“I never thought I had an accent until the hurricane”: - Department of

425 Pages·2012·29.41 MB·English

“I
 never
 thought
 I
 had
 an
 accent
 until
 the
 hurricane”:

Sociolinguistic
 Variation
 in
 Post-­‐Katrina
 Greater
 New
 Orleans

DISSERTATION

Presented
 in
 Partial
 Fulfillment
 of
 the
 Requirements
 for
 the
 Degree
 Doctor
 of

Philosophy

in
 the
 Graduate
 School
 of
 the
 Ohio
 State
 University

By

Katie
 Carmichael

Graduate
 Program
 in
 Linguistics

The
 Ohio
 State
 University

2014

Dissertation
 Committee:

Kathryn
 Campbell-­‐Kibler,
 Advisor

Donald
 Winford

Cynthia
 Clopper

Gabriella
 Gahlia
 Modan
Copyright
 by

Katie
 Carmichael

2014
Abstract

In
 the
 latter
 half
 of
 the
 twentieth
 century,
 the
 White
 working
 class
 vernacular
 in

Greater
 New
 Orleans
 (GNO)
 has
 lost
 ground
 to
 extralocal
 linguistic
 pressures.

Locally
 salient
 phonetic
 features
 such
 as
 raised
 BOUGHT,
 r-­‐lessness,
 and
 a
 split

short-­‐a
 system
 are
 now
 rarely
 heard
 within
 city
 limits.
 In
 Upper
 St.
 Bernard
 Parish,

and
 the
 town
 of
 Chalmette
 in
 particular,
 these
 linguistic
 features
 have
 persisted

longer
 than
 elsewhere
 in
 GNO.
 However,
 the
 fate
 of
 this
 stigmatized
 variety
 is

unclear
 following
 the
 largescale
 displacement
 in
 this
 region,
 caused
 by
 Hurricane

Katrina
 in
 2005.
 While
 some
 residents
 of
 St.
 Bernard
 have
 returned
 to
 rebuild,

others
 have
 relocated
 to
 parts
 of
 GNO
 where
 these
 local
 features
 are
 much
 less

common,
 such
 as
 the
 Northshore
 of
 Lake
 Pontchartrain—thereby
 placing
 an
 all-­‐too-­‐
literal
 bridge
 between
 relocators’
 past
 in
 Chalmette,
 and
 their
 present
 lives
 on
 the

Northshore.
 This
 study
 provides
 an
 updated
 account
 of
 local
 New
 Orleans
 linguistic

features
 while
 contributing
 to
 our
 understanding
 of
 the
 linguistic
 effects
 of

migration
 and
 displacement
 by
 examining
 sociolinguistic
 variation
 in
 the
 speech
 of

St.
 Bernardian
 returners
 and
 relocators.
 Moreover,
 I
 attempt
 to
 extrapolate
 the

results
 of
 this
 situation
 to
 make
 overall
 conclusions
 about
 the
 role
 of
 place
 identity

in
 sociolinguistic
 variation.

  ii
To
 accomplish
 these
 goals,
 I
 examined
 sociolinguistic
 variation
 from
 three

speech
 tasks—interview
 speech,
 reading
 passage,
 and
 word
 list
 data—for
 a
 sample

of
 57
 speakers,
 balanced
 across
 age,
 gender,
 and
 post-­‐Katrina
 location
 status

(returner,
 relocator).
 I
 focused
 on
 three
 locally
 salient
 variables—(oh),
 (r),
 and

(æ)—as
 well
 as
 a
 previously
 undescribed
 feature,
 the
 phonetically
 conditioned

raising
 and
 fronting
 of
 /aw/
 preceding
 voiceless
 consonants.
 I
 examined
 these

variables
 acoustically
 and
 statistically
 in
 order
 to
 determine
 the
 patterning
 of

linguistic
 variation
 according
 to
 the
 social
 variables
 of
 interest:
 age,
 gender,
 social

class,
 post-­‐Katrina
 location
 status
 (returner
 or
 relocator),
 and
 extra-­‐Chalmatian

orientation
 (calculated
 by
 a
 combination
 of
 factors
 including
 residential
 history
 and

orientation
 to
 St.
 Bernard).
 I
 also
 informed
 my
 interpretation
 of
 these
 analyses
 with

metalinguistic
 commentary
 from
 participants
 as
 well
 as
 insights
 stemming
 from
 9

months
 of
 ethnographic
 fieldwork.

  The
 resulting
 analysis
 revealed
 that
 none
 of
 the
 variables
 patterned

systematically
 with
 post-­‐Katrina
 location
 status.
 That
 is—whether
 an
 individual

moved
 away
 or
 returned
 following
 the
 storm
 did
 not
 predict
 the
 variation.
 However,

r-­‐lessness
 and
 short-­‐a
 system
 type
 varied
 according
 to
 extra-­‐Chalmatian

orientation,
 suggesting
 that
 to
 understand
 these
 data
 requires
 a
 more
 complex

analysis
 of
 participants’
 relationships
 with
 the
 places
 in
 question.
 I
 propose
 in
 my

analysis
 that
 part
 of
 the
 relationship
 between
 sociolinguistic
 variation
 and
 place

identity
 centers
 on
 awareness
 of
 the
 link
 between
 a
 linguistic
 feature
 and
 a
 given

place.
 Overall,
 the
 data
 indicate
 a
 change
 in
 progress
 away
 from
 using
 traditional

locally
 salient
 features
 such
 as
 raised
 BOUGHT,
 r-­‐lessness,
 and
 a
 split
 short-­‐a

  iii
system,
 however
 the
 rise
 of
 newer
 local
 features
 like
 (aw)
 indicate
 that
 the
 “new

normal”
 in
 post-­‐Katrina
 Greater
 New
 Orleans
 includes
 a
 “new
 local”
 in
 terms
 of

dialect.

  iv
Dedication:

To
 my
 parents,
 Rosey
 Buckley
 Carmichael
 and
 Dennis
 Carmichael,

who
 shared
 their
 curiosity
 and
 admiration
 for
 the
 city
 I
 was
 born
 in,

and
 grew
 to
 love.

  v
Acknowledgments

  There
 are
 so
 many
 people
 to
 thank.
 First
 and
 foremost,
 I
 need
 to
 thank
 the

wonderful
 people
 of
 Chalmette
 and
 Greater
 New
 Orleans,
 who
 were
 so
 welcoming
 to

me
 and
 generous
 with
 their
 time.
 My
 adopted
 Chalmette
 families
 deserve
 so
 much

thanks
 for
 taking
 me
 in
 and
 always
 making
 me
 feel
 like
 one
 of
 the
 gang:
 Gwen,

Darrin,
 and
 Maegan
 Johnson,
 and
 Anthony
 Libasci;
 Big
 Barry,
 Sharron,
 Bradley,
 and

Little
 Barry
 Brunet;
 Barry
 and
 Katherine
 Lemoine;
 Trace
 Duplantier;
 and
 Frank

Anselmo.
 I
 would
 also
 like
 to
 thank
 others
 in
 the
 New
 Orleans
 area
 who
 aided
 me
 in

my
 research:
 Robbi
 Mayfield,
 Lauren
 Bergens,
 Ronda
 DeForest,
 Glenn
 and
 Karen

Sandrock,
 Beth
 Sercovich,
 Laura
 Gonzalez,
 Mike
 and
 Ronda
 Baudoin,
 Cliff
 Meyers,

Gaye
 Mladenoff,
 Elyce
 Ricouard;
 Pam
 Serigne;
 Jeff
 Meyers;
 Justin
 Donnard;
 Laura

Gonzalez;
 Debbie
 Taffaro;
 Shirley
 Pechon;
 Bobby
 Mayfield
 (Sr);
 Emma
 Taffaro;
 Rose

Sand;
 Billy
 Bachemin;
 Gayle
 Bachemin;
 Amanda
 Paxton;
 Jamie
 Shultz;
 Jennifer

Bordelon;
 Becca
 Campbell;
 Molly
 Buckley;
 Jerry
 Graves;
 Ryan
 Gregoire;
 Sandy

Paxton;
 Robby
 Showalter;
 Alex
 Smith;
 Joey
 Shultz;
 Sophie
 Boudreaux;
 Dan
 Johnson;

Tracy
 Duplantier;
 Nancy
 Fos;
 Charles
 Fos;
 Andrew
 Becker;
 Rosemary
 Merwin;
 Carol

Nicosia;
 Ann
 Aleman;
 Ralph
 Dauterive;
 Ruby
 Micheu;
 Katherine
 Lemoine;
 Roy

Fernandez;
 Joann
 Fos
 Constance;
 Barry
 Lemoine;
 Albert
 Avenel;
 Gerry
 Avenel;

Gloria
 Ciaccio;
 Allison
 Donnelly;
 Claire
 Glaviano;
 Zane
 Peterson;
 Dugué
 Daigle;

  vi
Darlene
 Gaiennie;
 Bunny
 Matthews;
 Alan
 Thriffelie;
 Betina
 Breaux;
 Sandy
 Kreeger

Baca;
 Emily
 Capdeville;
 Abbey
 Flaherty;
 Emily
 Mumme;
 Kim
 Newton;
 Howard
 and

Annette
 Beal;
 Steve
 Meyers;
 Amanda
 Hardesty;
 Polly
 Campbell;
 Althea
 Boudreaux;

Beth
 Poe;
 and
 Jeanny
 Keck.
 Several
 institutions
 in
 St.
 Bernard
 deserve
 recognition
 as

well:
 the
 St.
 Bernard
 Council
 on
 Aging;
 the
 Buccaneer
 Villa
 Swim
 Club;
 Kiwanis
 of

Arabi-­‐St.
 Bernard;
 the
 Chit
 Chat
 Club;
 PJ’s
 Coffee
 Shop
 in
 Chalmette;
 and
 of
 course

the
 incomparable
 Rocky
 &
 Carlo’s.

  I
 of
 course
 am
 grateful
 to
 my
 committee,
 Kathryn
 Campbell-­‐Kibler,
 Don

Winford,
 Galey
 Modan,
 and
 Cynthia
 Clopper,
 for
 providing
 me
 with
 guidance
 and

feedback.
 Galey
 in
 particular
 was
 generous
 enough
 to
 meet
 with
 me
 in
 DC
 several

times
 when
 I
 was
 visiting
 family,
 and
 those
 meetings
 were
 always
 illuminating
 and

rewarding.
 And
 working
 for
 the
 Journal
 of
 Pidgin
 and
 Creole
 Languages
 with
 Don

allowed
 me
 to
 complete
 my
 extended
 stay
 in
 Greater
 New
 Orleans
 during
 my

fieldwork.

  Other
 academic
 lifelines
 who
 were
 always
 available
 to
 listen
 to
 me
 bounce

ideas
 off
 them,
 or
 to
 just
 be
 supportive
 of
 me
 and
 my
 work:
 Nathalie
 Dajko;
 Christina

Schoux
 Casey;
 Tom
 Klingler;
 Connie
 Eble;
 Felice
 Coles;
 Mary
 Kohn;
 Carrie
 Beth

Lasley;
 Brian
 Joseph;
 Walt
 Wolfram;
 John
 Rickford;
 Lauren
 Colomb;
 Mary
 Kohn;

Darcie
 Blainey;
 Erin
 Roussel;
 and
 Judie
 Maxwell.
 And
 of
 course,
 all
 of
 my

#twinguists
 and
 #tweeps
 that
 listened
 to
 my
 twitter-­‐rants
 (#twants?)
 day
 after
 day.

  In
 addition,
 I
 am
 grateful
 for
 the
 statistical
 guidance
 and
 R
 troubleshooting

that
 Ran
 Wei
 (Wendy)
 provided
 throughout
 my
 analysis.
 Similarly,
 Jim
 Harmon

deserves
 a
 medal
 for
 patiently
 troubleshooting
 so
 many
 technological
 issues
 with

  vii
me,
 time
 and
 time
 again,
 with
 a
 smile
 on
 his
 face.
 Rory
 Turnbull
 and
 Abby
 Walker

also
 both
 generously
 provided
 much
 appreciated
 help
 with
 working
 through
 some

puzzles
 in
 Praat
 and
 the
 Penn
 forced
 aligner.
 Several
 undergraduate
 interns
 deserve

great
 thanks
 for
 their
 help
 in
 processing
 the
 data,
 and
 keeping
 me
 laughing
 through

the
 process:

 Samantha
 Arthurs,
 Jae
 Eun
 Kim,
 Madison
 Boyer,
 Adrianne
 Shough,

Audrey
 White,
 and
 finally
 Nichole
 Ashley,
 who
 stayed
 on
 the
 project
 well
 beyond
 her

internship
 hours
 and
 who
 was
 the
 gracious
 recipient
 of
 many
 e-­‐mails
 full
 of
 half-­‐
formed
 ideas
 about
 the
 patterns
 in
 my
 data.

  They
 say
 that
 writing
 a
 dissertation
 is
 a
 lonely
 process.
 I
 have
 found
 it

anything
 but,
 thanks
 to
 my
 fellow
 researchers
 who
 have
 toiled
 away
 next
 to
 me
 on

their
 own
 brilliant
 work,
 either
 in
 the
 Zen
 Dissertation
 Office
 or
 at
 various
 coffee

shops
 (and
 I
 suppose
 I
 also
 owe
 Columbus
 coffee
 shops
 like
 Mission,
 One
 Line,
 and

Staufs
 a
 debt
 of
 gratitude
 as
 well,
 for
 the
 gracious
 hosting
 and
 delicious
 pour-­‐
overs!):
 Cindy
 Johnson;
 J.
 Brendan
 Shaw;
 Olivia
 Caldeira;
 my
 go-­‐to
 work
 buddy/1-­‐
woman
 support
 group
 Marivic
 Lesho;
 and
 my
 wonderful
 spittin’
 dissertations

writing
 group,
 Leila
 Ben-­‐Nasr
 &
 Cassie
 Patterson.
 My
 generous
 and
 understanding

friends
 have
 also
 been
 great
 sources
 of
 comfort
 and
 encouragement
 to
 me

throughout
 fieldwork
 and
 the
 writing
 process:
 Elizabeth
 Roach;
 Kristin
 Allard

Shapiro;
 Emily
 Vernon;
 Megan
 Barron
 Zemke;
 Anne
 Harris;
 Jamie
 Manner;
 Ashley

Bersani;
 Alec
 Buchner;
 Jane
 Mitsch;
 Meghan
 Armstrong;
 Therese
 Nolan;
 Mariana

Zanotti;
 Leah
 Barber;
 and
 Emily
 Grace
 Clark.
 And
 of
 course,
 I
 can’t
 forget
 my
 NOLA-­‐
Cbus
 crew,
 who
 doubled
 as
 friends
 and
 sharers
 of
 insights:
 Kate
 Parker
 Horigan;

Mike
 Furman;
 and
 Ann
 Glaviano.

  viii
My
 family
 deserves
 more
 than
 just
 a
 few
 words
 of
 thanks
 for
 the
 incredible

support
 they
 have
 provided
 throughout
 this
 process.
 My
 brothers
 Danny,
 Kelly,
 and

Cody
 have
 donated
 lots
 of
 laughter
 and
 camaraderie
 and
 love
 that
 was
 so
 needed

throughout
 this
 process.
 My
 parents,
 Dennis
 and
 Rosey,
 have
 listened
 with
 curious

attentive
 ears
 to
 me
 explaining
 what
 the
 heck
 I
 was
 doing
 traipsing
 around
 New

Orleans
 with
 a
 recorder.
 The
 support
 they
 have
 consistently
 provided
 on
 every
 level

is
 above
 and
 beyond
 the
 call
 of
 duty,
 and
 I
 am
 so
 grateful
 for
 it.
 And,
 in
 the
 end,
 they

are
 the
 ones
 who
 first
 loved
 the
 city
 of
 New
 Orleans,
 and
 who
 taught
 me
 how
 to

appreciate
 its
 cultural
 and
 linguistic
 uniqueness.

  Last,
 but
 never
 least,
 my
 thanks
 and
 my
 heart
 go
 to
 Jack
 Rosenberger,
 who

has
 supported
 me
 in
 so
 many
 ways
 from
 the
 very
 start
 of
 this
 research,
 and
 whose

love
 &
 support
 I
 hope
 will
 carry
 on
 long
 beyond
 it.

  ix