A Bump from the Past: "Just Cuz You're a Native Speaker Doesn't Mean You're Right!"

[889]

At some point we've all encountered the know-it-all native speaker who's convinced he's right about some grammar or vocabulary point and won't listen to reason when we cite chapter and verse from our textbooks explaining why he's dead wrong. The nerve!

 

Some years ago Hofmann started a thread for venting about such people. Great idea! Let's resurrect it and vent some more.

 

https://www.chinese-forums.com/forums/topic/20566-rant-about-native-speakers

 

(To preserve the continuity, it's probably best to post any replies in the original thread, not here.)

 

[Demonic_Duck]

There are 3 completely separate scenarios where this happens, though, and they should be dealt with in different ways:

1. The native speaker is correct about their own use of the language, but their dialect is non-standard regarding that aspect of the language. In this case, it's worth making note of the variation so you can recognize it in future, even if you don't want to emulate it yourself.
2. The native speaker's usage is actually the de-facto standard, and the textbook teaches an older, outdated, or more prescriptive standard that is rarely adhered to. In this case, it's usually best to simply disregard what the textbook says, as your goal will typically be to speak naturally, rather than like a CCTV presenter.
3. The native speaker's usage is actually the same as the textbook's, but they believe it to be different. This is surprisingly common, especially for pronunciation (questions about tone sandhi etc), because introspecting about one's own use of language doesn't come naturally and has to be learned. This is potentially the trickiest situation, because it's difficult to detect when that's happening, though a bit of research can usually clear it up. It can also reveal interesting details about how native speakers are taught and perceive their own language.