John McWhorter

Is hip hop an authentic voice of African Americans? Cultural critic John McWhorter on rap music's limiting horizons and Barack Obama's world of possibilities. Friday September 26 2008

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[danielsimonon]

Barack Obama was a lawyer, not a linguistics doctorate. I'm fairly confident that when you make language your life's work, it has a significant influence on your own linguistic tendencies.

[danielsimonon]

He's a professor with a doctorate in linguistics, what do you expect?

[JimBowie1133]

I disagree with his premise that people look to hip hop for political directions. Especially modern day its pure entertainment. I believe it is obvious that Hip Hop as an artistic expression does have the ability, depending on content, to spark a political consciousness in its listeners. Just as any artistic medium has that potential.

[migbee]

@gnarctopus U mad bro?

[migbee]

@gnarctopus There is improper grammar. Why else would we have English classes? I understand that "I'm good" still conveys the same message as "I'm well" but then what exactly is he professing? Anybody can talk however they want. You don't need a degree to write books on that shit. I'd expect an expert on linguistics to use proper grammar. That's all.

Bro, gnarly wipeout! Cowabunga!

[gnarctopus]

@migbee now that i think about it you're a double dumbass because even according to your own (wrong) prescriptive logic, the whole always using "well" to say things like "I'm well" or "I don't feel well" has been re-thought by prescriptivists for a long time. I know why, but I want you to put your money where your mouth is and tell me why that would be so. Do you even know the logic behind your own "rules"? Dont even try to call out McWhorter on some bullshit, son. Get at some linguistics books.

[gnarctopus]

@migbee no, you still don't understand: there is no improper grammar. find me a linguist that says that and i'll mail you one hundred dollars, how's that. all you're doing is taking your subjective tastes concerning language and couching them objectively. and dumbass no one says hang loose bra in california anymore. square.

[migbee]

@gnarctopus The proper way to reply would have been "I'm well." He's not exactly making a strong case for his credentials when he uses improper grammar. That's all I was trying to say. Oh, and saying hella makes you sound like a hella tool. Hang loose, bra!

[gnarctopus]

@migbee you obviously don't know what linguistics is actually about. we are not language police. i say "hella" constantly. and i don't care if you think it's "wrong", because i know better.

[juicykarkass]

John McWhorter rules! I read every book of his I can find!

[SlashFan60]

Also, saying racism "isn't as important as it used to be" may be true on an individual level, that doesn't mean that the historical institutions which redlined black communities and to this day create cultural norms which marginalize issues of race don't perpetuate problems for black communities. Individual bigotry may have decreased, but now you have a bunch of post-racialists running around saying race isn't important, and ignoring the result of years of race-based oppressive policies.

[SlashFan60]

I agree with his analysis, but I think that he ignores a large part of hip hop that still exists in the underground and in its historical origins. Also, it's easy to say "let's teach individual blacks how to take advantage of capitalism" without actually trying to figure out how a capitalist ruling class would encourage such a program in a community with no resources of its own to attempt it.