|
 |
Acquiring accents - funny questions | ||
Tags: Accent | ||
Share with:
| ||
 Language Learning Forum : Questions About Your Target Languages |  | |
| William Camden Hexaglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 6280 days ago 1936 posts - 2333 votes  Speaks: English*, German, Spanish, Russian, Turkish, French | Message 9 of 20 11 July 2009 at 7:25pm | IP Logged | |||||
|
I have sometimes been taken for someone from a distant area of the language I happen to be speaking. When speaking French in Belgium, I have been thought to be from Luxembourg, when speaking German in the Köln area, I was taken to be from Austria, and when speaking Turkish, I was thought to be a Turkish Cypriot. People know I am not from their area from my accent, but may think I come from a different part of the same Sprachraum. Mind you, if I talk the L2 for long enough, the truth usually comes out that my L1 is in fact English.
I try to imitate the accents of others, but sometimes it works, sometimes not. I am not a natural mimic. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| draoicht Groupie Ireland Joined 6321 days ago 89 posts - 146 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 10 of 20 11 July 2009 at 8:57pm | IP Logged | |||||
|
This is a topic I’ve often wondered about regarding Irish people.
For dedades, Irish people emigrated in huge numbers and when the economy improved in the 90s a lot of these people returned. Some came back with accents of the countries they had lived in, U.S., Britain, Australia, while others returned with the exact same accent they had left with. I think that maybe some people who emigrated and lived in Irish communities abroad tended to keep their accents while others who struck out on their own and integrated more into the countries they went too picked up the local accent. The writer, Frank McCourt, went to America when he was 19 in 1949 and spent the rest of his life there and still has a strong Irish accent. YouTube 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| fairyfountain Senior Member Zimbabwe Joined 6136 days ago 254 posts - 248 votes 5 sounds | Message 11 of 20 12 July 2009 at 2:17am | IP Logged | |||||
|
I don't really know how accents are acquired, but the example of the American girl (first page) is quite scary. I don't see how she could speak English like that, given that she is American. A friend of mine thinks she's putting the French accent on. Well, I wish she were right, but I don't know.
I also think that mental blocks play a part in the whole language learning process. Since I listened to the American's audio file, my English has gotten worse, probably because I'm afraid of speaking bad French (she ended up speaking bad English, so who knows what can happen to me haha). One of my friends thinks that everything is psychological. I concur. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| anamsc Triglot Senior Member Andorra Joined 6211 days ago 296 posts - 382 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Catalan Studies: Arabic (Levantine), Arabic (Written), French | Message 12 of 20 12 July 2009 at 2:46am | IP Logged | |||||
|
Well if you want my opinion, I honestly don't see what's the big deal about that American tutor. There are only
like one or two very small pieces where she sounds funny, and that's probably because she's switching back and forth between the French and the English. I would definitely think she was American unless you had said something. That said, she does have one of those Drew Barrymore/Madonna accents, where she kind of over- enunciates and tries to sound posh (at least that's how it seems to me). I'm pretty sure that's intentional. I don't think she has a French accent though, I'm not really sure where you're getting that from. But as far as people who do seem to have accents in their native language, I think that comes from two sources. Either they actually have lived in a foreign country for a very, very long time and on top of that never speak their native language, or they use the accent as a sort of "badge of honor" (consciously or unconsciously). I mean, I'll admit, when I first came back from Spain after a year, I may have said things that sounded slightly funny, but that's more grammar/word choice than actual accent, and it went away very fast. So if you actually do want to keep sounding French, it shouldn't be a problem, especially if you live in France and speak French with your family and friends and at school/work. Accents are all about identity, and I guess I'm saying that I think it's psychological too. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| fairyfountain Senior Member Zimbabwe Joined 6136 days ago 254 posts - 248 votes 5 sounds | Message 13 of 20 12 July 2009 at 3:02am | IP Logged | |||||
|
Well, thanks for your opinion :)
Then again, it all depends on people's perception of things. Most of the friends that listened to the clip think her French accent is obvious. I may also hear it more since I'm French. I also thought that her French sounded pretty native-like, and a French friend was like "no way, she doesn't sound native". So yeah, who knows. As for the whole "badge of honor" thing, I do agree with you. I'm only focusing on the girl because it goes well with my topic. It also proves that people perceive accents differently. Some folks will think that someone speak perfect English when most people won't agree, and vice-versa.
I don't know about that. I got asked 3 times "are you English?" this year, and some French speakers do tend to stare at me/ speak slowly when I speak French and when they don't know me. I also got told by "neutral parties" that I sounded American/English in French at times. Now, this was 4 months ago, and I tried to fight it, so it has apparently gotten better, but in my case, it's a source of embarrassment, and not something intentional. Or do I fit in the "unconscious badge of honor"? I guess I dislike my native language enough haha. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| anamsc Triglot Senior Member Andorra Joined 6211 days ago 296 posts - 382 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Catalan Studies: Arabic (Levantine), Arabic (Written), French | Message 14 of 20 12 July 2009 at 3:29am | IP Logged | |||||
Hmm...are you sure that people think you sound English because of your accent, and not your grammar/use of idioms/etc.? Because for me, grammar and vocab were the first things to go. And you very well may fit in the badge of honor category, especially if you dislike your native language. (Note: I'm in no way saying that this is a bad thing!) I mean, accents and identity are so strongly linked, I think that a person who would like very much to be a native English speaker may try to adopt a native English speaker's accent subconsciously--even in their native language--just as a way of trying to fit more into the group that they want to be in. Of course, this is just my opinion, based only on my own experience. In high school, I studied in Costa Rica, and I found myself unintentionally talking with a tiny bit of an accent (my family made fun of me when they talked to me on the phone!). I also wanted to be Costa Rican and not American (let's face it, it was not very fashionable to be American), and I really really wanted to speak like a native Costa Rican in Spanish, and I think some part of me thought the accent would help. When I came home and started to feel silly, I was able to get rid of it, without affecting my accent in Spanish (althought that's far from native). Now, even though I stayed in Spain and started speaking a little funny, I never felt that my accent was at all different. I think it's because although I wanted to integrate and speak with a perfect Spanish accent and everything, I realized that being American is something that has shaped my personality and there were some things I was proud of about it. In that time, I also developed a real appreciation for English that I didn't have before. Now, I'm not saying that what I did in Spain is better that what I did in Costa Rica in any way, I'm just saying that my different attitudes shaped my linguistic experiences. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| fairyfountain Senior Member Zimbabwe Joined 6136 days ago 254 posts - 248 votes 5 sounds | Message 15 of 20 12 July 2009 at 4:32am | IP Logged | |||||
|
Your post is really interesting.
To answer your question, people called me out on my accent/intonation in French, not something else. I actually posted recordings in French on a French website some months ago to get some feedback. Some French speakers were sure that I was a native English speaker, and said stuff like "you stress words on the second syllable and then swallow the rest of the word/ accelerate - your "é" and "e" sound is too closed - "your R sounds English/American - your intonation is too sing-songy to be French - you pronounce your H's at the beginning of words". Apparently, I also make mistakes when it comes to liaisons and what-not. Now, since they pointed out the problem, I tried to work on it, but I think it's still somewhat there. As for my grammar, I know that I use English grammar/idioms/vocabulary when I speak French, and it's getting worse and worse, but I don't really care, because it doesn't pin me out as an "English speaker" or "foreigner". It's not like changing a preposition sounds that funny - well, not to my ears, anyway. I have that whole "constantly thinking half in English/ half in French and unable to think in either language" issue, so I just need a break sometimes, and switch my grammar alarm off. As for people IRL, some of them just assume I'm foreign. I don't really know how that can happen - I'm not good at imitating accents in French, so yeah. I do want to be a native English speaker, but I *think* that I want to be bilingual. I mean, why not speak both languages with no accent if you can? Anyhow, I probably fit in the badge of honor category, albeit at a subconscious level. My family would give me hell (quite literally) if I sounded the least bit American in French, so my "Anglophone" accent prolly only comes out when I'm with friends or strangers and not with my family. However, I'm moving out next year, and that worries me - I already plan on ditching French when I don't have to talk to my relatives, so I may just end up talking English the whole day. I guess that replacing conversations in French with hours of voice chat in English on Skype may make my problem bigger. Edited by fairyfountain on 12 July 2009 at 4:34am 1 person has voted this message useful |
|  | 
Printable version
|
| Copyright 2024 FX Micheloud - All rights reserved No part of this website may be copied by any means without my written authorization. |
