We can understand how people use language in their everyday lives and how they think about languages that are not their own. The chapter questions the idea of "language" as a single, abstract concept, saying that people don't use a perfect idea of language but real languages, each with their features, and explains why it is important in applied linguistics, which tries to connect the practical use of language with its study.
It starts to talk about some problems that exist because there are so many languages, for example, communication difficulties. These problems can be solved by studying other languages or using methods to translate or understand other languages. It also mentions how people sometimes underrate other languages saying that are easier, or think that other languages are more difficult because they are more logical, or just say that a language is more beautiful than others. Still, from a linguistic perspective, all languages are equally complex and useful and this is important for understanding language learning and teaching.
Sometimes, it can be hard to tell the difference between a “language” and a “dialect,” and the chapter explains it using examples like Sicilian and Venetian in Italy or Mandarin and Cantonese in China, they are not the same and are not mutually understandable but are often confused by people, and called them the same language this has political and historical reasons, not just linguistic ones.
Who “owns” the language? Who decides its rules? The chapter discusses this questions and how English is used worldwide. Braj Kachru’s three-circle model explains the inner circle, the outer circle, and the expanding circle. The inner circle talks about countries where English is native; the outer circle refers to countries where English is official but not native, and the expanding circle mentions countries where English is a foreign language but is increasingly part of many people’s daily lives, we can take as an example of the expanding circle the San Andres’s language “Creole English” or the different “English” speak in Colombia.
The chapter explains how language is complex from the applied linguistics view, talking about differences between common and academic ideas and how language can affect cultural identity. It also left some questions about what will happen with English as a global language and if it will keep growing or will split into different varieties.
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