Linguistic Rivalries
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Das’ article reveals the differing migrant experiences and the impact of the Francophone/Anglophone “two solitudes” in a Quebecois environment that is so deeply entrenched in linguistic rivalry, such that it adds an extra layer of challenge for Tamil and other South Asian immigrants in Montreal. These migrants often arrive with limited proficiency in English and French, with Das splitting them up into “four generational cohorts” with varying levels of proficiency depending on age and when they migrated, for example, the third cohort is “mostly youth between the ages of six and twenty-five, speak in Tamil with their parents, though many cannot read or write it, and converse with their friends in French and English.” (64).
The phrase “estranged conditions feed into the ambient linguistic rivalries shaping migrant subjectivities in Montreal” stood out to me as it speaks to the complex dynamics between Indian Brahmins and the dominant Vellālar and Karayir castes of Sri Lanka, not only in relation to the alienation they experience in a context shaped by deep-seated linguistic and cultural tensions, but also when navigating caste identities and histories as a basis of self identification after migration (Das, 64). In Montreal specifically, the interplay between these groups reflects long standing social-ritual hierarchies that have been relocated in the diaspora. It presents itself as a source of internal rivalry, each group with its distinct historical and cultural claims to dominance and likely to lean more to either English or French within Quebec, which further causes frictions and overlays these intra-community dynamics.
Das also underscores Quebec’s prioritisation of French as a marker of cultural and political identity, so much so that many Tamil migrants found themselves marginalised in a system that demands linguistic adaptation not just for day to day communication, but as a means of belonging. This reflects the broader intersection of language, culture, and power in Quebec’s national identity given that the French-language laws position migrants as outsiders. Additionally, in Quebec social mobility and economic opportunities for Tamil migrants is synonymous with French language proficiency, “since learning more prestigious varieties of French facilitates greater mobility within the circumscribed francophone world, people who command standard Quebecois French or International French enjoy better career and life opportunities” (Das, 74).
In Narayanan’s short essay about teaching English in a small town in rural Quebec, he also speaks of the use of the racial slur “tamoul” which “originated in the mid-1980s, following the exodus of Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka” (1). As Das points out, it is a racial slur that “has become a generic racial epithet [...] equivalent to “animal,” “camel rider,” “fucking Arab,” and job stealer” (65). Narayanan calls attention to the fact that this slur reflects the “cultural ignorance” of those around him, as well as highlighting Quebec’s culture of “protectionism of anything French” (2, 3). It is interesting to note that this culture of ignorance and protectionism in relation to the “other” when talking about immigration is very prevalent in Quebec; the nationalist and xenophobic rhetoric often seen in the Quebec government’s policies stems from a place of fear of the “other” because they are seen as a threat to their self-identification.