Date: Mon, 15 Aug 1994 09:20:23 CST

From: salikoko mufwene mufw[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]MIDWAY.UCHICAGO.EDU

Subject: Re: you



The article of mine Tom Clark refers to is Dennis Preston, 1986, The Li'l

Abner syndrome. American Speech 60,4:328-336.

Since I have the reference a couple of feet from my desk and checked it,

the date of publication is actually 1985.

That eye-dialect may differ for speakers of different dialects seems, to me, t

o be a minor issue. I doubt if 'wuz' spellers really have different vowels in

mind when they employ it. I still buy into the idea that such spellings simply

belittle the caricatured speaker, usually in the direction of illiteracy

and/or lack of intelligence.

Amen! I often have the impression that those who use eye-dialect overdo it,

making the variety so represented look (sound?) more different than it

actually is from the reference variety, at least in respect to pronunciation.

Sali.

Salikoko S. Mufwene

Linguistics, U. of Chicago

s-mufwene[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]uchicago.edu

312-702-8531