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It's part of the "gravitational pull" of associative ethnocentrism and deliberative subculturalism.
It's not so much "southern" as much as it seems to be old "NegroEnglish". Even today, there is a resentment by some blacks when they actually hear another black using standard American English. Yes, it seems odd , but that sort of "double-take" by even educated blacks is pervasive.
It's sometimes perceived as "blacks attempting to ACT white", which is sort of crazy in itself. Many black today equate the use of speaking clear, standard American English as being tantamount to being a houseNegro.
This resentment of the 'houseNegro' was part and parcel of a much larger perceptual difficulty that the "fieldNegro" had of the Plantation social structure. The fieldNegro has always felt that the houseNegro enjoyed an easier, if not privileged life by comparison - so the fieldNegro believed.
White masters were very good at the "divide and conquer" schtick. HouseNegroes many times were taught how to use proper American English in communications with families, and guests. This image of an educated houseNegro was a strange source of pseudo-pride for the Plantation master.
This was a source of huge resentment for the fieldNegro, who rarely was required or expected or shown anything about standard-sounding expressions, syntax or the written word.
Like many racial and ethnic groups, and "inside language" of the insular group was used and maintained, and anything outside of that was not to be pursued or even trusted by use of any other Negro for fear of being marginalized as not a realNegro.
This dynamic coupled with the fact that many houseNegroes were not realNegroes at all. Many were in fact mulattos, quadroons and various other racial mixtures, or they actually had offspring by the Plantation master, and everyone on the Plantation knew about it, or suspected it, just by obvious visual, casual inspection . These mulattos, quadroons, etc had a significantly different albeit limited access to hearing, implementing and mimicking the standard common English of the day. Not so much for the fieldNegroes.
More resentment ensued within the non-white ranks. Flash forward to modernity, the typically black-skinned 'fieldNegro' still associates the use of standard American English with an effort to 'sound white' or become someone else - that person now is considered outside of the SUB-cultural "tribe".
Insecure blacks with less education even today, "make fun" and ridicule other blacks that simply speak and use standard American English, which is massively stupid, but this resentment and disdain rolling around in their heads stems back to an obvious need to be associated with the "inside group" and cohesive "tribe". This seems to be a total rejection of a novel concept of "individuality"...something that Black Americans seem to still wrestle with.
Don't believe me ? listen closely when President Obama addresses an all-black audience. He rocks back into sounding like a 'fieldNegro'. He's not the only one who does that either. Try Hillary Clinton..yes, I said Hillary Clinton, a white woman from Illinois, former resident of Arkansas.
Republican former Party Chairman Michael Steele does the same thing on occasion. Oprah Winfrey does it all the time....listen closely to her. Michael Jordan still can't speak clear standard American English.
On the other hand, mulattos or many other non-white/non-black people never do it because it's not in their culture. One example is mulatto General Colin Powell...other examples may be Halle Berry, Tiger Woods, The Rock, Mariah Carey, and others. But these mixed-race people are considered "outside the tribe" (of language use), while a known person like Oprah seems "one of their own" (by her rocking back and forth into a black/negro vernacular). You're not going to hear a guy like Harold Ford Jr. on MSN morning news ever rock into the use of black/negro vernacular....but you will hear it from Al Sharpton on many occasions.
The basis of this accent is in fact "southern Plantation" but it's inextricably tied to inside/outside group communication and identity.
Ever hear a blonde white rapper or a white street thug using this stupid sounding vernacular and English ?? He not only sounds stupid, but looks stupid and acts stupid and is regarded as stupid.
Friend you can ridicule or "make fun" of my "ridiculous" rant all you wish. I bet perhaps you might be one of the fieldNegro schools of thought eh ? Of course you would see it as "ridiculous". That's understandable.
I wish this thread would die, or be closed by the moderators. People are posting as if 'black's 'AAs' are some sort of monolithic subgroup, it is absurd and degrading. I highly doubt the OP intentions were innocent in asking this, I mean why ask this on CD of all places??
Friend you can ridicule or "make fun" of my "ridiculous" rant all you wish. I bet perhaps you might be one of the fieldNegro schools of thought eh ? Of course you would see it as "ridiculous". That's understandable.
cheers !
Well, if I'm a "field Negro", you know what that makes you, and I wouldn't want to be in your shoes. Self-love > Self-hate.
I hope that high horse of yours doesn't trip and cause you to land on your face. It might flatten out your nose and make you look too much like "us".
I wish this thread would die, or be closed by the moderators. People are posting as if 'black's 'AAs' are some sort of monolithic subgroup, it is absurd and degrading. I highly doubt the OP intentions were innocent in asking this, I mean why ask this on CD of all places??
There is a case to be made by some that in fact there exists monolithic thought in what I previously referenced viz fieldNegroes in particular....and less so with houseNegroes from an historical perspective.
subgroup ? yes, that's EXACTLY what it is...a subgroup ! and subgroups are far more monolithic than larger populations lol....indeed. There is also more unanimity of thought and opinion in "minority subgroups"....duh.
Oh My my, your typical defensiveness emerges ! Nairobi is a good nomenclature it seems for you.
You have validated your status, mine unfortunately is correlated with Plantation owners.
cheers !
You opened the door. Don't dish it out if you can't take it.
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