Accents When Speaking

[August1991]

A cut glass English accent can fool unsuspecting Americans into detecting a "brilliance that isn't there", says Stephen Fry. So is a British accent - of any variety - the route to success in the United States?

"Gee, I just love your accent."

Any Brit crossing the Atlantic will have heard that line many times. Like the rest of us, Americans are rarely immune to the charms of an accent different from their own.

There's the amusement value of listening to someone who sounds like they might just punctuate their sentences with "oh, behave". And a British accent can conjure up a stereotype of a polite, droll, self-effacing race.

But very few Brits are like Hugh Grant (Grant himself has kicked over the traces of his Four Weddings and a Funeral persona), and Stephen Fry speculates that Americans may be dazzled by the British accent.

"I shouldn't be saying this, high treason really, but I sometimes wonder if Americans aren't fooled by our accent into detecting a brilliance that may not really be there."

BBC

Is this true?

[geoffrey]

I've heard from third parties (non-North American or UK speakers) that we speak clearer and more 'distinguished' English in North America than you hear with an English accent (or worse, Scottish or Irish).

[EchoesofMourning]

I'm not sure if our version is any clearer - british people probably consider the way that we talk an accent. As for the british accent - I do think there is the first impression of intelligence, not enough to carry someone anywhere but enough to give that person that extra little bit of bearing.

[M.Dancer]

I think it depends on the kind british accent. Public School or posh accents probably it is true. But if your goal is getting laid, a scots or irish accent works better than a Toronto accent any day of the week.

[Black Dog]

But if your goal is getting laid, a scots or irish accent works better than a Toronto accent any day of the week.

I don't get it. Is there something sexy about unintelligibility?

[Charles Anthony]

I don't get it. Is there something sexy about unintelligibility?

What exactly do you not get?

[Chuck U. Farlie]

I remember my sister once talking about some cultural training that she got from IBM for international business relations... she was in sales at the time.

Apparently during the course they taught that if people have a British accent, be careful not to over-assume their intelligence... basically assume they are dumber than what they sound.

Conversely, in this course they instructed the participants to assume that Americans with a southern drawl are actually smarter than how they sound - and not to assume they are dumb based on their slow speech. (They might have missed the mark on this one! ;-))

[M.Dancer]

I think it depends on the kind british accent. Public School or posh accents probably it is true. But if your goal is getting laid, a scots or irish accent works better than a Toronto accent any day of the week.

Yeah, that's it. Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan, Liam Neeson et al, all have elocution problems....

[M.Dancer]

I remember my sister once talking about some cultural training that she got from IBM for international business relations... she was in sales at the time.

Apparently during the course they taught that if people have a British accent, be careful not to over-assume their intelligence... basically assume they are dumber than what they sound.

Conversely, in this course they instructed the participants to assume that Americans with a southern drawl are actually smarter than how they sound - and not to assume they are dumb based on their slow speech. (They might have missed the mark on this one! ;-))

I have a friend from Southern Florida, his parents are from georgia...he can take a minute just to order a cup of coffee....

....but he ain't slow in the least

[Mad_Michael]

Do you think one's appearance, clothing style, looks or bearing/stature affects how other people perceive you?

The accent one speaks with is no different.

[RB]

Do you think one's appearance, clothing style, looks or bearing/stature affects how other people perceive you?

The accent one speaks with is no different.

I think what you wear, how you wear it, how you carry yourself says a lot about you

A friend of mine brought me some Arab clothing from Dubai - I find it is very comfortable but it also carries connotations when I enter into a public sphere. I mean we say what we value by our clothing.

Women are also pressured to look pretty, and also blame for the way they dare to dress. Men have a standard way to dress e.g. in business they could be wearing that same suit 5 days in a row - you cannot tell a difference.

I love a brit accent, and have nothing to do with high prestige

The french accent is sexy

The spanish accent is vulgar and sexy

All other accents are just mac

I hate to stereotype accents but you can get fed-up with some of them especially when it becomes difficult like you have to take time out to understand what the heck the person is saying. Sometimes it is not just accents but the folks take and give literal meaning.

For example:

I work in a sector where I meet a lot of folks, I don't remember them all. The other day I sat down to chat with a fellow, I was actually documenting the visit, he seem to be familiar about me, as though we might have gone though this routine prior, so I questioned him "have you seen me before?" . Yes, of course he did, several times in the hall.

[Figleaf]

A cut glass English accent can fool unsuspecting Americans into detecting a "brilliance that isn't there", says Stephen Fry. So is a British accent - of any variety - the route to success in the United States?

"Gee, I just love your accent."

Any Brit crossing the Atlantic will have heard that line many times. Like the rest of us, Americans are rarely immune to the charms of an accent different from their own.

There's the amusement value of listening to someone who sounds like they might just punctuate their sentences with "oh, behave". And a British accent can conjure up a stereotype of a polite, droll, self-effacing race.

But very few Brits are like Hugh Grant (Grant himself has kicked over the traces of his Four Weddings and a Funeral persona), and Stephen Fry speculates that Americans may be dazzled by the British accent.

"I shouldn't be saying this, high treason really, but I sometimes wonder if Americans aren't fooled by our accent into detecting a brilliance that may not really be there."

BBC

Is this true?

Didn't an economist look into this a couple of years ago?

[Chuck U. Farlie]

I work in a sector where I meet a lot of folks, I don't remember them all. The other day I sat down to chat with a fellow, I was actually documenting the visit, he seem to be familiar about me, as though we might have gone though this routine prior, so I questioned him "have you seen me before?" . Yes, of course he did, several times in the hall.

Sorry... not intentionally being dense, but I don't understand the paragraph written above, nor how it relates to accents or even appearances for that matter...

Can anyone explain it to me, or should I just forget it?

[jester]

A cut glass English accent can fool unsuspecting Americans into detecting a "brilliance that isn't there", says Stephen Fry. So is a British accent - of any variety - the route to success in the United States?

"Gee, I just love your accent."

Any Brit crossing the Atlantic will have heard that line many times. Like the rest of us, Americans are rarely immune to the charms of an accent different from their own.

There's the amusement value of listening to someone who sounds like they might just punctuate their sentences with "oh, behave". And a British accent can conjure up a stereotype of a polite, droll, self-effacing race.

But very few Brits are like Hugh Grant (Grant himself has kicked over the traces of his Four Weddings and a Funeral persona), and Stephen Fry speculates that Americans may be dazzled by the British accent.

"I shouldn't be saying this, high treason really, but I sometimes wonder if Americans aren't fooled by our accent into detecting a brilliance that may not really be there."

BBC

Is this true?

Fry was talking about the "BBC" newsreader voice heard not that long ago. Most Brits have a local accent that can be different five miles apart. Manchester and Liverpool are 26 miles apart and sound totally different, add Newcastle to the mix and then cockney London, all completely original sounds and slang. The way you speak doesn't give away how smart or not you are....