Has the emergence of English as a Lingua Franca been an entirely beneficial phenomenon for both native and non—native English speakers

HU RUOXI

Recently， the emergence of English as a lingua franca generates a controversial issue which has been fiercely discussed whether it is a wholly beneficial phenomenon for both native and non-native English speakers.Based on the Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language， English was widely transmitted all over the world due to the British colonization in the early 19th century.With advanced industry and frequent multilateral trade， Britain further impelled the spread of English.Besides， the USA， owning largest population and fastest growing economy， strongly popularized English.Meanwhile， media， transportation and technology were booming at that period， bringing more and more international intercourse in various areas， such as academy， commerce and politics， and causing the urgent need for a global language.On this condition， English， as a lingua franca， could be a considerable solution.Since it might have some demerits， which goes against the “entirely useful argument”， it is better to assume that its emergence is generally beneficial for the both native speakers and non-native English speakers.In order to demonstrate this， this essay will firstly show the accusation made against its merits regarding the danger to other languages and the drawbacks of non-native speakers， secondly opposes the counterargument by stating the assets of teaching English as an international language.Finally， it will briefly present its dominance and the democracy of English.

Critics point out global language is the cause for peoples low initiative， no interest and even no opportunity to learn other languages， which can even be a threat to their existence.They suppose that if merely a single language is uppermost， the others would be inferior and invisibly killed， decreasing linguistic diversity， widely impacting their culture and international standings.Furthermore， for people whose mother tongue are not English， they are forced to learn it as an official or foreign language， and are at disadvantage compared with those whose first language is English.Scientists， who are from non-spoken English countries and publish their research in other languages， would have little chance to draw international attention， which is a good example of the influence of English on academic results.Thus， in order to be competitive with their peers， additional language learning tasks are exerted on them and they feel obliged to spend much time on translatating their thoughts and essays into English， distracting their energy and focus from creative work， somehow putting them under big pressure.

However， educationalists oppose the arisen problems could be lessened by primary education -- teaching English as an International Language， namely， teaching this cosmopolitan language at the very first stage of full time education is of great significance to ease the distinction of native speakers and non-native speakers.English speakers from Denmark， Sweden and Netherlands are persuasive demonstrations to prove TEIL is a feasible approach.Besides， if the earlier the children are put into a bilingual environment， the better their competence would be developed.

Moreover， English， referred to pidgin， has expanded overwhelmingly around the world， meeting peoples interaction and communication needs in various spheres.Due to development in media and international organizations， the spread of English seems continuously irresistible and people are unconsciously involved in a global-connected community by its all-round propagation.The universal network and unprecedented fame that BBC and British Council have established are the right illustration to support English， as a medium， delivers massive information，including British values， accelerates mutual understanding for different regions and nations， breaks the communication barrier for both native and non-native speakers.In addition， government enormously affects the area that lingua franca could adapt to.Taking the 20th century， especially 1950s for instance， the number of multinational organizations， such as United Nations， World Bank，UNESCO， was soaring as well as their members，which challenged the translation and interpretation budget and contributed to the dependence on translators when they attend a conference.Under this circumstance， the tendency and impending desire of a common language is required and English， the most widely spoken language， has definite dual predominance to be practical to reduce the budget and also alleviate the communication difficulties.

English， with the largest and most expressive vocabulary， is also a borrowing language.It displays that English absorbs words of other languages， enlarging its own vocabulary， diversifying its own language， indicating its receptiveness and democracy， which the other way around， is forcefully against the opposition of the spread of English.

In conclusion， its clear the emergence of English as a lingua franca do bring benefits to both native and non-native speakers to a great extent.Although it could bring risks of making other languages die away and put non-native speakers at disadvantage， this essay has demonstrated teaching English as an international language is a considerable way to improve this situation.General， it indeed brings benefits to the mainstream in media， academic， diplomatic areas and will have a broader impact in the future with its unstopping spread.

References：

[1]Pennycook，A.（1998） Our marvellous tongue.Reprint， London：Routledge.

[2]Crystal，D.（2003） English as a world language.Cambridge：CUP.

[3]McArthur，D.（2001）World English and world Englishes： Trends，tensions.

[4]viaties，and standards.The United Kingdom：Cambridge University Press.