distributed research, we have deduced the importance of English and ELF (English as a lingua franca) in our city, Lleida. Besides, we have become more aware of the multilingualism and globalization of the city alongside its social value and importance.
The self-reliant nature of this piece of work, and the spotlight put on the students as knowledge generators and informants is a great example of practice-induced knowledge acquisition in didactics. This enactment and use of LLs could potentially help students become accomplished propagators of knowledge. Other than that, LLs are a great tool that sparks interest in students, ergo its connection to TEP ( Technology of Empowerment and Participation) and TKA (Technology of Language Acquisition).
REFERENCES
Bronca. BRONCA. (2023). from https://bronca.es/
Domingo, S. C. (2019). Los resultados de las elecciones generales, por barrios de Lleida. Segre.com. https://www.segre.com/es/noticias/panorama/2019/04/30/esquerra_impone_todos_los_barrios_excepcion_del_seca_mariola_magraners_74878_1106.html
Dunn, K.C. (2008) Never mind the bollocks: The punk rock politics of global communication: Review of international studies, Cambridge Core. Cambridge University Press. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/review-of-international-studies/article/abs/never-mind-the-bollocks-the-punk-rock-politics-of-global-communication/82599C249256E64BEBD43FE65EBAF2C6
Garrido-Sardà, M. R. (2018) https://sepia2.unil.ch/wp/garrido/ Multilingual Lausanne: A linguistic landscape project.
Goldie, K. R., & Walker, L. (2008). Our space: Online civic engagement tools for youth - luke walker. http://www.lukewalker.org/raynesgoldiewalker.pdf
Hynes, N. (2009). Colour and meaning in corporate logos: An empirical study. Journal of Brand Management, 16, 545-555. https://doi.org/10.1057/bm.2008.5
Keating, A. and Melis, G. (2017) Social Media and youth political engagement: Preaching to the converted or providing a new voice for the youth? - sage journals. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1369148117718461
La Paeria. (2014). http://www.turoseuvella.cat/es/el-conjunto-monumental Presentación — Turo Seu Vella (accessed 12/03/2023)
Linguistic Landscape Observatory. (2023). Glossary. Olot. http://www.catpaisatge.net/eng/glossari.php
Llano, C. (2018). Cuadro: El comercio inter-provincial catalán y la división territorial mostrada por el 21-D. Transportation Research Part A, 95, 334-355. http://www.c-intereg.es/Actualidad/Cuadro_comercio_interprovincial_catalan_21D.pdf
Martín-Rojo, L., & Díaz de Frutos, M. E. (2014). The role of English in the discursive construction of social actors and their practices in times of crisis. Journal of Language and Politics, 13(3), 431-456. doi:10.1075/jlp.13.3.04mar
Pennycook, A. (2010). Language as a Local Practice. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203846223
Sabaté Dalmau, M. (2023). Project Information - Localising English in Lleida
Sabaté Dalmau, M. (2023). Project Information - Localising English in Lleida
https://cv.udl.cat/access/content/group/101266-2223/Part%20A%20Sociolinguistics/Project%20Localising%20English%20in%20Lleida/Project%20Information_Assessment_Steps_Outcome.pdf
Sagués San José, J. (2002). Un escenario global. Lleida durante la Guerra Civil Española. Pasado y memoria, nº 1, 2002. https://rua.ua.es/dspace/bitstream/10045/706/1/Sagues-Un%20escenario%20global.pdf
Sagués San José, J. (2002). Un escenario global. Lleida durante la Guerra Civil Española. Pasado y memoria, nº 1, 2002. https://rua.ua.es/dspace/bitstream/10045/706/1/Sagues-Un%20escenario%20global.pdf
Comments
Post a Comment