It's the accent.
Just a minute....I need a smile here!
Accent? I don’t mean the decorative kind, like having something of special color or interest stand out to make the image ‘pop’. Instead, I’m talking about the kind that you see or hear. Let me make it a little clearer.
When we write a name, or a certain word, especially in other languages, there must be an accent mark over a particular letter to make the person reading or saying the word put the accent or emphasis in the right place. Like this:
There’s an accent mark on the letter E in the French word “Pere”. But let’s get a little more personal and talk about the REAL accent I was referring to. The vocal accent of people when they speak. Some accents are lovely, some are sweet, some sound harsh (though they aren’t), and some sound romantic or alluring.
Which ones do you like listening to? There are many I could sit and listen to all day. Ever watch a movie where a person is speaking who has an accent? Was it an Irish accent, or London, England? What about the Australian accent? Maybe it’s an American accent, such as from the deep south or extremely northern areas of Maine or Wisconsin? There are so many accents that people from all over have.
But WHY do we hear an accent? Because we’re trained to hear the English language spoken like those around us, by our families, neighbors, in schools, in businesses, and in churches. They will usually sound similar to us in their speech.
Like this scene from the movie “Leap Year”, the woman speaks with an accent as she’s Irish, and in Ireland.
Which is YOUR favorite accent to listen to? Here’s an even better question for you. Did you know, that even YOU have an accent? YUP! It’s true! To others who don’t speak like you do, or aren’t from your exact neighborhood or family, you have an accent. Cool, huh! So that means, everyone in this entire world has an accent, to someone else in this world. Wow! Now that’s cool! Remember that the next time you get frustrated with someone who is speaking the English language with an accent, and you’re having difficulty understanding everything clearly. And just SMILE about their accent. And yours.
