Solidarity and the Scoobies: an analysis of the -y suffix in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Abstract

This article offers a sociolinguistic analysis of selected dialogue from 66 episodes of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BTVS). While the research record reveals an interest in the use of language on the show, it is argued here that the issue of language in relation to friendship bonds has thus far received insufficient treatment. In response, this study asks if Buffy and her friends (the Scoobies, as they call themselves after the ghost-busting teens in the cartoon Scooby-Doo) are represented as using vernacular variants to demonstrate in-group identity. Marked -y suffix adjectives (e.g. Heart-of-Darkness-y) are adopted as the linguistic variable, and the data are interpreted with reference to Lesley Milroy’s social network theory and Mick Short’s concept of embedded levels of discourse in drama dialogue. The findings demonstrate that marked -y reveals shifting alliances within the Scooby gang, as it characterizes not the gang as a whole, but only certain members. The findings also suggest that knowledge of how language is used in the formation of friendship groups may be part of sociolinguistic competence (as theorized by Michael Canale and Merrill Swain). Further investigation into whether this is accomplished above or below the writer’s level of conscious awareness is offered as a suggestion for future research.