Browsing by Author "Gunesekera, M."

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Charming the unseen snakes
(University of Kelaniya, 2013) de Zoysa, A.M.; Jayatunga, M.; Hettiarachchi, S.; Pathirana, H.; Gunesekera, M.
The initial documentation of sociolinguistic data of a remote discourse community of Tulu speakers is the essence of this paper. A pilot study to collect first hand experience of documenting evidence of discourse communities8 was conceptualized by a team of researchers converging from disciplines such as Language Studies, Linguistics, Musicology, Cultural Studies, Gender, and Disability Studies from the University of Kelaniya. Consultations and briefing with researchers who have worked with discourse communities and similar communities preceded the visit to the community of “Snake charmers”. De-briefing of data collection, critical analysis of literature produced so far on the Tulu language and contextualizing the ongoing research concluded the three day pilot study. The methodology for the study is the audiovisual recording of the initial meeting with a remote discourse community of the Telegu people. The Ahikuntaka community of Devagama, living in Aligambay in the Akkaraipattu District (Eastern Province) was visited over the Vesak weekend of 2013 to make initial contact and build rapport with the discourse community. This objective of this paper is to demonstrate the challenges of sociolinguistic or ethnographic research in the 21st century. It pinpoints some issues that are glossed over, or overlooked as being irrlevant to the topic when presenting facts in reports, because they have not been included in the research proposal. It will also record difficulties, disappointments and disenchantments when working in “exotic settings”. The paper highlights the difficulties of data collection with ‘researcher as observer’ in the context of ethical clearance. In terms of the discourse community, the results of the study show the sociolinguistic issues of identity under threat. The only educated villager calls herself a Tamil speaker and takes pains to hide her Telugu/Tulu roots. Similarly, the villagers identify themselves as Tamils in the official domain, as in filling out electoral register forms, and in claiming that the traditional occupations of snake charming and palmistry are no longer practiced, contrary to the general belief that these are the occupations of the Tulu speaking community.
Language and Identity after Five Hundred Years of Colonization
(University of Kelaniya, 2005) Gunesekera, M.
This paper examines the controversial issue of the status of the official, national or link language/s of Sri Lanka. The focus of the study is on perspectives of language and identity among speakers of English in Sri Lanka’s multilingual urban population. The objective of this study is to examine what languages or varieties are associated with identity in Sri Lanka. The data collection was done from 2003 to 2005 in Colombo, Gampaha, Kandy, Jaffna and Galle. This preliminary study is the forerunner to a more detailed analysis of varieties of English in Sri Lanka. Additionally, leading politicians were interviewed to learn their perspectives on language in contemporary Sri Lanka. The findings of the study indicate the confusion regarding ownership of language in Sri Lanka. For example, the terms ‘mother tongue,’ ‘home language,’ and ‘native speaker’ are used to denote different languages. This is possibly the result of legislation from 1956 demanding that citizens declare their mother tongue. Another finding is the ignorance of Sri Lankans regarding the status of English, which has been in use from 1796 to the present. Most users of English in Sri Lanka are uncertain about its status. The most crucial finding of this study is the non-recognition of Sri Lanka’s variety of English by its users. The leading politicians claim that they speak British English, and the majority of respondents from Colombo, shares the same view. Urban respondents from outside Colombo seem to be at ease in claiming Sri Lankan English as their own, which may be a sign of leading to ownership of language. However, the gap between English and identity in Colombo and the rest of urban Sri Lanka is an indication of the problems of language and identity as reflected in the recognition or non-recognition of Sri Lankan English.
The psychological need for an accent: spoken English in Sri Lanka
(Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science, 2010) Gunesekera, M.
Reflections of M.A. in Linguistics
(University of Kelaniya, 2009) Gunesekera, M.
Rhetorical Tools for Communicating Strategic Change: Dana’s Definitional Statement
(University of Michigan, 2007) Gunesekera, M.
What rhetorical tools are critical for managers seeking to communicate strategy? What textual features matter when developing a language of change? To explore these questions we compare Dana Corporation’s 1987 strategic definitional statement, The Philosophy and Policies of Dana, with its 2004 revision, our framework being Eccles and Nohria’s triadic of rhetoric, action, and identity. In a newly competitive environment, Dana evolved from recognition as an exemplary company into reorganization under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. Concurrently, their 2004 statement marks a significant rhetorical shift. Dana’s example suggests the usefulness of thematic rearrangement, language adjustments, and opening sentence subjects to articulate revisions in purpose, values, and behavioral expectations and illustrates the usefulness of Eccles and Nohria’s framework for understanding rhetoric as a strategic organizational activity.