The Jade Peony Lesson Plan

How and why does Poh-Poh use different dialects to speak to different people?

Poh-Poh, and many lao wah-kiu, Chinatown oldtimers, use different dialects depending on who they are talking to and the context of the conversation. Poh-Poh uses language to delineate not only her own power and status but also to demonstrate the status of the person she is speaking to. With Liang and Jung, Poh-Poh often uses her Four County village dialect. This is her typical dialect and way of speaking to close relations. With Stepmother, however, Poh-Poh uses a similar yet more clipped dialect - one that people use when "they think you might be the village fool, too worthless, or too...