#1206: Bilinguism: Delatour replies to Dorce

[Robert Corbett <bcorbett@netcom.com>]

From: Mario L. Delatour <mardel@gol.com>
> Tokyo Japan
> 
> <<< I use my husband as a reference on this and many matters that concern
> the majority class Haitian.He tells me that if you are Haitian you speak
> Kreyol so therefore if a Haitian speaks french to him,he will reply in
> Kreyol and considers the French as the equivalent of "putting on airs."
(By
> the way,he speaks French and will respond in French to a speaker given
that
> (s)he is not Haitian) He said "I am not French so that is what I speak"
>>>
> 
>  Would'nt you say your husband is drepriving himself of the opportunity
to
> converse and further his knowledge of the French language?
> With all due respect to the man for I dont know him. Could it be that his
> proficiency in the French language is lacking,and that he becomes
accutely
> aware of it when he converses in French to fellow Haitians?
> French people are known to be unforgiving to people who butcher their
> language. We Haitians were painfully reminded of this when our French
> educators in school scolded at every occasional "Faute" (mistake)
> As a secondary and borrowed language,the vast majority of Haitians never
> attained the ease and fluency necessary to handle the intricacies and
> subtleties of the French language. Happy were those of us who had access
to
> a "Petit Larousse" (french dictionary). A trip or two to that faithful
book
> could save us the embarrassment of being called a "Diol Su" (one whose
French
> knowledge and pronounciation is atrocious).
> The "Diol Su" syndrome is a two fold one and a serious one in the Haitian
> context. On one hand,it is a clear indication that you lack formal
academic
> training. What we Haitians call
> "Education". On the other hand,it reveals the depths of your social
> origins. An unforgiving sin in a class oriented society such as ours. A
man
> for example who consistently skips his "r's" while speaking French is
> automatically labeled a "Diol Su" and deemed socially unacceptable,for he
> is considered to be a man of the back country. Haitian apartheid.
> This unfortunate syndrome has left a good many Haitian French speakers
> very conscious of their "speaking skill abilities".In short it has
traumatized more
> than one.Some have openly rebelled against the language and refuse to
speak
> it at all.Others have chosen to speak French only in the company of
native
> French speakers,hoping maybe that their shortcomings might be interpreted
> as colorful variations of the "Francophonie"
> As for me, when I get together with some of my Haitian Brothers who
appreciate the nuances >of the French language,we indulge,and we dont feel
we are "putting on any airs".

> In Tokyo the city where I make my home some of my Haitian friends here
> speak acceptable Japanese. Once again when we get together to
> socialize,invariably some Japanese words will surface. Are we "putting on
> airs"? No. Some things are better said in certain languages.
> 
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