Speaking Status: Social Class and Linguistic Variety in Kevin Kwan’s Lies and Weddings

Abstract

This paper explores the relationship between social class and linguistic variety in Kevin Kwan’s 2024 novel, *Lies and Weddings*. Using a qualitative discourse analysis approach, the study focuses on how code-switching and multilingual stylization among characters—particularly involving English, Mandarin, Cantonese, and Hawaiian Pidgin—serve as indicators of prestige, power, and cultural identity. Drawing upon theories of linguistic capital and performance, the research demonstrates that language in the novel functions not only as a communicative tool but also as a symbolic resource that defines social boundaries. Characters' linguistic choices reveal their social positioning, heritage, and aspirations, while Kwan's use of satire highlights the performative nature of elite status. The findings suggest that language in *Lies and Weddings* operates as a nuanced mechanism of critique, reflecting and challenging the constructed identities of the global upper class.