Code-switching in Malaysian Chinese Community in The Film the Journey (2014)

Abstract

Code-switching is a common phenomenon especially in a multilingual nation like Malaysia. The amalgamation of its multiracial citizens such as the Malays, Chinese, Indians and others, indirectly affects the use of language and communication strategy among the people. While some researchers believe that code-switching is an evidence of lacking language knowledge, others suggested that code-switching is used as a supplementary resource to achieve particular interactional goals with other speakers. This study examined the code-switching phenomenon among Malaysian people, specifically the Chinese community. The phenomenon was observed in a film entitled The Journey (2014), whereby relevant scenes were selected, and the conversations were analysed using the framework from Malik’s (1994) functions of code-switching. It was found that code switching was subconsciously or consciously employed as a vital communication strategy to convey the speakers’ intended message, whether emotional or merely to provide information. Through speaking the dialects as their ancestors or they themselves have carried with them from their ‘homeland’ China and passed down to the current generation, they are in a sense retaining and maintaining their ethnic identity, and foster an intimate link with China, whether imagined or real.