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technomc
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« Reply #15 on: November 07, 2008, 05:51:54 AM » |
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My my....perhaps we should change the subject!!!! Why on earth should you find British films hard to understand, after all, are we not speaking the language from whence yours came???  |
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rogue_mother
Glossologian
Posts: 1046
Carbon-based life form
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« Reply #16 on: November 07, 2008, 06:03:15 AM » |
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The most difficult to understand are the ones that take place in rural areas -- sometimes the accents are a little difficult to follow. Even some urban shows can be difficult if the characters are using a lot of slang. It's true that we got our language from Great Britain, but that was more than 200 years ago, and there have been one or two new words that have been invented since then.
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anonsi
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« Reply #17 on: November 07, 2008, 06:30:15 AM » |
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At this point in time, I have to say that I have perfect pronunciation, enunciation, and grammar. And on top of that, I am charming. What?? You don't believe me?  |
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technomc
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« Reply #18 on: November 07, 2008, 07:30:15 AM » |
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One could never denounce one as charming as yourself Anonsi.....
As for me, well i always talk proper england cos i was tawt it since i was a likkle children...
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Binkie
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« Reply #19 on: November 07, 2008, 07:50:58 AM » |
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Quaite, quaite, T. One is frightfully aware of the shocking laziness in speech all around us. I'm particularly annoyed when I hear "Chewsday" and "chuneful". Sadly, one is the only one to say "tissue" and "issue" rather than "tishoo" and "ishoo" !
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technomc
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« Reply #20 on: November 07, 2008, 07:59:37 AM » |
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...and to think i have been scorned for saying hiccoughs instead of hiccups....
I also say tissues Binx...and issues of course. I am heartened to read that at least some of us prefer to adhere to the basics of common decency when we speak...
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birdy
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« Reply #21 on: November 07, 2008, 08:57:36 AM » |
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I've found less problem with accents in movies than when talking to ordinary people when I was traveling - I had a dreadful time understanding one young girl in a small town in New Zealand, though I didn't have all that much trouble otherwise. I think it's because actors are trained to e-nun-ci-ate. Not that I never have problems - I also thought it was something to do with my hearing, so I had it tested - the hearing was pretty much okay.
When I was working, I would sometimes ask people to write down what they wanted, telling them that I was having trouble with my hearing that day. I wasn't - it was just that I couldn't understand their mumbling! It may also have been that they weren't sure how to pronounce a name or subject, and didn't want to admit it.
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pat
Cryptoverbalist
Posts: 942
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« Reply #22 on: November 07, 2008, 08:29:10 PM » |
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r-m, that doesn't surprise me at all. Some British accents are so thick that even Brits can't understand them!
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pat
Cryptoverbalist
Posts: 942
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« Reply #23 on: November 07, 2008, 09:35:44 PM » |
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I'm reminded of a birding holiday in Uganda when we saw a bird called a white-eye. One of the other tour participants, a South African woman, had seen one before and was trying to tell me what it was called. There's also a bird called a whydah and I was convinced, from her pronunciation, that that was what she was telling me the bird was. In the end she had to spell it out for me.
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Binkie
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« Reply #24 on: November 08, 2008, 08:16:58 AM » |
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When I was teaching phonetics in Tasmania, I had an American student in the class. She had enormous difficulties, poor soul. She simply didn't hear any difference between "hot" and "heart or "pot" and "part" for instance. Made me realise just how selective our hearing really is when it comes to language.
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Toni
Cryptoverbalist
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« Reply #25 on: November 09, 2008, 10:01:24 PM » |
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Accents are fascinating aren't they? Strange how some are so appealing to the ear and others not. The South African accent, bye and large, is pretty awful Pat and many South Africans have trouble with the "i" sound making it more like "ah". Horrible! Also very difficult when one is trying to teach little ones phonics. I can happily accept accents, even when I dislike them, but sloppy pronunciation is a different matter entirely.
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biggerbirdbrain
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« Reply #26 on: November 09, 2008, 10:22:38 PM » |
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Ditto, ditto!
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