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Post by viralic1 on Jul 2, 2012 5:24:11 GMT -5
The sad part is I don't really have an accent. It gets me a lot of weird stares cause I've lived in Florida for almost 9 years now, and I don't have a trace of a southern accent.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 2, 2012 5:26:27 GMT -5
LOL - I'd be thankful for it. The less accent, the better understandable.
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Post by viralic1 on Jul 2, 2012 5:28:15 GMT -5
I really am thankful for it. I've always hated accents, especially the stereotypes that accompany them. My friend is one of the smartest people I know, gets straight A's and is a hard working, good person but people think he's an idiot redneck because he has a southern accent.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 2, 2012 5:34:21 GMT -5
I really am thankful for it. I've always hated accents, especially the stereotypes that accompany them. My friend is one of the smartest people I know, gets straight A's and is a hard working, good person but people think he's an idiot redneck because he has a southern accent. That's plain stupid. What on earth does an accent have to do with intelligence?? For me that says more about the people who think like that than about your friend. |
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Post by viralic1 on Jul 2, 2012 5:37:32 GMT -5
It's a stupid stereotype. It's the idea that everyone with a "hick" accent is from the mountains, chain smokes, drinks beers, drives extra large trucks and treats their women like shit.
It's the same idea that a black person walking down the street with "gangster" clothing is some kind of badass who should be avoided.
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Post by Ithiarel on Jul 2, 2012 5:57:01 GMT -5
That's plain stupid. What on earth does an accent have to do with intelligence?? For me that says more about the people who think like that than about your friend. That it is. But it's a wide spread problem. We have the same problem in Germany (or at least around the area I live in). One of my professors at university spoke with a slight saxon accent, and none of the students (except for the exchange students) took him seriously. It's insane, but the prejudice goes something like this: "If he can't even speak proper German, he can't be too bright, can he?" And the worst thing is that it is kind of enforced on the telly, when all those idiots in scripted reality shows speak accent, and the bright educated people speak clear German. Add to that that some accents simply sound weird and ...yeah... dumb (sorry, but I can't think of a different word right now) to someone who grew up with a vastly different accent, then problems are certain to arise. |
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Post by eskimoRock on Jul 2, 2012 6:08:00 GMT -5
Nobody is allowed to laugh at Birmingham, I live in the city right next to Birmingham! I don't have an accent that I notice, but apparantly I speak in the posh "British" accent when actually all I do is pronounce things properly.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 2, 2012 6:42:33 GMT -5
Ithiarel, I can see where the problem comes from (and really, from the bit I have read about these shows, they'd reinforce every single prejudice), but it's really sad that it even exists. Besides, even in High German you will find expressions which are different between north and south. (I remember arguing with a northern friend about 'heuer' quite frequently!). That doesn't mean people don't speak better or worse or anything about their intelligence, either. Never mind accents and dialects.
Eskimorock, no one laughs about Birmingham, I am just amazed how different these pronouncations sound. Plus, being deaf means that I'm on the warpath with English pronouncation anyway, and it does *not* help when they differ so much. It is very confusing. Plus, when you hear it from two persons in two different ways, how do you tell what is right when you yourself have no idea? That's all.
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Post by dracosfairmaiden on Jul 2, 2012 6:46:51 GMT -5
When I moved to D.C from the Tennessee border, everyone thought I had an accent. It's because I had a slight speech problem when I was in elementary school. I couldn't pronounce the letter 'r' and I still have trouble to this day.
I go to college in the mountains in Southwest Virginia. I've picked up some dialect there so my sister says I sound southern. It's like learning a whole new language with all the southern slang.
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Post by eskimoRock on Jul 2, 2012 6:50:42 GMT -5
It can get confusing even for me, to be honest  20 minutes down the road and I don't even understand the accents! |
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Post by viralic1 on Jul 2, 2012 6:52:33 GMT -5
It sucks to have all the different dialects. I especially hate how everyone I know seems to think that there is only one "version" of English. If you put someone who lived up north their entire life and someone who lived down south their entire life in the same room, I'm willing to bet they would barely understand each other.
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Post by mkatl1 on Jul 2, 2012 6:53:28 GMT -5
I like American accents.. The only ones I don't like is the Canadian , when I was in high school I had an Canadian and hawaii teacher but with the Canadian one I couldn't understand a word it was to strong :/
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Post by Ithiarel on Jul 2, 2012 6:53:32 GMT -5
Kitty, I can't agree with you more. And I'm at a loss to say where this prejudice originated from (or even when). But it is undeniably there. And I think it's sad that it goes so far as to extend to highly-trained professionals, whose expertise is accepted but at whom people still laugh behind their back (or outright calling them Fachidioten). I occasionally notice this at university, and it really rubs me wrong.  |
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Post by viralic1 on Jul 2, 2012 6:56:07 GMT -5
For all of the people who speak English, try watching that and tell me if you understand it. That's a typical dialect of Hawaii |
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 2, 2012 7:04:51 GMT -5
That's so stupid  Maybe the roots lie with townspeople thinking they are better than the countryfolk, which maybe speaks more accents, but it is still stupid. How are they expecting the EU to work when they can't even unite their home country on something like that? |
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Post by Ithiarel on Jul 2, 2012 7:22:50 GMT -5
How are they expecting the EU to work when they can't even unite their home country on something like that? I don't think they do, to be honest. Are you aware of the political theory behind "Europe of the Regions"? It's based on the idea that the EU taking power from the nation states and continuing to strengthen it's regions (within the European administrational framework the EU Commission does not actually recognize States, it recognizes regions, e.g. through the Regional Development Fund) will eventually culminate in rendering the nation states themselves obsolete, and result in a European Union made up of member regions. So, instead of a Federal Republic of Germany, there would be some 16 relatively independent regions united under the umbrella of the Union. The same for Britain, France, Italy, Spain, etc... It's just a theory, but it is a very popular idea among pro-European political scientists. |
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 2, 2012 9:46:11 GMT -5
Ah yes. Seeing that they can't even decide on a common curriculum for the different German states, I'd not be too surprised. In the end you can't even move from Bayern to Württemberg without problems  There's a balance between regulation and too much regulation needed - and there is the crux of the problem. But I think that's a discussion for another place. |
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Post by G. Novella on Jul 2, 2012 10:45:30 GMT -5
I'm Canadian and I've never heard people use eh, ever, unless its to mock the idea of Canadian's using it, just saying.
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Silvertongue
Headmaster/Headmistress
I've got Slytherin Pride
Posts: 1,595
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Post by Silvertongue on Jul 2, 2012 13:25:17 GMT -5
The amount of British accents alone is ridiculous. It's not even just divided by North and South. There's Geordie, Brummie, Essex, the generic "farmer" accent, Cockney, East-end, West-end, "Posh" and these are just a few of the English ones. Then there is Irish, Welsh (which gets thicker in different parts of Wales) and Scottish (same thing as Welsh). I understand most accents, I just have trouble with their phrases and if they mumble.
I often find myself slipping into a different accent when I'm around someone with one or if I'm in a different country, like Australia. I don't even realise I'm doing it until I get home and people are like 'Why are you talking like that?'.
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Post by eskimoRock on Jul 2, 2012 13:28:48 GMT -5
I spent a few weeks with an Australian friend and started subconsiously lifting at the end of my sentances, which drove my father mental |
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Post by physicssquid on Jul 2, 2012 13:58:44 GMT -5
Silver, the Welsh are hilariously complicated. Different words mean different things depending on what part of the country you go to.
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Silvertongue
Headmaster/Headmistress
I've got Slytherin Pride
Posts: 1,595
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Post by Silvertongue on Jul 2, 2012 13:58:59 GMT -5
*giggle*
I met a couple of girls from Newcastle in Spain when I was 11 and by the time I went home 2 weeks later I was talking just like them. My dad hated that!
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 2, 2012 15:07:59 GMT -5
I think I am just burying any hope to ever learn properly how to speak English Obviously, they don't know themselves what's right! |
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Post by mountaingirl777 on Jul 2, 2012 15:10:01 GMT -5
I'm Canadian and I've never heard people use eh, ever, unless its to mock the idea of Canadian's using it, just saying. Maybe it is a certain Province? most of the Canadians here are from BC and they say it all the time and they aren't mocking. some of the nothern Washington people also say it. The Canadian accents that get me are the "Process" and "Sorry". The O's are different. That is the reason why people say I have a Canadian accent, I'm around it and hear it so much that I speak it, but I don't hear it. My mom once told me that I sounded like our director's wife, who is from Canada. |
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Post by brokenquill92 on Jul 2, 2012 23:54:18 GMT -5
I've learned that as far as America goes it depends on what part of the country you're in I'm from Ohio and monorail is called tram but streetcars are trollies and the traing is just the train as for pacifier, binky, or dummy I've heard all three used. I've recently moved to the South Tennessee to be exact and there mannerism and language is completely foreign especially the use of y'all and ain't they use words like buggy and billfold and other odd turn of phrase personally between the odd language and thick accents it's horrible trying to understand them and I personally find some parts of Southern culture offensive oh sorry I went on a little rant there but the Southern US really is horrible I'm surprised you had never heard of y'all and ain't as I'm from PA and we use both quite frequently. Where I live it's several little towns bunched so close together they could be one big town very close to a moderate sized city. But as close as the towns are there are some distinct differences one of which being that it is quite common for people from one section to say tree instead of three. I mean really! That drives me absolutely nuts. Here's a line from one of those 'If you live in-' lists that you find on the internet. I can give you some pointers on how to talk like you're from NEPA (northeast pennsylvania) though: Tree - the number between 2 and 4 A couple, two, tree - more than one, but less than "a lot" "Goin' up da mall" - all of our malls are built on large hills Hoagies - a sandwich filled with fattening meat-like substances Youse - refers to a small group of people, usually a couple, two, tree Heyna - slang of slang. Proper usage is "heyna or no". Loose translations: "am I right or not?" or "is it not so?"  And yes for all the wonderful thing's down South it also leaves a lot to be desired. Sorry but as a female black gay atheist this part of the United States isn't very friendly towards me not mention I must careful about wearing scarves when my hair sucks or people think I'm a Muslim and I've had rocks thrown at me twice sorry but Southern culture's faults far outweigh its good points and don't get me wrong maybe I'm a little prejudice coming from upper middle class Cleveland and not used to tiny America and its conservative values especially with my previously listed description |
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20 minutes down the road and I don't even understand the accents!
Maybe the roots lie with townspeople thinking they are better than the countryfolk, which maybe speaks more accents, but it is still stupid.
There's a balance between regulation and too much regulation needed - and there is the crux of the problem. But I think that's a discussion for another place.
