ABSTRACT
English is not only a global language, but also a global commodity (Pennycook, 1994; Block and Cameron, 2002; Cameron, 2012). The English language teaching (ELT) industry constitutes a key site where the economic value of English is actively explored, and yet the roles ELT enterprises play in the global spread of English and their implications for the politics of English remain under-examined. Situating ELT enterprises within China’s political economy, this chapter discusses English as a commodity from three perspectives. First, I discuss English as an economic resource and document some emerging features and trends in the multibillion-yuan market of English in China. It is suggested that English commodification is enabled by a global network of capitalism and shaped by local politics. I then move on to English as linguistic capital, through which I highlight the uneven geography of the ELT market in China and argue that the ELT industry perpetuates linguistic and social inequality. Lastly, I examine English as patriotic entrepreneurship based on the observed interdependent relationships between ELT enterprises and Chinese nationalism and suggest that English in China today is situated within ideologies of neoliberal nationalism.
