socially elevated an individual was (or strove to be), the more postvocalic
(r) sounds were retained in their speech. The simple conclusion would be
that the lower the income level, the greater the r-lessness. But (r) is not
simple. One way to get a sense of the range and distribution of postvocalic
(r) is to watch reality television shows set on the East Coast between
Philadelphia and Boston. The infamous Jersey Shore alone provides a lot of
interesting examples.
Prestige is a complex concept, because it is so very relative. What is
prestigious to one person may mean nothing to the next. More important:
what is prestigious is one community may be a mark of disloyalty and
highly stigmatized in the next, and thus the simplest truth about language
variation: a speaker will gravitate to the variants tied to the community
which is most important to him or her, despite possible negative
repercussions.
Prestige is a notoriously relative concept, and is not always an issue of
economics. Labov’s study established that for (r), those who aspire to
belong to the social upper crust are less likely to be r-less (Figure 2.3).
Common sense alone should be enough to cast doubt on the idea that
anybody in Manhattan who deletes postvocalic (r) is without ambitions, and
disdainful of the trappings of social prestige. All around us we see people of
all social and economic backgrounds trying to improve their lot in life;
some work three jobs, wrack up huge school loans, buy lottery tickets, or
invest in the latest widget. The fact is, some people strive for economic
success and socially upward movement, but resist assimilation to the
language habits of others who have successfully achieved that goal.
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