Paper short abstract:

This paper examines the racialized dialect performances of a group of white men in Bermuda, exploring the implications of this type of data for sociolinguistic theories of authenticity, and discussing methodological concerns in research contexts involving highly empowered participants.

Paper long abstract:

The idea of the 'authentic speaker' is closely linked to language, justice and belonging, since it can be used to dictate speakers' entitlement to linguistic varieties. In line with social constructionist approaches to language and identity, scholars in recent years have deconstructed ideas of authenticity and the 'native speaker' (Rampton 1990; Eckert 2003). Authenticity remains, however, 'a quality of experience that we actively seek out, in most domains of life, material and social' (Coupland 2003: 417), and in some cases, denying speakers `authentic' status means failing to recognise the heritage and experiences that have led them to speak a language or dialect. Further, this approach has the potential to legitimise linguistic mockery and appropriation.

This paper calls for a more nuanced, particularistic approach to authenticity, drawing on data from Bermuda, a site of heated debate about belonging and national identity, in which stylised performance intersects with race. I compare interviews with two groups: white men known for their theatrical performances of Bermudian English (BerE), and elderly black Bermudians locally considered to be `authentic' speakers. The white speakers frame their performances as legitimate self-parody, but phonetic analysis contradicts this conclusively, showing that they target and caricature features of black BerE. Contextual analysis finds that the performances propagate basic raciolinguistic stereotypes.

The data serve as an important reminder of the difference between scholarly theorising about 'authenticity' and its everyday reality for speakers. Further, they prompt a discussion about the responsibilities of the researcher to privileged participants whose linguistic practices reproduce social hierarchies.