The Korean Association for the Study of English Language and Linguistics

Korean Journal of English Language and Linguistics - Vol. 18 , No. 1
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Korea Journal of English Language and Linguistics - Vol. 18, No. 1, pp. 30-49
Abbreviation: KASELL
ISSN: 1598-1398 (Print)
Print publication date 31 Mar 2018
Received Oct 2017 Revised Jan 2018 Accepted Mar 2018
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15738/kjell.18.1.201803.30

Understanding Culture and Intercultural Awareness in Intercultural Communication through ELF
Kanghee Lee
Hongik University, Korea, Tel: 044) 860-2114 (kangheelee0919@gmail.com)

Abstract

Lee, Kanghee. 2018. Understanding culture and intercultural awareness in intercultural communication through ELF. Korean Journal of English Language and Linguistics 18-1, 30-49. It is commonly accepted that culture and language are closely intertwined each other. However, the cultural dimension to language has still stayed as a national concept, and the interrelation between the English language and a specific culture based on a particular native speaker variety has been criticized as a problem. This study will revisit the conceptualization of culture and the relationship between culture and language and examine some theoretical concepts such as third place, transcultural flows, critical cultural awareness, and intercultural awareness. This paper argues that the relationship between culture and language in ELF is in a constant tension between individual, local, regional and global contexts, and the concept of culture needs to be approached in a more complex and flexible manner between ‘fluidity’ and ‘fixity'. Therefore, the nature of culture in ELF, where communication takes place in multilingual and multicultural contexts, is more emergent, situated and dynamic. This would propose that ELF speakers need to develop intercultural awareness and negotiation and mediation skills to effectively manage the diversity and complexity in intercultural communication.

Keywords: ELF, intercultural communication, culture, intercultural awareness, complexity
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