Hey all, since food seems to be the topic of interest as I received the most comments on them, I shall continue with the theme for a while longer. One instance of the differences in which people of different communities are primed for certain lexical choices is the way people describe food which is to be eaten outside of the place where it is bought. Upon perusing Google Images, my findings include terms like:
To goThis is primed mostly for the those in the United States of America (USA), as can be seen from the origin of this sign, which is taken at Arlington, Virginia, USA. (http://recruit.livejournal.com/)
Take awayThis is what I am personally more familiar with, as are most Singaporeans, as we are more closely aligned to British English than American English. This sign originated from the United Kingdom (UK).
Take outThis is once more found in the USA, another variation which is primed for the Americans, and not quite for Singaporeans.
Carry outThis picture was found in the USA as well and indicates yet another variation of the term takeaway which we are more familiar with but is primed in this manner for the Americans. ( http://www.flickr.com/photos/10707024@N04/3445141973/)
I would like to use these instances of different lexical primings for different terms with similar meanings to bring up my friend's experience of having her priming of this term develop to accommodate its other variations due to her encounters with the 'To go' version on her US Work and Travel Programme last summer. Upon her return, she found herself equally adept at ordering a meal 'to go' as well as to 'take away'. Hence, this supports Hoey's claim that priming need not be a permanent feature of a word, or term, and that words can be primed for someone when it was not previously so, due to encounters which contribute to the shift in the individual's priming of a word.
This is primed mostly for the those in the United States of America (USA), as can be seen from the origin of this sign, which is taken at Arlington, Virginia, USA. (http://recruit.livejournal.com/)
This is what I am personally more familiar with, as are most Singaporeans, as we are more closely aligned to British English than American English. This sign originated from the United Kingdom (UK).
This is once more found in the USA, another variation which is primed for the Americans, and not quite for Singaporeans.
This picture was found in the USA as well and indicates yet another variation of the term takeaway which we are more familiar with but is primed in this manner for the Americans. ( http://www.flickr.com/photos/10707024@N04/3445141973/)
No comments:
Post a Comment