English in China: Creativity and Commodification

181 Pages·2022·13.201 MB·English

by  Songqing Li

English in China
English- related linguistic creativity and language commodification are the
constant topics of interest and examination for scholars. This volume is
intended to initiate a dialogue between these two domains of inquiry that
have been abundantly addressed but rarely documented together or in rela-
tion to one another.
English as used in mainland China is presented as a case study where it
remains rather unclear the extent to which the language is actually used in
people’s lives, outside the domain of education. The volume enriches existing
empirical studies by exploring the creative and innovative uses of English in
people’s lives and its commodification at different language- centred economic
spaces within China while also providing an update of our understanding of
the sociolinguistic situation of English in China, a country undergoing rapid
socio- economic transformation.
English in China is the first attempt to address the possible relationship,
intersection, and tension between two seemingly disparate research topics.
The book is an important resource for students and scholars in the fields of
applied linguistics, bilingualism, sociolinguistics, translation, and contem-
porary Chinese studies.
Songqing Li currently works as Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics
at Xi’an Jiaotong- Liverpool University, China where he has developed the
MA in Applied Linguistics with specialization in Multilingualism, the first
programme of its kind in China, for which he currently serves Programme
Director. He is the author of Identity construction in bilingual advertising: a
critical analysis (Routledge, 2019). His research has appeared in journals such
as Applied Linguistics, International Journal of Multilingualism, Semiotica,
World Englishes, Journal of World Languages, and English Today.
China Perspectives
The China Perspectives series focuses on translating and publishing works
by leading Chinese scholars, writing about both global topics and China-
related themes. It covers Humanities & Social Sciences, Education, Media
and Psychology, as well as many interdisciplinary themes.
This is the first time any of these books have been published in English
for international readers. The series aims to put forward a Chinese perspec-
tive, give insights into cutting- edge academic thinking in China, and inspire
researchers globally.
To submit proposals, please contact the Taylor & Francis Publisher for the
China Publishing Programme, Lian Sun ([email protected]).
Titles in linguistics currently include:
A Corpus- based Contrastive Study of the Appraisal Systems in English and
Chinese Scientific Research Articles
Xu Yuchen, Yan Xuan, Su Rui and Kou Ying
Toward Multimodal Pragmatics
A Study of Illocutionary Force in Chinese Situated Discourse
Lihe Huang
A Dynamic Systems Theory Perspective on L2 Writing Development
Shaopeng Li
English in China
Creativity and Commodification
Edited by Songqing Li
Metadiscursive Nouns
Interaction and Persuasion in Disciplinary Writing
Feng (Kevin) Jiang
For more information, please visit www.routledge.com/ China- Perspectives/
book- series/ CPH
English in China
Creativity and Commodification
Edited by
Songqing Li
First published 2022
by Routledge
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and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
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© 2022 selection and editorial matter, Songqing Li; individual chapters,
the contributors
The right of Songqing Li to be identified as the author of the editorial
material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been
asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
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British Library Cataloguing- in- Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Names: Li, Songqing, 1972– editor.
Title: English in China : creativity and commodification / edited by Songqing Li.
Description: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2022. |
Series: China perspectives | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
Identifiers: LCCN 2021058548 (print) | LCCN 2021058549 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781032268279 (hardback) | ISBN 9781032273426 (paperback) |
ISBN 9781003292326 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: English language–China. |
English language–Social aspects–China. | Creativity (Linguistics) |
English language–Economic aspects–China. | LCGFT: Essays.
Classification: LCC PE3502.C54 E54 2022 (print) |
LCC PE3502.C54 (ebook) | DDC 427/.951–dc23/eng/20220228
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021058548
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021058549
ISBN: 978- 1- 032- 26827- 9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978- 1- 032- 27342- 6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978- 1- 003- 29232- 6 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/ 9781003292326
Typeset in Times New Roman
by Newgen Publishing UK
Contents
List of figures vii
List of tables viii
List of contributors ix
Introduction 1
SONGQING LI
PART I
Theoretical framework 15
1 Linguistic creativity and language commodification
research: an intersectional perspective 17
SONGQING LI
2 The politics of English as a commodity in China: from
neoliberal globalization to neoliberal nationalism 32
SHUANG GAO
PART II
Creative practices with English 51
3 Stylization in Chinese online communication: English as
resource for creative linguistic practices 53
YI ZHANG
4 Translational creativity in the linguistic landscape
of Shantou: negotiating the middle ground between
globalization and localization in a postcolonial context 67
MINGMING YUAN
vi Contents
5 Creative uses of English in the linguistic landscape of
Suzhou 82
SONGQING LI
PART III
English as commodity 93
6 Teaching English on Douyin: language commodification
and translanguaging 95
YAQIAN JIANG
7 Individualization of Chinese society and commodification
of English: appropriation of English as a valuable
resource by the state and individuals in China 113
XUESONG ANDY GAO
8 Exploring commodification of English in advertising
posters of online ELT tutoring platforms in China 129
HUI ZHANG AND YIN LING CHEUNG
9 Displaying and commodifying English on shop name
signs: perspectives of business practitioners in China 147
GUOWEN SHANG AND XIANWU ZHOU
Coda: new perspectives on English in contemporary China 165
KINGSLEY BOLTON
Index 167
Figures
4.1 Name of a bedding and homeware shop 72
4.2 Name of an architecture firm 73
4.3 Real estate billboard (1) 74
4.4 Real estate billboard (2) 75
4.5 Name of a fast- food restaurant 75
4.6 Name of a music and art training centre 77
9.1 Functions of English projected by business runners 156
Tables
6.1 Sample of multimodal transcribing method 102
8.1 Composition of the data 134
9.1 Code salience on shop name signs 151
Contributors
Kingsley Bolton is Professor Emeritus at the University of Stockholm. He
has published widely on English in China and across the Asian region.
His monograph Chinese Englishes: a sociolinguistic history (Cambridge
University Press, 2003) traced the history of English in China from
the seventeenth to the early twenty-fi rst century. His latest book, the
Handbook of Asian Englishes (co- edited with Werner Botha and Andy
Kirkpatrick, Wiley- Blackwell, 2020), received the 2021 PROSE Award
from the Association of American Publishers (AAP) for outstanding aca-
demic research in the category ‘Language and linguistics’. He is Co- Editor
of the journal, World Englishes (Wiley- Blackwell), and Series Editor of the
Routledge book series, Multilingual Asia.
Yin Ling Cheung earned her PhD (Linguistics) from Purdue University, USA.
She is Associate Professor at National Institute of Education, Nanyang
Technological University, Singapore. She specializes in second language
writing. She co- edited Advances and current trends in language teacher
identity research (Routledge, 2015). She has published in journals such as
System, The Asia- Pacific Education Researcher, and RELC Journal.
Shuang Gao is a sociolinguist working at the Department of English,
University of Liverpool, UK. Her research interests include language and
globalization, ideologies of English, language and identity, and tourism
discourse. Her research publications have appeared in journals such as
Language in Society, Journal of Sociolinguistics, Multilingua, and English
Today. She is the author of Aspiring to be global: language and social
change in a tourism village in China (Multilingual Matters, 2019) and co-
editor of Unpacking discourse on Chineseness: the cultural politics of lan-
guage and identity in globalizing China (Multilingual Matters, 2021), and
Language and intercultural communication in tourism: critical perspectives
(Routledge, 2021).
Xuesong Andy Gao is a teacher educator at the School of Education, Faculty
of Arts, Design and Architecture, University of New South Wales,
Australia. His research interests include international students’ educational