Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

Prickly heat-they have lotion for that.

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

We were doing OK until you decided to get all defensive again. Personally I don't give a shit about the threads you get attacked in because I don't read them and don't find them entertaining, believe it or not :sneaky:

Happy B' day to your son in January and I sincerely hope that he is right...he should definitely live longer than you do. No parent should ever have to bury their child. *shiver*

Don't get prickly...its not funny and it makes you look like an idiot which, clearly, you are not.

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

Not told off!!! And actually, I have that piccie & it's one of my faves. Just something about the acronym that gets me. :lol:
Rational? Says who!

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

have to agree with you on this one ... I try my best to pronounce my French as close to the locals as possible when in France - all part of the fun of going there - so why would you not do the same in the US? Also, when in Italy, I would ask for a ticket to 'Firenze', not 'Florence', and in Spain, ask for a ticket to 'Sevilla' not 'Seville' - because I know that's what 'they' call it and I know it will expedite my passage ... so why not say 'skedule' (not shhedule) when talking about planning a task, and why not ask for 'wadder' (not 'waughter') when asking for a drink?

However, I think it comes naturally to some, and not to others. I suspect those who can't easily adapt to the US pronunciation also struggle with foreign languages ... not sure about that one but certainly a theory worth considering! I know that for me, if I hear someone say a word a certain way 10 times, that's the way my mouth starts to speak it, without me even trying! I do think some folks hang onto their 'UK' accent, though, fearing they will lose their identity or because of some crazy notion that their accent is 'better' ...

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

Read this and other posts in the thread on the topic ... got me thinking ... so what 'is' the difference? Can you elaborate? Give some examples?

If I say, 'hello chaps, how are you tonight?' that is an English 'expression' I might use in a UK pub; 'hey guys, how's it going?' is a US expression that I might use in a US bar. But that goes beyond 'accent' and 'pronunciation', that gets into vocabulary and phraseology.

So focusing only on common words/expressions, what 'is' the difference between accent and pronunciation? To me, an 'accent' is a name given to a large collection of 'pronunciation styles'; that is - if you say 'wadder' (not 'waughter') and 'skedule' (not 'shhedule') and (... so on and so on), then you are said to have an American Accent ... etc. Obviously, it's more complex that that but is that not the case?

In my case, I would say I have 'toned down' or 'softened' my UK pronunciation of most words to the point where my 'accent' would be described as 'mid-atlantic'. I am clearly not a native US speaker, but I also do not sound like a UK resident any longer. I would say my pronunciation is "mixed" and as a result, my accent is is no longer easily classified.

In summary, I would conclude that 'accent' is a higher level term used to describe the result of individual word-pronunciation styles. Most people would also take into account expressions/phraseology before assigning an 'accent' to someone, but that does seem technically incorrect.

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

I'm not sure about that one, either. I've got a feeling that I've seen reports of various studies, over the years, along the lines that things that are very different (eg foreign languages) are easier to get a handle on than things that are only slightly different (eg US English vs the type of English you grew up with).

It may be like forgers. If they're trying to copy somebody's signature, they'll turn it so it's upside down. That way, it's not writing, just shapes and they just draw what they see. Whereas, if they had it right way up, the brain recognises familiar characters and the way that they usually write those characters starts to interfere.

Just another theory. :)

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

When I was learning German, they warned us that it comes to a point that you get good enough that you make a decision to embrace the language and feel yourself to be/ become seen as a German. This can be quite a hurdle, and although I like the country I felt some resistance to this step. One's accent has a psychological value. I think that is what happens to expats in the US. I could actually perfectly easily switch over to a local accent, and maybe I would if I totally loved and admired that culture and wanted to be mistaken for a native.

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

I admire the folks who can switch back and forth between one accent and another and sound perfectly convincing. There may be more Brits who've switched to Yank, then the other way around currently, but's it's pretty coolio.

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

Hugh Laurie? I never think he sounds very American, but apparently he does.

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

More American than Brit, I think, does he sound Canadian maybe?

Also the guy in Band of Brothers-Damian Lewi, could've fooled me. Oh yes, and shoe on the other foot, back in the day when I watched Buffy :o, James Marsters seemed to be pretty authentic as a Brit. He said he was inspired by Anthony Head, who I thought was pretty hot stuff in those coffee commercials. :tounge_smile:

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

You won't believe how many of the actors in Band of Brothers are British.

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

Lots of actors on TV shows lately are British but are palying Americans for some reason.

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

Group discount on salaries?

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

the beeb pumped $20M into it so there better had been a few...shame most were the germans or played the corpses :D

Re: Is your accent a problem here?
 

LOL funny. No most of the American soldiers are Brits.