There are many variations of Portuguese. The two that I will be focusing on are Brazilian Portuguese and European Portuguese. Brazilian Portuguese is spoken in Brazil while European Portuguese is spoken in Portugal. According to data collected at a Canadian University, some students argued that one version, European Portuguese, is a language while the other, Brazilian Portuguese, is a dialect. This then raised the question as to whether European Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese were under one language but separate dialects or if they were a language within themself. As stated by Sónia Maria Nunes Reis (2011), “… in 1994, Kato and Raposo stated: European and Brazilian Portuguese have long been considered as two dialects of the same language, with variable aspects in their lexicon, phonology and grammar.”
In Portugal, European Portuguese is considered the “standard” Portuguese. It got its name “European Portuguese” so it can be distinct from Brazilian Portuguese and not be called “Portuguese Portuguese.” In Portugal, 222,708,500 speak European Portuguese as a first language. Within Portugal, 13,803,500 speak European Portuguese as a second language. The use of European Portuguese is very widespread within Portugal.
There are different language attitudes when it comes to European Portuguese. This is the “proper” way of speaking. This can similarly be compared to how Americans say “Standard English” is the proper way of speaking. It has all the correct vocabulary, grammar and accents. European Portuguese was predominately used as a written language, which is why it was used as the standard. It is also considered an elegant language but it is mainly favored for its history and importance in literature. Socially, European Portuguese is seen as the “correct” language and it’s the langue that is taught in schools. Because of this, a person was seen as more educated if they knew it.
Brazilian Portuguese is mainly spoken in Brazil, hence its name. In Brazil, the population is 194,000,000 and out of that, 71% speaks Brazilian Portuguese. Within Brazil, the language is very widespread also. Brazilian Portuguese is said to have a long history of being spoken and not written. At the time when Brazil was under the rule of the Portuguese government, in the 16th century, there were slaves, of which whom were illiterate, from African descent who had their own language and they slowly created what is considered today, Brazilian Portuguese. It was their Creole language mixed with European Portuguese that produced “Brazilian Portuguese.”
In one of the studies, Sónia Maria Nunes Reis (2011), participants were asked what were their attitudes towards Brazilian Portuguese and European Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese was favored based on its sounds, its expressiveness and its musicality. Brazilian Portuguese has been known as a pleasant language to listen to. It is also considered very romantic and understandable. Another attitude towards Brazilian Portuguese, was that it was considered to be spoken by lower class Brazilians with little education. In spite of some negative implications like that, Brazilian Portuguese is used by 80% of Portuguese speakers. It is more fluent in conversation.
People, no matter what part of the world, are very judgmental. The first thing they’ll judge you on is your looks and then by the way you speak. Depending on how a person speaks, they’ll be judged on many things like if they’re educated, their social class and where they come from. For example, two friends talking will use a more relaxed, slang way of speaking and not be completely “proper.” But those same two friends can also speak more “educated” in a work environment or with their boss. People shouldn’t judge a person’s language so quickly and be more opened minded because language is a way for person to express himself or herself. Language can tell you a lot about a person, but it doesn’t define them.
Questions:
- Do I need to add anything?
- Is my writing clear and understandable?
Bugel, T., Santos, H., & Berger, I. (2014). Attitudes toward Brazilian Portuguese among Brazilian learners of foreign languages in monolingual and multilingual contexts. Revista Internacional De Lingüística Iberoamericana, 12(1 (23)), 41-59.
Reis, Sonia M.N. (2011). Portuguese as a minority language. Attitudes of undergraduate students studying Portuguese literature. Researching Bias. 61-64.
I think your essay is good although there were some parts where I was a bit confused. For example, you started talking about the attitudes towards the different variants of Portuguese but I think you only talked about Brazillian Portuguese. So, many include attitudes toward European Portuguese. Also, if you can find any information on it, try to see how a speaker from one variant perceives the other language and vice-versa. Also, I think, for the most part, your writing is clear and understandable.
You don’t really need to add anything since you followed everything on the rubric. Reading your essay I think you talk about Brazilian Portuguese than European Portuguese. You writing is very clear and understandable. Nice essay.
I don’t think you need to add anything since you have everything on the rubric in your essay. I see you talk about Brazilian Portuguese more than European Portuguese. Your essay is clear and understandable to read. Nice essay!