articulating a transnational family

268 Pages·2009·9.93 MB·English

by  Chad Nilep

ARTICULATING A TRANSNATIONAL FAMILY:
'HIPPO FAMILY' LANGUAGE LEARNERS
IN JAPAN AND THE USA
by
CHAD NILEP
B.A., University of North Dakota, l993
M.A., Arizona State University, l997
A thesis submitted to the
Faculty of the Graduate School of the
University of Colorado in partial fulfillment
of the requirement for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
Department of Linguistics
2009
This thesis entitled:
Articulating a Transnational Family:
'Hippo Family' Language Learners in Japan and the USA
written by Chad Nilep
has been approved for the Department of Linguistics
_________________________________
Kira Hall, committee chair
_________________________________
Barbara Fox
_________________________________
Shigeko Okamoto
_________________________________
David Rood
_________________________________
Karen Tracy
Date _______________
The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and we
find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards
of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline.
HRC Protocol #0407.19
Nilep, Chad
Articulating a Transnational Family: 'Hippo Family' Language Learners in Japan and
the USA
Thesis directed by Associate Professor Kira Hall
Hippo Family Club is an international language-study organization with
hundreds of local chapters around Japan, as well as several in the United States,
Korea, and Mexico. The group also partners with other organizations in various
countries to operate study-abroad and other foreign exchange programs. Hippo's
primary activity, though, is the self-directed study of multiple foreign languages. The
organization sells audio recordings that relate stories in multiple languages. Club
members believe that by listening to these stories and repeating their content,
attending weekly chapter meetings where they practice speaking, and participating
with the club's exchange programs they can acquire the ability to speak many foreign
languages.
This dissertation presents an ethnographic study of Hippo Family Club
practices in Japan and the United States. The analysis presented here is based on
ethnographic field work in several sites, including Osaka and Kanagawa prefectures
in Japan and Massachusetts in the United States, between 2005 and 2009. During this
time I participated as a member of Karagoku Family, a Hippo Family Club chapter in
Osaka prefecture. I also participated on various occasions with several other chapters,
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interviewed members of the various chapters, and recorded interactions at weekly
meetings. The study combines ethnography with discourse analysis.
I argue that club members in Japan and the USA view the learning of multiple
languages as a means to build a form of cosmopolitan citizenship. Cosmopolitan
citizenship is a view of personal identity formed not within the nation-state but as a
member of a transnational group. Club members view themselves as part of a global
community of fellow club members and language learners. This view of identity
freed from national or ethnic groups and instead tied to an international organization
is seen as a break from Japanese tradition. In contrast, even though club chapters in
the United States use the same learning materials and express ideas about language
learning that appear very similar to those expressed in Japan, American members do
not experience the same break from tradition. Given the differences in US and
Japanese ideologies of language learning, American members view Hippo as an
addition to traditional practices.
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Acknowledgments
I owe a deep debt of gratitude to the innumerable scholars, supporters, and
Hippo Family Club members who have contributed to the production of this work.
Although I cannot thank them all by name, I wish to express particular thanks to
several individuals.
Kira Hall, who has served as my advisor throughout my course of study at the
University of Colorado and as the director of my advisory committee, has provided
inspiration, direction, and aid in all of my academic endeavors. This work truly would
not have been possible without her efforts. Barbara Fox has likewise advised me
throughout my studies and provided much appreciated personal and intellectual
support. David Rood has always been generous in his support and assistance. Karen
Tracy, in addition to specific aid, has helped to make me feel a part of a community
of scholars. Shigeko Okamoto of the University of California Santa Cruz was one of
my first teachers of Japanese sociolinguistics and discourse analysis; I am grateful
both for the support and for the model she has provided me. My sincere thanks to all
of the members of my advisory committee.
The initial field work for this study was carried out while I was a fellow of the
Japan Foundation Kansai International Center. My thanks to the Japan Foundation,
the faculty and staff of the center, and all of my colleagues there.
Work between 2008-2009 was supported by a Doctoral Dissertation Research
Improvement grant from the National Science Foundation. I thank the NSF, the
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directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences, and all reviewers and
staff.
Thanks, too, for abundant support from the University of Colorado, including
the staff of the Department of Linguistics, the Office of Contracts and Grants, the
Human Research Committee, and the Graduate School, among many others.
My fellow graduate students in the Department of Linguistics, particularly the
SLING lab, and in the program in Culture, Language, and Social Practice have been
of great support throughout my studies. Special thanks to Adam Hodges, who has
been a valued colleague throughout my studies generally, and whose comments on
earlier versions of this work are valued in particular.
I owe special gratitude to Junko Fujimoto, whose love and support have
sustained me and whose scholarly feedback has assisted me in this and all of my
efforts. I also thank my parents and all of my family and friends for their support.
Finally, and certainly not least, thanks to the staff of LEX Institute and that of
LEX America Language Research Foundation, to the members of Karagoku Family,
to all of those Hippo Family Club members who hosted me during field work, and to
the literally hundreds of Hippo members who not only allowed me to participate with
them but also encouraged my work all throughout the process. Doumo arigatou
gozaimashita.
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CONTENTS
CHAPTER
1 Introduction.........................................................................................1
Initial encounters...........................................................................1
The Hippo method......................................................................13
Outline of the dissertation...........................................................22
2 Methods for sociocultural linguistics................................................37
Research methods.......................................................................37
Sociocultural linguistics..............................................................52
3 Ideologies of language at Hippo Family Club..................................58
Hajime ni (Introduction).............................................................58
Ideologies of language learning..................................................62
Hippo ideologies of language learning.......................................72
Seeing language as scripted........................................................94
4 Language ideologies II: LEX America...........................................113
Introduction...............................................................................113
Ideologies of education in America..........................................114
Nationalist ideologies affect language policy in the
United States.......................................................................130
Seeing language through expert eyes........................................142
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5 Perceptions of similarity and difference.........................................155
Hippo and LEX: 'A little bit different'......................................155
The culture of 'cute'...................................................................159
Revolution and evolution..........................................................173
6 Identifying with the transnational family........................................188
Language and identity...............................................................188
The Hippo tapes........................................................................198
The construction of cosmopolitan citizenship..........................221
7 Conclusions.....................................................................................227
REFERENCES …………………...……………………………………………246
APPENDIX
A Transcription conventions...............................................................257
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LIST OF TABLES
TABLE
3.1 Comparison of school activities with Hippo activities.....................78
3.2 Developmental milestones of language development.......................82
4.1 Comparison of Hippo activities (Japan)
with LEX activities (USA)........................................................128
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LIST OF FIGURES
FIGURE
3.1 “From the whole to the parts”...........................................................81
3.2 “Oscillograph” drawing from Osaka koenkai...................................84
5.1 Advertisement for Hello Kitty picture club....................................162
5.2 Sato-kun and Satoko-chan, the elephant mascots of
Sato Pharmaceuticals................................................................162
5.3 A multilingual anthropomorphic hippopotamus.............................164
6.1 Mandelbrot set with continuously colored environment................195
6.2 Detail of the image in figure 6.1.....................................................195
7.1 The author dressed in Mongolian hat and robe...............................228
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