Disinventing and Reconstituting Languages

Edited by MARGARET HAWKINS University of Wisconsin, Madison Disinventing and Reconstituting Languages Sinfree Makoni and Alastair Pennycook Eds... In doing so, the contributors emb

TESOL QUARTERLY 161

BOOK REVIEWS

TESOL Quarterly welcomes evaluative reviews of publications relevant to TESOL

professionals.

Edited by MARGARET HAWKINS

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Disinventing and Reconstituting Languages

Sinfree Makoni and Alastair Pennycook (Eds.) Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters, 2006 Pp xv + 249

 Every once in a while we come across a book that stirs a strong reaction within us because it forces us to think about beliefs that have solidifi ed without much questioning over time This collection, edited by Makoni and Pennycook, does exactly that because it provokes us into thinking about how languages have been conceptualized following the strong struc-turalist infl uence of Saussure and subsequent linguists over the past cen-tury In doing so, the contributors embark on a bold process of disinventing languages as they challenge key basic assumptions such as the existence of discrete languages and explore new ways to reconstitute them

In the opening chapter, the editors address the history of the construc-tion of languages Central to their discussion is the illustraconstruc-tion of how languages are invented in certain ways as a result of language ideologies, because it is through languages that power is mediated Colonialism, in particular, has resulted in the representation of languages as separate and enumerable entities Additionally, the editors argue for the need to inter-rogate the real and material effects of such an invention and abandon a static view of language Instead of focusing on these issues in isolation, the editors maintain that the book examines the complex interrelationships among them, exploring new ways of understanding language

Having laid the groundwork, the next four chapters analyze the insidi-ous effects of Western linguistic imperialism In Chapter 2, Heryanto examines how the adoption of Western standardized models for languages fails to express and represent the vernacular worlds of Javanese and Malay, and Makoni and Mashiri in Chapter 3 observe how the perspectives of users of African languages are muted as a result of a system of classifi ca-tions used by colonialists in naming these languages The result of such a coding enterprise is a Western conceptualization of African languages

162 TESOL QUARTERLY

The authors suggest that this situation may be combated by paying close

attention to how local speakers construct their languages and use rich

ver-bal repertoires of urban mixtures to negotiate current realities The need

to study how language is used in contemporary situations is also picked up

by Pennycook in Chapter 4, where he explores the exclusionary effects of

English as a result of globalization He argues for a change in the way we

view language by recommending that language use be seen as “a semiotic

restructuring as a claim to a particular identity” (p 110), because

lan-guage to him bears an emergent quality The impact of Western linguistic

imperialism takes on a different form in Chapter 5, where Branson and

Miller maintain that the codifi cation of spoken and written languages has

resulted in the devaluation of sign language Using Kata Kolok, a Balinese

sign language which does not have a singular and distinct grammar, they

argue for a dynamic practice-based approach to language

In Chapters 6 and 7, the reader will notice the resonance of certain

issues and concepts addressed in earlier chapters For example, in

Chapter 6, de Souza investigates how indigenous writing in Brazil is

infan-tilized in the face of a Eurocentric approach to language Whereas de

Souza turns to third world scholars to counter colonial representations,

Thorne and Lantolf (Chapter 7) invoke Western scholars to bolster their

bid for a cultural-historical approach to language and development

Viewing language as an interactive phenomenon, they echo Makoni and

Mashiri’s and Brandon and Miller’s calls to acknowledge the

communica-tive repertoires of speakers Language to them represents

“communica-tive resources that are formed and reformed in the very activity in which

they are used” (p 177)

The book changes tack in the next two chapters, as the authors

dem-onstrate how a disinvention of languages may actually be realized

Richardson, in Chapter 8, analyzes a hip-hop recording and video by a

rap duo to demonstrate how rappers disinvent languages and recast them

on their own terms In Chapter 9, Busch and Schick analyze how

ethno-linguistic differences in Bosnia-Herzegovina are disinvented through the

use of educational materials that refl ect heteroglossia In the concluding

chapter (Chapter 10), Canagarajah proposes that we look to precolonial

and premodern societies for linguistic impetus, explaining how we can

learn from such multilingual societies whose communities lived in close

proximity to each other In keeping with the other contributors in the

collection, he also underlines the need to develop a repertoire of codes

among students so that they can shuttle between communities

Although I was titillated by the prospect of disinventing languages and

can grasp the implications of languages as inventions, I was less swayed by

the arguments for reconstituting languages I am sure that some readers

would strongly disagree with the notion of language as being entirely

con-tingent in composition The contributors seem to be suggesting that a

BOOK REVIEWS 163

different form of regularity should be considered, one that is derived from repeated habitual practice rather than rules dictated by codifi ed gram-mar Pennycook (Chapter 4) and Thorne and Lantolf (Chapter 7), for instance, cite Hopper’s (1998) work on emergent grammar as a basis for the reconstitution of languages by way of performative acts and activities, respectively Admittedly, Hopper’s notion of emergent grammar provides

an innovative way of thinking about the stabilities in language, but it appears that this notion would be better served within the domain of interactive speech and may not necessarily transfer to writing What is signifi -cant about this notion, though, is that it invites us to think beyond the existence of one variety of language By extending such an understanding

of language to written English, readers may want to interrogate how the structured, limited, and accepted set of codes that defi ne written English ends up sorting different users of the language Those who observe the

practices associated with the written code are positioned as writers and scholars , whereas those who do not may be denied such recognition

Next, although I thought that the contributors did a commendable job

in putting forward different theories, I felt that the theoretical density of the chapters could have been complemented by empirical data With the notable exception of Chapters 8 and 9, which offered real examples of how languages can be disinvented, I would like to have seen the theories backed up by instances of supporting data, especially since a number of the contributors allude to the need to disinvent and reconstitute lan-guages as they relate to contemporary realities This addition would have enhanced understandings of the critical project that they are advancing Despite these drawbacks, I found this book a compelling read because

it invites us to question the very notion of language Such questioning needs to be done by teachers, teacher educators, materials developers, and policy makers, as together they drive understandings of languages and language practices When we begin to understand the ramifi cations

of what we do, we can fi nd new, more equitable ways to move forward

PETER I DE COSTA

University of Wisconsin–Madison

Madison, Wisconsin, United States