By Denis Materna
Globalism and the Age of the Knowledge
English is a global, international language. In the beginning it was an Imperial language, the language of the British Empire which dominated various subcontinents, and territories thanks to the Age of Expansion. Identity in the 19th and 20th centuries was shaped by nationalism. The place where you were born and your ancestry shaped your outlook on life. The great age of communication and knowledge is upon us, and this is no longer true. Place of birth is now only part of personal identity and it’s becoming less important as the barriers between cultures begin to disintegrate. In the past knowledge was contained in institutions, and to go into these institutions you needed a special pass. But now it is obvious to everyone that knowledge now belongs to everyone, thanks to this great invention: The Web. The web’s great possibility is that it allows people to learn about and even assimilate any culture of their choosing from anywhere.
English reflects this new way of thinking. Students of English do not need to pay copyright for the privilege of accessing English speaking language or culture. The English speaking world is no longer centralised in London or Washington D.C. You can access American pop music videos, British Newspapers, and the ubiquitous Wikipedia, not just in English, but any language of your choosing, to find out the latest fact and information on any topic from anywhere, so long as you have a connection, which is becoming cheaper and faster by the day. The democratisation of all knowledge, and the freedom of this knowledge is at this moment in time not just a great promise, but the fulfilment of a promise, the promise of democracy and freedom. In the past, the student when he wanted to find out information about Australia for example, where would he go? He had to go to a travel agent’s and ask for a brochure. I remember doing this as a 17 year old only ten years ago. But today, I type into google Australia, select “show pictures” and there I am.
English Unlimited, Cambridge (International)
The new set of text books by Cambridge called English Unlimited extends this global English concept applying the principle that English belongs to all people from all over the world and is not to be associated any more with the “Old Alliance” of Britain and America, which in political terms does not win the English Language popularity considering that nationalism and political developments are day to day. The book’s international theme is a statement saying that this is no longer a language which imposes its culture, but rather it’s the language for everyone and if you speak it you can make it yours.
Check out the Cambridge English Unlimited web page:
In this book, the cast of real people speaking in video format are selected “from the street” in the words of the English Unlimited developers themselves. It may be the streets of London England, however, as we already know London is populated by more people born outside of the UK than inside it. The future of the English language lies in the people who are like this, who have learnt it as a second language and have respect for it, and for the benefits that it brings, (perceived or real). In terms of culture and attitude to learning a language, it is a fragile path that English has, on the one hand uniting people in the information age, providing business opportunities, but also, on a deeper level English must be careful not to make the mistakes of past Lingua Francas, the mistake of trying to impose itself as a culture. If English can be whatever its speakers want it to be, this should never be a problem. In this sense it acts as a democratic force which allows for freedom and self expression.
Below is an except from the PDF provided giving some of the reasoning behind the «Internationalism» of this amazing new book:
ENGLISH UNLIMITED, CAMBRIDGE