Skip to content
Call Us Today! 212-533-4646 | MON-FRI 12PM - 4PM (EST)
DONATE
SUBSCRIBE
Search for:
About Us
UNWLA 100
Publications
FAQ
Annual Report 2023
Annual Report 2022
Annual Report 2021
Initiatives
Advocate
Educate
Cultivate
Care
News
Newsletters
Sign Up For Our Newsletter
Join UNWLA
Become a Member
Volunteer With Us
Donate to UNWLA
Members Portal
Calendar
Shop to Support Ukraine
Search for:
Print
Print Page
Download
Download Page
Download Right Page
Open
1
2-3
4-5
6-7
8-9
10-11
12-13
14-15
16-17
18-19
20-21
22-23
24-25
26-27
28-29
30-31
32-33
34-35
36-37
38-39
40
“НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ”, ТРАВЕНЬ 2018 WWW. UNWLA .ORG 11 Language: The Story Continues The March issue of Our Life featured several arti- cles on the theme of Ukrainian Language. As Eng- lish - language editor, I have had so me interesting responses to these articles and on the broader is- sues and implications of this subject. Most of these were during telephone conversation with callers who expressed additional opinions (some on the articles we published and some on the subjec t of language in general). Following one of these con- versations, I had a minor AHA moment that evoked some giggles: a flashback to one of my fa- vorite musicals: My Fair Lady . The musical has its own interesting his- tory. The first manifestation of the story came from Greek mythology. The myth in question involved a sculptor named Pygmalion who fell in love with one of his sculptures, a piece he named Galatea. In the myth, the sculpture comes to life. The next per- mutation of this story was created in Victorian England — a comic interpretation of the theme cre- ated by W.S. Gilbert. The play, entitled Pygmalion and Galatea , debuted in London in 1871 and was a smash hit. The next great variant of this tale came from renown playwright George Bernard Shaw, whose play Pygmalion was staged in 1913 and was the inspiration for the musical My Fair Lady cre- ated by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe, which played to packed houses in London and on Broadway (1956) and starred Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews. In 1964, Hollywood released a film version of the play, which was directed by George Cukor and starred Rex Harrison and Audrey Hep- burn. For those unfamiliar with the plot, a very brief synopsis is in order : The story centers on a professor of phonetics (Henry Higgins) whose en- counter with a Cockney flower seller (Eliza Doolit- tle) leads to a wager with the professor’s friend Colonel Pickering: “I will teach her how to speak proper English so well that she can pass as a duch- ess!” And by the end of the show, he do es indeed accom plish this feat. One of the songs in the musical strikes a particular chord related to the discussion that be- gan in the March issue of Our Life . It is a song that emerges early in the show, soon after the profes- sor’s initial encounter with Eliza, and it raises a question about differences in speech that mirror some of those relevant to our current discourse on language disconnects. Entitled “Why Can’t the English Teach Their Children How to Speak,” the song (sung by Higgins to his friend Pickering) la- ment s the divisive nature of English. The lyrics in- clude several lines worth citing here ( primarily to underscore that the issue is not just a Ukrainian is- sue and peripherally to inject some lighthearted babble into a subject that is sometimes more con- tentious than it should be.) So here goes: “An Englishman’s way of speaking absolutely clas- sifies him. The moment he talks he makes some oth er Englishman despise him.” “The Scots and the Irish leave me close to tears. There even are places where English completel y disappears — why in America, they haven’t used it for years ! ” “If you spoke as she does, sir, instead of the way you do, well you might be selling flowers too!” The musical ends with a self - confident Eliza, who has indeed become a lady, refined and self - a ssured enough to tell her often overbearing professor to pound sand: She is his equal and not just his creation. There is a hint of what might be a reconciliation, even a hint of romance, but only on equal terms based on mutual respect. - tsc ___________ ___________ _________________ __________________________________ The March issue of Our Life included several articles on the subject of language. One response we re- ceived came from Ilona Sochynsky, an artist whose work has been featured on the cover of OL and is exhibited in galleries, museums, and in the homes of private collectors. Ilona is a member and former president of UNWLA Branch 113. Hi Tamara, I enjoyed reading your entertaining article in the March issue of Our Life magazine. Petro * and I visited Ukraine for the first time last year. In Lviv most people were amazed that we spoke Ukrainian at all after we told them we are from New York City. We had no problem understanding them either. One day, while we were having lunch at a restaurant, our waiter was especially impressed with our speaking Ukrainian. Next to us was a couple who spoke Russian to him; he replied by saying that he doesn’t under- stand them. This (and other things we noticed) suggests that there seems to be a lot of solidarity among the young about speaking their native tongue. — Ilona * Ilona’s husband
Page load link
Go to Top
1 
2-3 
4-5 
6-7 
8-9 
10-11 
12-13 
14-15 
16-17 
18-19 
20-21 
22-23 
24-25 
26-27 
28-29 
30-31 
32-33 
34-35 
36-37 
38-39 
40 
