1Khelan Mohammed Salih Mahmood, 2Shokhan Mohammed Fatah, & 3Sipal Baderkhan Yousif
1&2University of Charmo, Chamchamal, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, 3University of Zakho, Iraq
Khelan.muhamad@chu.edu.iq, shokhan.mohammed@chu.edu.iq, Sipal.yousif@uoz.edu.krd
ABSTRACT
The interaction of language and cultural identity is central to the themes portrayed in the Harlem Renaissance literature. Zora Neale Hurston’s short story Spunk illustrates the cultural element and interaction among Blacks during the Harlem Renaissance. This paper aims to focus on the language dynamics, specifically code-switching, in the short story Spunk. As part of her depiction of her characters’ multilingual identities, Hurston emphasizes code-switching between Standard English and African American Vernacular English within the context of what may be characterized as quotidian discursivity. She also makes connections between the code of speech and issues of class, power, and subject positioning. The study is mainly qualitative and text-based; it utilizes code-switching to understand the motivations, interpersonal dynamics, and inner struggles of the characters. Hurston was already using language to portray the characters’ socioeconomic positions and identity problems as they negotiated a racist society, according to the research, she effectively portrays a more sophisticated and perceptive understanding of language as a tool for plot advancement and symbolic cultural history definition in the play. From a perspective on the power dynamics in language and culture, this paper concludes that Hurston had a significant impact on the growth of African American literature and that her distinctive depictions of the Black experience remain influential.
Keywords: African American English, Code Switching, Cultural Identity, Language Dynamics, Spunk, Zora Neale Hurston