Hitler's accent and languages

Guest   Thu May 08, 2008 8:28 pm GMT
Because rolled r is more beautiful. According to Tolkien all languages which use guttural r are ugly.
Guest   Thu May 08, 2008 9:38 pm GMT
<<<Why Rammstein sing their songs using rolled r ?>>>
I think it's because they want their songs to sound harsh. Often, their German sounds like spoken by a foreigner
Skippy   Fri May 09, 2008 6:50 am GMT
Tolkien was a terrific writer and a more than competent linguist. That being said, some of his opinions regarding language are questionable. To my ear the gutteral 'r' isn't particularly pretty, but I'm not a fan of the rolled 'r' either.

Tolkien also claimed that "cellar door" in RP English is "intrinsically beautiful." I take his linguistic opinions with regard to beauty, a highly subjective concept, with a grain of salt.
K. T.   Sun May 11, 2008 3:10 am GMT
"But Hitler's sideman Goebbels (who was from Rhineland) always used his native uvular r's. (I just checked on Youtube, his speech sounds a lot more modern than his master's voice)"

The skin on my arm went cold when I read that.

Speaking of Nazis...Goering spoke excellent English.