Can you speak Queen's English?

Pete   Fri Nov 18, 2005 5:15 pm GMT
Ok, Uriel and Trav. That does make sense. I mean, It's a bit frustrating to see someone grimacing tensely when hearing your accent, LOL! So I guess that performing a "cleaning up" of one's accent is a sensible thing to do... To comunicate properly.
I still remember when I had just started studying English. The people in the videos were all londoners. And when I heard them I would think to myself: "dear God, this is a so pure English accent. That's probably why I don't understand very well..." But now when I have a look at those elementary level videos, just for the fun of it; I hear them speaking, and realise about how artificial and unnatural and ultra-clear accents they have. (pronouncing all T's and D's, almost no glottal-stops, allways making H's aspirations after sounds like K, P, T, and other things) When I hear this I think, no one can possibly speak like this. And if anyone tried it would require a lot of effort.

But what about this, what if someone can't speak with that "artificial accent"? is there such people? have you been in a situation where you saw someone who couldn't make up an artificial accent?

Just for you to know what I mean, I studied English with a method called "REWARD" by Heinemann and some more people I don't remember. And I had English teachers and an Australian.
Travis   Fri Nov 18, 2005 5:39 pm GMT
That should be "but rather speak in a purely formal register to begin with." in my previous post.
Travis   Fri Nov 18, 2005 6:03 pm GMT
>>Ok, Uriel and Trav. That does make sense. I mean, It's a bit frustrating to see someone grimacing tensely when hearing your accent, LOL! So I guess that performing a "cleaning up" of one's accent is a sensible thing to do... To comunicate properly.<<

It's not a matter of it sounding "good" or "bad" to them, but rather them simply understanding, due to them not being familiar with the specifics of one's own dialect which they almost certainly were not taught in school back home. But even then, I normally only switch out of my own dialect in its un-"cleaned up" form when I can tell that the person I'm talking with is having trouble understanding, as I will usually still talk to people I know are non-native speakers in my own dialect without any modification in most cases.

>>I still remember when I had just started studying English. The people in the videos were all londoners. And when I heard them I would think to myself: "dear God, this is a so pure English accent. That's probably why I don't understand very well..." But now when I have a look at those elementary level videos, just for the fun of it; I hear them speaking, and realise about how artificial and unnatural and ultra-clear accents they have. (pronouncing all T's and D's, almost no glottal-stops, allways making H's aspirations after sounds like K, P, T, and other things) When I hear this I think, no one can possibly speak like this. And if anyone tried it would require a lot of effort.<<

The main thing is that few actually really speak the idealized forms of English, or whatever language one might happen to be taught, that one is generally taught in the classroom. And yes, as for the tiring factor with respect to trying to speak "correctly", I myself find it quite tiring to speak like such for any extended period of time, and also I can only speak like such quite slowly compared to my everyday speech, and hence that is why I reserve such for speaking very politely, speaking very forcefully, waxing poetic, and speaking to non-native speakers who have problems with my normal everyday speech.

>>But what about this, what if someone can't speak with that "artificial accent"? is there such people? have you been in a situation where you saw someone who couldn't make up an artificial accent?<<

I myself normally wouldn't use an "artificial accent", but rather just a (sometimes much) higher register in my own dialect; the "in my own dialect" part comes from the fact that there are still key phonological features of my own dialect present which exist through a full range of registers in such, such as /aI/ raising (both Canadian Raising and the separate Northern Inland raising involving /r/ and /@`/), /A/ raising (before /r/ + unvoiced consonant), the use of /e/ and /o/ rather than /E/ and /O/ before /r/, the use of monophthongal /e/ and /o/ in closed syllables, and so on. That said, it is still much closer to purely formal GAE, phonology aside, than my normal everyday speech.
Guest   Fri Nov 18, 2005 8:16 pm GMT
please respect our queen!
Guest   Sat Nov 19, 2005 9:05 am GMT
I wanna fuck your queen!
Adam   Sat Nov 19, 2005 11:24 am GMT
I don't think Prince Philip will be too pleased about that.
wanker   Sat Nov 19, 2005 3:27 pm GMT
fuckers
Damian in Scotland   Sat Nov 19, 2005 4:22 pm GMT
This thread started off reasonably well in dealing with a legitimate topic....now it's a wee shame that it's descended to the level of a cesspit.

I think that any post under the name of "Guest" should be ignored, like any post not bearing a genuine Username. But this is the internet after all I suppose.....you never know who is "out there"....
Koknaigh   Sat Nov 19, 2005 6:36 pm GMT
Me Queen is seugh sexeigh
Queen Elizabeth   Sat Nov 19, 2005 7:13 pm GMT
Jesus Christ, Marie, fucking Joseph!!!
Travis   Sat Nov 19, 2005 8:28 pm GMT
Damian, the matter is that the last "fix" of the forum did not do nearly enough to solve the troll problem once and for all, and mjd seems to do barely anything here, letting the trolls run rampant here. But yes, I agree that anyone with the nick "Guest" should be treated as being completely discredited from the very outset, no questions asked.
G O D   Sat Nov 19, 2005 8:45 pm GMT
Elizabeth is the best
Kurt   Sat Mar 18, 2006 1:26 am GMT
I am an English learner in China.I prefer Queen's English because it's received.I think the accent of Queen's or King's English is the root of American Pronunciation.

And welcome to my Blog www.spaces.msn.com/members/dceasyrider
Oyster   Sat Mar 18, 2006 1:31 pm GMT
''The truth is that RP is the nicest sounding, smoothest, most educated, most 'refined' accent in England.''

most snobbish and affected, I would say
Lister   Sat Mar 18, 2006 1:33 pm GMT
''I am an English learner in China.I prefer Queen's English because it's received.I think the accent of Queen's or King's English is the root of American Pronunciation''

You are wrong.

I prefer Californian English because it's TV-received :lol: