the accent problem
4 posters
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the accent problem
As far as I'm concerned, I do tend to judge people I meet by their accents. I don't mean that I'm a sort of snob, and only like people with posh accents, but I never feel comfortable with a new person until I've been able to place them from the way they speak. If it's an English person, 1 feel much more at ease if I can say "Ah, he comes form Liverpool", or "He's probably been to public school". I suppose then [ know what to talk about and what to expect from the other person.
The same is true of foreigners. Personally, I prefer a foreigner to speak with a recognizable foreign accent, so that I know that I'm talking to a Frenchman, a Ghanaian, a Pole, and so on. So for me, it seems a bit pointless for foreigners to try desperately hard to get rid of their national accent and try to speak BBC English. If someone is clearly French, I know there's no point in talking about cricket or making jokes about the Irish. And frankly, 1 think it even sounds more attractive. 1 can't really explain why, but if a person has a foreign accent, they seem to be more interesting, even if they are saying the most ordinary things.
The same is true of foreigners. Personally, I prefer a foreigner to speak with a recognizable foreign accent, so that I know that I'm talking to a Frenchman, a Ghanaian, a Pole, and so on. So for me, it seems a bit pointless for foreigners to try desperately hard to get rid of their national accent and try to speak BBC English. If someone is clearly French, I know there's no point in talking about cricket or making jokes about the Irish. And frankly, 1 think it even sounds more attractive. 1 can't really explain why, but if a person has a foreign accent, they seem to be more interesting, even if they are saying the most ordinary things.
sarah- Posts : 50
Join date : 2010-09-09
Age : 32
Location : here
on accent problem
In fact ,judging a person by accent can't be effective every timesarah wrote:As far as I'm concerned, I do tend to judge people I meet by their accents. I don't mean that I'm a sort of snob, and only like people with posh accents, but I never feel comfortable with a new person until I've been able to place them from the way they speak. If it's an English person, 1 feel much more at ease if I can say "Ah, he comes form Liverpool", or "He's probably been to public school". I suppose then [ know what to talk about and what to expect from the other person.
The same is true of foreigners. Personally, I prefer a foreigner to speak with a recognizable foreign accent, so that I know that I'm talking to a Frenchman, a Ghanaian, a Pole, and so on. So for me, it seems a bit pointless for foreigners to try desperately hard to get rid of their national accent and try to speak BBC English. If someone is clearly French, I know there's no point in talking about cricket or making jokes about the Irish. And frankly, 1 think it even sounds more attractive. 1 can't really explain why, but if a person has a foreign accent, they seem to be more interesting, even if they are saying the most ordinary things.
urika- Posts : 45
Join date : 2010-09-18
Re: the accent problem
I think Chinese people should sound Chinese when they speak English. An accent doesn't stop you being understood if your speech is clear.
The Prime Minister of Singapore about ten years ago said something like "I want people to know I am from Singapore when I speak English".
Think about it
The Prime Minister of Singapore about ten years ago said something like "I want people to know I am from Singapore when I speak English".
Think about it
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