The myth of non-accent 3

The poetS werc lint ;llonc in ~:lIl ctiolling myths, fur long !leforc the I)\>cts thc ,(,UCS ,\luI thc hWllukers Iud S,lIll:ri(lIlCtl them as :1 useful expedient. The), nceded to

tunt rol the people h~' supcritiri(l lis fcars . and these l-:lnnu l he :lroUSC{t without rn~ th~ ,Inti m:IT'vels.

S(r:l l)l) (M nC-.\D Yi), GI'ogl-"pIJII/

You've got one too

. \ Iph is undcr~to{)d Ilro:ldly as ~ SIOTY \\ith gelleT'l1 cuhur:11 significanl:c. In the SOld}" uf m~,th, l 'cr:ll:1 ry is SL~l)n J:JI)' 10 the \\<I}' in whkh :1 ,tory s~1Ilboli l.cl> human experience more gcncr:l lly. \\'11:11 is particubrly infeft-sting is thc way that lIl}'ths arc u~cd to jll'li!) SOI: i:ll order. :Iml m encuurage: tiT coerce con~l1~u:l 1 p:lrticip;ltioll in th:1t onlcr. 1

In gcncnl l, lingui~ts think of ,(';uHlant language anti its (-ornllarr. non-accent. :IS ahsmu.:tions. And in tac t. [his is a logica l cunnel·t iun. :IS is horne out hy the o.vJoni EII!(lisb Diet/olllflis definition; ~Ian al)Straction isl the ide;1 of slllllething \1 hich ha:. 110 indt:IlCIl\lent existe llce; a thing which cxi~ts on I)' in illc:l; ~oJJl ething vi~ion:1I1,.M From this folluws llni le nC:l tlr .\lilm)" :Iml .\l ilroy·s ~ Ug:gl!!>tiHn that standard I.mguagc !> hould /101 he umlcrowtld :IS :uly ~pccilic langu'l!;c. hut as M:ln illea in Ihc mind J"Jlhcr Ih:ln a real il)' - a ~t:t of allSl r.lct nortll' to which actua l U~:l gt: mar l'on form to :1 gre,lIer or lesser e.nentM (I 9H5: ! 2-23).

I;llr ollr purp0sc5. it is u<;cful [0 (:()lISille r 1x)lh sflfllllllrtllllllgtll/.Jl.T ,\lid IIO/H/m:/lt.1:. 1Il~ t h~.

It is only hy dlling so th,lt we (an (Ollie to umICl"'tlllHling hllw the coll ective cons(' iollsncss clInc to be .. \ lyths aft: ll13gil-al and l)Owerfll l construtts; dley l';lll moth:tte MJI.."iall>t:h,wior :lnd ,Kllons wllll:h would he otherwise contrary to Illb>ic o r rC:l!>lIn.

\ \ 'e h;\\"e I..~une ,I gootl way il\(o this . li'>Cussion without dcfining tht: tt:nn {/f(rllt. Perhap .. the re,h un f,)f Ihat is ck':lr by now: in so f:1f as linbruiSb :Ire I.·uncerned, the tenn ha!> no technical nr ' I>ccilic l1le:miny. It is \I idc!r me.! lJy the puhlic. h, >\le\'er, in in tere~ting \\:lYs.

In ~ more techniCl1 senSC, I/r.rllt is lIscd to dist inguish su ess in WOrt!!> (The al."Cent i, 011 lht: ~ec"lld srlbbl~ in 1>,1.\ :' /111/) or inton:ll iull in sentent'es(~That's Ai'.:OTI IER tille mc~s you\'e gotten us into!"); it 1..':111 be used as.1 {Ii'll:ritic. uut lh is is most uflen dune in t:on­fU nction with the writing of m hcr hlll b'll'I g-e~ . . \ lo re gC l1el':l lly. al.."t:cnr is ~ I( M)Se reference to a SllCCilic '·1\ ,Iy of ~pc'lking." There is no official IIr tt:dlllical SllCcitic:.tt inn fur II'h:1I thi .. Illight mean inlinguiqic terms, 1111\ thert: ~ re [\\0 \liddr rccognizc{1 dClllClltS tel \\hat ~e r""es 1<1 distinbrtl ish 011t: variety of:1 bllbrtJ:Ige frum another in the Illimls of spt::lkers;

ProWt.Ii,·ft/lfll",'I. T he sllIdy of the ph"llulob1'lIf a Ia llbrtJage ind u.les t"Onsider:Hion of intonation, or patterns of pitch t·ontouN. Th i~ indudt,s slrt:!>s patterns. IMlth ,11 the lexit':ll Jilt! ,\I the sentence IClel. hut it :11~0 luudws UIM IIl (.,her lactor.l such ,I ) tempo of ' I >caking. Fur exam ple, !>pt:,l kers of Fnglish tend til ealll:mguages or I":lrietie!> of

THE MYTH OF NON·ACCENT 4$

tlllb'll'lgC \\hich rcnd tuw:ml .Ul ul)s\lillg in ~tress al the end of w(.rds lilting, or <ing­'Img. or ,ollie Romance bngu,lgt:S "'lpid-tire. Currcnt ly in Amerk:ll1 I':ng!i~h there i, 'lIIe I I:ry :leti\"(: p(lillt of l":Iriation ha"ing \I.l {Iu II ith strt:SS, in a )1113 11 SCt of wI>rds induding TbllllhgirillK, IIlSImlll(t, Il(flllt, (tlllrlll .

It ~ecm~ tha t tirst syllable stress h:1S been documented for thcsc words in the South, \lhile cverywhere cl~t: in the count!)' the stress is on the M.'COml ~rlbhlc: /Xslmtll('t

(South) or iI/SUR/111ft (c!sc\\herc). The fir!>1 syll:lble \"ari:lI1\ has heen shuwing up outsidc the South quite a lot over at least the past :?O )"C:l.rs, which is whell I st:nted t~king notes on it. The other words th:lt fo llow this p:ltlem in the South do nO! seem to be \':lIldering ~tlrth; my l":lSlJal resea rch has not Ullc()\"ered use ofTH .. /SKSgtt·mg. ,\-,llIft , Cl:'lIIr11f or U.\I/trdftlon the \ \'e~t CO'I~I, in the .\ l idwc~t or on rhe East ('.H;I~t.t SrV;flltllfa/ !rlltllrn. \ \ 'e ~cqui re. :IS part of uur first bn~"l.I'l ~e. thc <;Qulllls of the langu~g"c \1 hich f.J1I into t\1 n 1l1:lilJr l':lregorie): I"r)wcls :lIId consun:lnts. Each uf the~e MJlJIltls e~hL~ in re l:1rioll to Ol1e another in ,I phon()llIgit~11 \trtlcture. In the di~c\J~si lin ahuve. '>I.mt: )I)<:aker~ of U.S. English {listingl.lish between the wonl\ OIlIgb/ .md rot. while for othcrs these ,Ire 1lUlllllnpns. This fo l!O\ls (Iui te rt:;I\On,lbly from the Ell"lth.lI there ,m~ tlI~ny pos~ihlc phonul"gic,11 s}"~temS for U.S. Eng:li~h .

perspective

Linb'l,i,ts have ~truggle(1 III tind an at:t:uJ"Jte definit ion of the \llIrd 11..,011. and for Ihe 11Io~r part. !,>il'cn it up as ,I had job. Genernl1y ,If(rlll can only he understood .1Ilt! ddined iflhcre is ~nlllethi ng III t"Omp~re it with. You travel to J ~ llI ali 10\\11 in Kansas. :l1\tl (lI1\les~ you ;Ire aCl1l,l l1 y frum that :lrC:l). pJUr .ICt:clll will 1)<: )een .IS me differenc.:es bc~cen your ~pc ec.:h and thc loc;1 1 ~peeeh. Thost: diffcrenc.:es em be e.~ :1 mined and i{lcntified. 'iO that a Imbrtli;,t might make a study of how rour pro~Jl.lic ft::Hl.lTt..s and phonoltlb1' mark rOil ~s someone from somcpbee else. The '"wlIlcpb<:c eI~e" C:1Il be :lmuher state. count!)'. or M>Cial ~roup.

Those who I\ork till accenl as a phollcticaml socioli nbrtli~tic phenomenon seem to hJ\'e t:ome to the 1.~ lIldusion th:lt whi!c thi~ is tnle. it is .Iho nut i111 lMJrt,lIlt. T h:lt i!>, in the serious "rudy of .lCccnt, [he ohieel i~ not \\h~t I."OIl1eS om of unc l>erson's lIIouth. hut \lhat the listent:r~ ht::lr :l nd unders t'l!ld . DI: !"wing :lml ;\l llnro put it I'ery si 11lpl~' : " From our IloC ..... l>cl·ti\·c. Iistene,,"' judgments arc the only me.lIlingfu lll'indow into , l c(cntCtlne~5 :lnd l~lmprehcnsiblli ty~ (2()OI.J: -+;8).

And yet. it is illlport:lIlt to distinb'llish hClwcell the two major ki nds of .\Ccents: FiNt Lan!orl.lagc (L I) and ScconJ L lIlb'll;lge (L:?).

l1 and L2 accents

\\"hat I\e 1..':111 1.1 accent is really no more than "hat "e h3\e been discussing .111 Jlong: 'trucrured \'~ ri:lt ion in bnb'l1:1ge. ,\lost US U;llly we u!>e geograph~' ns thc tina line of dClllar­C"lti(ln: a .\laint: acccnt. ~ :-":CI\ Orle:lns aCI.'Cnt.:ln '\ppabchbn :Il·et:nt. a l.'t'lh :lcct:nt. But thcre :lrc '1 1 ~., , tll'bll)' hound clll~tcr, of fe:u ures II hich :Ire superi mp(J~e{1 on Ihe gell­!!r.lphie; :-..: .. til·c. \ merit-:'lIl accents. Blad: accents. Jewish :lccents. Gender, ract:. ethnicity, 1I1("Ol11e. religion _ thcse and nthcr Si)(:bl idelllitil:S;lfC olTen cI":lrl~' marketl by me.lIls uf l'hoice IlCtwecll lillgui!>tic I ~ri.lIlts.

o~@P"O\</o U •

....... ,.\.

"""PAO\<,, 8@~ "'t.,,'\'

O~@P""'IO U •

....... , ....

o~@PA"'"b u •

"'C",''''

@~ i:"11''-

... @\ ';",." ..

48 THE MYTH OF NON·ACCENT

1.1 aecc:rlt is, then, thc n:lti\'c \"";Inet)" of U.S. English '1)(lkcn: ':\'cry n~li\'e spc~kcr of U.s. English has ~lI1 L I ~ecc:m, nn maner how ImnHlrked ur markell thc person's bllguagc lIlay secm to lx:. This includcs petlplt: like R:lChd ,\bddow, Ste\'cll Colbc:n. Hill .\bh.:r, Bill O'Reilly and Ann Coulter. hroa{kllSlllews and I.:ommen~rry pCr"on:lliries IIhu 11rc gcner:rlly thought to be s pcllkers of 'SAE,

So whcrc doc\ aceent e nd :rOIl dia lect hegin? r To he more specIfic: \\,h)' i~ Dutch considered II sep;lr:rte language fmm Geml;1;t1, lind SlIiss G.:nn:1n not? \\ 'hy do people 1,'311 the v:lI;ety of English thot m:tny Afrit.""l.I 1I AllIcril'".lns o;l>cak mack slang(or 11 Bbck an'ell! or Afric:rn Allleri(.";I.n English) but call Codm.:y and Gulbh dialt'CtS? ,\lax Weinreich io; I, illcly quoted 3S pointing out that a langu:rge is 31liab:t with an anlly:tnd II navy: I wlluld like 10 adll to th~t obser"::nkm thin a dialcct is perh31)!; nOlhing mort thlln :r. languat.'t: th:lt gctS no resllCct, T hn is to ~:ry thut lhrsr 'l'IrSf/Olllllrr rM11y 11/10111 pO/lllrs 111111 bisrolY. Tire fe:lIurC's of the I:mgu:rges being db,cussed lrre !>eCOntlary. Ilowel'er, If it is nec~:try to

tlistlnguish between n(.'Cent :rnd bngullgc v:lricty on purely linguistic terrn~, Ihen :1 rou~h

divi~ion l'".ln be l1l:lde liS follows:

• Two \""lrictics uf:r ,ingle l:lIlb'llage are di~tingtlis lr etl II)' :recent \\ hen (lifTerenccs Jrc restriete.1 p rinr:mly to phon(Jlo~/y (prosntlle :rml ~eg\llenml fenmre,).

• If twO \-:1 rieties uf il .. ingle lant.ruagc .11so . lilTer in Illllrphulubric:r1 1otTUetun. .... synm:.:, Icxicon, :rnd ~ernnl1tics. then thcy lIre different \'arieties, or Iliniects, of the sallie l:tngu:lge.

• If two ,":rrietieS of:l eommon mother l:1l1t.'lmge differ in :rtlthesc W:I}'S, :Hld in :ulditiun Ii:r,'c distinct litcr.rry histories. tlisrinct onhogr:lphics. 1I1l1Vor ge'J-poliricJl h"umI:Jril,.'S. then they 3re gcnerally l'Ulled dill"erelll bnl-'l lages.

Style or code shifting is lr tenn rcAeeti ng the spc:lker's ability to ~witl'h hetween I:tng:\I:Ig-es or bnguage \":lrieucs dependC'nt on :r large numbcr of factors. It IS a cornpli(''llled proce~s. :rnd o ne th:lt has heen stuJicd intensively, For our [lul']){):;C~, hnwe\'cr. it is enuugh to SilY

lhat \, hell II spc:lkcr i .. ,hifullg hetwecn twu '';Iricti('S uf onc lan/,'llage which arc dose l}' relatell. it wi ll sometimes Ix: 3pprupnate m ~peak of "accent" and 'i(Jl1letimc.s uf "\'ariety." Thus it is useful to rctlin the tcnn IIur1lt to t-alk ahout phonology, but it IS impomnt to

remcmhcr that this is a !luill c~teg(}I)', LZ acc.:nt is wrydilTcrent. \\'hen a !latin! spea ker of a langrmgc other than English

le3r11s English. accent is used to rcfer to the breakthrough of natl\'C l:1!1/fuage phOllOlob')' illm the t::Irget 1:rnguagc. TIl\I~ we might ~.1~' th:!! a l\ Imli\'idual h:!s a \\ 'dsh al:a:nt, (}r a '[':Igalug :rcccnt. hCl:ausc tire phonologics uf those l:rngu3b't:s infl uencc tlrc le ;lfI rcr'~

Iinmundation otU.S. Eng:lish, :lnt! anycffun to block Ihc L? al,.~entwill he alXOmplishcd witlr differing degrees of succc~s.

11111.~ far il h:!s heen put forward Ih:\t:

• :111 sl){)kell hUIll:lII 1:1I1guagc is necl.:ss:rrily ami functionlllly \,:Iri:lhle: • one of the functions of \'ari:nio n is to convey suei:r!. styli,tic :1Ilt! geogr:rph ic meaning; • the majority of the emblematic work nf \'ariation is l""3rrictl Oll t below [he le\t:1 of

consciullsness.

Gil'cII these facts, Wh;lt i~ non-acccnt? Anu gi\'cn thc f,lct th lU llrftll( is JUSt ~hurthand for \'anllhlc bng-nage (II hieh is in some wars II redundant [eml), what c:rn a 'st'.ImbrJ· U,S. Eng lish be, hut an ahstnll'tion?

THE MYTH OF NON ' ACCENT 47

111 ~Jlite of 1111 the hard clidenee th3t dll langu:lges ch:lnge. pcople steadl:lStl}' hclicI'e rh:ll lr hOIllog-enous, sr.mJnrtli1.cd. fll1e-SI"l.e-ms-all bnguage is not o nly dl,.'Sir:rble, it is trul), a possibi lity, This ~lkes us hack to uur upening .science fiction sctnllrio. in II hich the ro~iti\e r:tmific:rtions of 11 \\nrld in which wc arc all the same sile and wcight is so JPI~aling, so entit'ing, that wc uverlolJk biolugil""31 rC'Jlities and the laws of php;ics.

Before I'C go lin tOllsk how we are ahle to fool ounch-es so thoroughlY;loouf langu3ge, IIC Tllust first dea! more carefu!1y with the qucstion of the mythic:rl homogenous StoHl­daf\li1.ed sllt.lken lanb'1.1ilge. Unti! the imposslhility of such a thing is csmhli~hed uncon­lTu\enibl~·. IJCflple will collIinue to pille after it, and, \I'urse, to pursue it,

SII, C'Jn rnu In~(: one accent and replace it with :lIll)ther? A lint.'1.1ist's first impulse is to

an~wer this question. very simply, no. It is nOlllOssihlc for an adult to ~ubstitute his nat;l'e Ilhonolob,}' (one :rcccnt) for another, clJnsbtenrir and ill:1 peml:lIlentwll r.~ nUl! The nun­linguist II ill iump in. \ \ 11 ~ t about my Aunt .\ bgda, II ho c.lIne here from [he Ukr:rine lIml has 110 accent at all? \ Vh:1t aoout Cwrnelh l'"ltrow. 11'110 c:rn switch frum Americ:rn English [0 Brrtish Fnglish withom II mument'~ he~it:rtinn? And thcre's loe's \,ife, \\·ho ju~t g'lvc up hcr BmtlklYIl 11ccelll when it e3 usc{1 hcr pmhlcm~ in mcdk:ll schoul.

Whal Jiles it lI1e3n ro lo§(: an aCl'tnt: Arc \I'e f:llking llhout rcplacing olle way of speaking for ,mother, or adding:1 nell' phonology tu a person's cxisting illl'entor)"? Arc wc demand­IIlg that:1 person SOUllll une way for a brief period of rime, or th3t he al\\'lI.}'~ SOUIlII thou ":IV? Consider 11 rn:m who :lpplics fur a promotion and is wid that his accclll is ton low­cJa~~ for Ihe joh he \\~lIl1.s 10 do.

J.rllles Kahakml, a n:llh 'c of I bwai'i, wantctl to re~d prc[l3retl weather forecasts on the I'dJio. lie was refu.'it.·d prumminn hct:rusc his English marks him as a speaker of l-L:aw:ai'ian Creole. \ "hcn he sue{1, the radio st:rliun ealled an :lcccnt reduction sllCdnlist wll'slIfy on dlelr hehalf. Thc lIetent reduction spcci:l list didn't mince \\orus: Kahakua's English WllS

t!efidcnt, wrong, unacc.:pt3ble, En:n givcn the dClll3nds of the juh in lluestion - r:lpil l Ilronunciation of long and complc.! Nati\'c Haw:ai'ian I3ngtrage pbce Il:lmes. the special lSI

(:lnd the jUllgc) foulltl th~t .\Ir. Knh,lkua's bilil\plali~1Il '\':I~:I d i 5~(h,~ntagl! the cmployer shouldn't ha\'c ICJ wlemtc. (:\ tde\'r~e<1 rel){)n nn the K;lhakua Title \'11 C:lSe em he seen 11 http://gun.gl/kIZBp,)

t\ ccent rcducdon spel,.;ali~t.s like the one IIho teqifiell in (he Kahllkua case 3rc nOI objectivc partil'S. Such persons h;),'C 3 I'e' ted imcrcs[ in the idea of ,1«"(11/ and sllJllIl,ml. If :l.n accent rcduction spccialisl l'Ould not cntwince thc l'Oun that .\Ir, Kahnkua's I !a\\""ll'i:rn :rceent was \l'rong :lilt! inappropriate, II'h:u 11"011111 th:1I mean for lIer career?

Answers for all of these questions re(luin: a do:r..c r umlerstamhng (lflang\.1a~'C lIC(IUlsition, \ Ve bcgin widr somc gcneTali1.:It1uI1S which are more lill~ruistic fac~ of life:

• Therc is:1 finite set IJfpment1:III)' mC3ning-he:lring- ~(l\lIIlls (\'o'l'cb" consunants. IOnc~) II !rich ("'.In IJI.' produecd b), human \'ol':ll 3PP;)r:ttu\. ' nlC set in irs endrct)' is ul1l\·C'l"'ial. al'ail:rble til :111 human hcint.>s I' !thout physil'lll handic3p,

• i::.lch bnguage USl'S )(Ime. hut not al1 , sounds al'ailaille. • Snund~ lin: or~lIli7cd inw ~ystelll~, in which e:lch dement ~tands in rclationship to

thc ntht:r elements (phonology). The S;IIllC ml'tntory of loOunl ls can I.>c orb'llnizcd inrl) :Il1urnhcr of IlOs~ihle s~'ste ll1 s. C hildrcn :Lre born with the ability to prod ucc rhc emirc \Ct ,.,f pns~iblc sounds, bill C:I'cnnl:lIly restnl't (hcm'ieln~ IU the onl!:!! they hear uSt!{1 awtllld them.

• ChllJrcn t:xpthCd to more than one langu:lge during (he I:mglmge al"'tluisltion pr\)CeS~ rna)' 3clluire morc th:1lI olle !.Ln b'llngc, if thc .socb l conditiuning fat'lors arc fa"ornhle.

",1'41\-

:@~ .... ,\"

~'~ f1 .... @ :

t •• ,'"

o~@P""''''' u •

""~ .. , .. ,,

4S THE MYTH OF NON·ACCENT

•. \1 'mille tUlle 111 :lllole:.<:ence, the :ability 10 .lc'luirc bn~'1.I.I~e II ith the s;unc e:lse .IS

youn~ children 'ltrophies.' • ·1 here :arc :I' yet I}(,orly u ntler.Hlod c1el11t~nt!> of ctlg-nition .uull)Cr<:eption II hich hJI·e

to do wilh the degree of succcss Ilith which an :Idllh willm:ll1age ro :lclluire ,I new phonolu~')r , or :lc~"Cn t. In summnry. the phenomcnon th:1( we C"J II:I t"orei!(n accent is:1 cumplex .ISp<.'<."t of Iangu3ge th:!1 :lffc.."CIS speak..::r<; :lntlli~tencr<; in 1}llth perception and pmductinll :1Ilt!, consequcmly. in ~oci;1 1 intemction (O ... m· ing ;mtl .\Iunru .!OO5: 179).

These :lrC I'CIY dry f,l(·ts. I.ct'~ approach this in another w;ly.

The Sound House

First, think of :111 the ~.!Unds Il h ich c,U1I)C pnxluecd by the human ,·ocal.lpp:arams 'I~:I set of building IIlllterials. The basic ll1;uenals, mllcls '1Il,I consonants. :Ire bricks. Other huilt ling lI1:!u.:rbl~ (w{x}(l, mortar, plaSter, ~tone) st3nd in for thi,(gs like tone, IU\\"cI

h'lrmony. :lmllcn~lh. which ,Ire part of thc articul"li llll uf I"ollds and consonants, hut prol'ille another layer o f rnellning-I)C:aring soullll in many languages. Thu~ f.lr, we .Ire talking ahout phonetics: the production and pcrception of Ihc li.dl SCI of pos~ihle sounds.

Chll~lren 11re honl with twO things: a SCt ofI.Ul~'lJage hluepnnts II ired intu Ihe br.l in, II hich gil'cs them some intuitivc umlerst:tnding of I·ery h,l,ic rules of 1'11I~'1.L'lgC. They ,llso

h,"'e a sel of tools II h ich "'OC.~ 'ilong wi th these hlueprints. Now think of the 1:tngu11ge :lcquisition pnK""CSs ;I~ a nell l}llm who hegins 10 huil<!:a Sound

Iinusc. Tht' Sound I [ouse is the "hOUle" of t he hnguJge, or "h'lt we hal·c been c:llling .1t"Cent - the phonolugy - of the chil.l's natil·c ton),,,,e. At birth the chi'" is in the Sound I louse wareho use. where 11 full inV(;lltory of "II pnssih1c m:lleri :\l ~ is 3v3i l:thle 10 her. She looks at the Sou nd I lou...es built by her ItJrents, her brothers ami sister<;, uy other people :1r<JIUl(] her, and 'ihe ~~ rts 10 pick o ut those 11l3teri~ls, thrn;c bricks 'ihe ~ees they hale u,ed to build their Sounll I i ouse~. Shc Imy eXIk:riment \\'ith other bricks, II itb 11 bit of w(lO(l, hm in the cml ~he settlcs <Iown to dupliC:lting the Sound Iiouse~ she secs :ITOund her. She sels up her inventory of sounds in rcl:l tion~hip 10 e;lch olher; she puts up w:llb, pbns the sp,lce: she is constructing her phollolob,)'.

T he hlueprints tell hcr that she must h:1\·c cert'Jin supporting SfnLeUL res: shc {lues this. She \\'Jnders 3rouml ill h.:r p:trems' Snund Iiousc.~ and St.""CS how they do thi ngs. Shc makes misl"akes; fixes them. III the prncess, she nmkes ~mall innOl'l1tions.

,\hyhe this chi ld has p:trellts who spellk English and (;l1 elic, o r who arc nllti\·cs of Cincinnati 'lild sl>cak II'h'l\ thcy tilink of :15 st:md:1rd AmeriC":1n Fnglish,:ls wdl 11S Afril':lll AmeriClln Ellgli~h \'ern~cul:ir. T he p:lrcnts each h:we IWO Sound I louses, or p·erhaps one Souml Hiluse with two wi ngs. She h~s twO houses 10 huild at once. Somctimes she m in'S 11I;1Ierl:lls up, but thcn surtS them out .. \ hyl)C she bu ilds a bridge 1)C[ween the two stnlC­tures, 1\ layl)C ;1 con necting cour~·3rd .

T h.: ch ild Sl"arts [t) soci:1li7.c with oth.: r ch ildrcn. I ler 1)C'it fricml has:1 sl ightly llifferell t byom. :t lthoug h he has huilt his Salimi I-louse with Ihe e.uCl S:lme inl·ento/")' of hu i l~l i ng

m~(erials. t\nother mend has:1 Sound I louse which is mi~sing the 63ck st:lir<.'"Jse. She 11~lIlts to I)C likc her friends, and so shc makes renOI':l tions to her Snun~l l louse. II l)Cgins to 101lk.~

sOlllewh:lt d ifferent frolll her parents' Suund Ilou~es; it is more her OWI1 •• \I ;I~ be thc G~dic h;llf of her Sound H ousc is ncglecled, has a Imle in th.: TOuf.:I collapsing nuor. ,\I3}'hc she is at odds, l)Cl·:tuse she IOl'es her AA \'E Sound I-Iousc, but others crilicizc it as ugly and

THE MYTH OF NON· ACCENT 49

not 1I0nh)" [tl he ('"Jlbl a hou~c at :til. She lIlight el·cntUJlly ;Ihandon thc A\ \'E Soull(1 I [ou~ ,LIld prctenli illlCl'cr c~ist(.'d. Now IInagine this.

\\ 'hen th.: child I1ITnS 20. ~he notin'S ,molher kllld oj Soumillnu~, huilt hl' Spani~h 'p.:akero;, "Im:h ,he 'I"mires. Shc w(luld like til huild:an e.\tcnsion to her 011"]1 Sound 1 louse iust liLc it. Shc look.<. fnr her hlueprint'i and her to .. l~. hut they hal·c di~ap')c:lred. Puale(!. she ~t:lnd~ 1111 the street ;md 1(){lks at these Spanish Sound Il oust.'S. \ \ 'hat is diAcrent JbOlIl them? Look ~tth'lI h:l!cuny. I luw du you huild mat? Why do the ~1:lir(,.I ~es look like thll!?

\\ ·ith hcr h3re h,mds, she sets nUl \0 build an e.~tension to her orig:Hlal Sound Iiousc. She 'cc~ bricb ~he docsn·t 1l.II·e in her OlIn IllIentor}", hut how to gel back to the \\arehuu ..... ~ She'll h~\·(.' m illlpruvi~. She's a ~nlJTI \lUlUlln, "he l':.lll make a brick, cut do ..... n ~ trce. She e.\:llllinc~ the Souml IIOII~es Inlilt ,,~. S,uni.,h ~ I>cakc rs, ~sks questions. The ubI ious lhin!->"S ,h ... sees right off: \11111. they h'll·e lireplaces. ' I·hc les~ o" l·ious things: width of Ihe Jnors. for example. slip right hy her:lt lirsl. She sum in 011 the long procc.'Ss. 110 ..... (lid YUII huilli l h,lt chimney, ,he 'I~ks. J dun't knoll', !>'I}"ii her iniorm;uH. 3 mltlle ~pe'lkcr of Spanish. I \\';.I~ a kill at the time, ,md I\ c losl mr hluCjmm:s.

[f she\ lucky, ~hc h:ls.1 ~'1.lide -:111 inlllrllle.! langu:l!!e teacher - Ilho can point out the tlifference l)Ctllecn tile c.nen~ion she i~ tl)ing- to hui ld and her 1)lIn Sound I-Iou,c. Look. this I.,ruidc II ill <11\'. You're Im~in1!" up hlue and u!tnman ne bricks! \\'c u~e hlue for thl~ kind'of ..... all. uhr~m:1fine tor Iha;. I\nd you certainly (':111'1 ]lut a pale pink brick next to a

t'erisc one. uUh,n S:lyS the wnm:1Il hmlding tbe new Sound I iousc. "I hadn·t nutked."' Amllhus .. he

will begm to tliffercmiate nlore C"Jrefuily, for eXJlllple, he(\\een two ve/")' ~imibr I·Ollo;:lS

which :tre Jbtmctil'': in the 11111),'l1:lge she i~ lcarning:. She works \·cry. very h:tnl on this e.\\en!>ion. But no 1I1,uter how hard she works, the

balcoll}' will nOI shal)C up; it i~ aillays rickety. There's a !.':tp in the iloor hoonls; p<.'Ople

notice il ,uld grill. In ab-.olu te alll:1..-;cment, ~he \1 lltchc'i her little sister build [he e~ll ct same Sound I-Ious ...

II Ith no effort ,1\ :111. ,tnt! II i~ perfect. She points this OUI to her !,,,Iide. ·· Bul your 'iister still h,l< her blueprints an,1 tools." ~;l yS her !,'llide. Theil she sees J ~tr:ange r. an oilIer 111:1n, huilding the same e~t(;n~ion 'Iml he is ,11:.0 taking le'iS IUne, JUSt !tl'lIoping through. I lis

SpJnish Svund I louse looks like ,Ill nrigin~1 to her. ~Oh no:' her guitle tdls her. "It's I\:/")" good, nudoullt, hut lo"L there -{Ion't rou se ...

th,uthe \\ induws arc <;lightly UMlclow together? It IHIILld f(lol.lhn()~t el'el)hody, hut those

lIin~lo\\s "i\·e it :1113\'." Shc di~ in her h~ds ,tnd nlO1·es intu the cxtcnsion. :llihough the roof ~o!llcaks. She

ah,md'l\I' her nri),';nal English Sound I l uu~e for months, for ~C~T'!, she is so dedicated 10 gcnin!! thiS right. She r:arcly ~ocs b'lek 10 tht! tint Sound ! luuse an}mOre, and the GJdic Sound I ["USC is t·01l\ lelllned. \\11en .. he doe~ go h:ltk to the Engli~h Sound Ilnu~e, and lirsl gl>es through the door it secm~ ~ tr.mge to her. But the stmctunl he:lrt o f her Sound Iinnsc b here, ;md il's ~ till ~tanding, if a little dusty. Very Iluickly ~he feels al home 3jfJIII.

\Vhell people come to visit her in hcr Spanish Sound Iioulie, they arc :lmuetlto lind uut that it's not her lir;t ~·(ln~tructiun. Ther examine e\· ... rything dosdy. Some of thClil mar nntiee ,"cry ~mall dc t'lils, hut they don't ~ay ,Ill} thin~. There's the guy down the hlock. ther tell her, he \ he(.' 11 wnrkillg Ull thc ~ame c.ttCllsion for longer Ih.ln ~·ou and he'll nevcr

6'(.'t it right. This i~ not J l)Crfect 1111alogy: it hus no W:1Y 10 J("(:OUIlI for the aC(lu i~ition uf synt:lx lind

morpho!/ib')·, or the usc ()f pnll.luction oflanl,'lJ'lge."\ house t.'Jnllot produce anrlhing. BUI it i~ a uscli.ll ,tn'l lo~')' nonctbele~s. in 11~ much ,IS this limil:ltioll is rccognized.

~"JII,,,,~

T@~ '"", .. ,~'"

50 THE MYTH OF NON·ACCENT

. \dult lan~'llage learners all hal'e the ~3rne handiC:lp in leaming:1 second language: Ihe hlueprints hal'C faJed to nt:ar illegIbility, lmd the tools aTe nJsted, \Ve Illust :111 bUIld new Sound Ilou~ Ilith our hare hands, \Vhcn the judge claimed th:lI thcre was nn phrsi~)­Ingicil reason thatJames Kahakua could not speak the broadC:lst Engli\h the raJi05tarion dema nded. he was simply wrong,6

It is crocial to point out that the strucrul"JI integrity of the t'JrgCtL-d se:LUnd Sound House: - whk-h here sta nds in for aL'Celll- i~ distinct fr01ll the I:mguagc learner's skill in actu:II1~'

usi ng the target language, Accent h,IS little to (10 wi th wh:1I is generally !;'Illcd C01lll1luni­L'ati\'e competence, or the ability to USi.' ,mel interpret bnguage in a wide '':lriety of contexts dfLot:ti\'dy.-

There is :1 long list of prominent persons I\'ho spe:lk English 'IS a secund bnguage :lI1d whu nel'er lost thcir:lecents. They ne\'er IlIJnagL'tlru huild ,m English Sound I lnuSi.' which would f~M)1 an}IMx!y into thinking that they :ITe natil'C speakers. but their ability to usc English is de,lr, T his group includes l)Cople like Isahel Allende, Derek \Volcutt, Adri:lII:l Iluflington, .\muld Sehll'an:cneggCT, the irrit3uleJuhn Simon. and Zhignicw Briezinski, \lhn represent the politiL':llaml socio-nllrurnl nminsm,'31l1, but who do it in an :l(:cente~1

English. Du peuple like these choose to )pe3k English with an ,Iccent? I 1:lI'e they not worked h3rd enough, long enough to sound :\merit'an? Arc ther nor ~11Ian enough?

The same Iluestiuns are re!e\'ant [0 n,1(il'c ~ I)c:lker:s of English with llI'lrkcd or ,tignl:lrized regional or "uda l :1l:centS, \ "hen rou think of .I illllll)' C.lrter, Jes~ie J:lckson ur Ru;.ie O'Donnell, do we think of people II hI) L';lnnot express themsell'es? 'Vhether ruu like or .Iislike them as imlil'idu:lls. thcy are all excellent communi(':ltoN, Do they willfully refuse to give up Geurgia , African American, or Nell' York \'arieties of Engli~h for something less socially 1Il:lrked, ur arc they illC'Jpahle of doing ~o?

lkC:lusc two phonologies afe simi1:lf. we think it must be ea~ier to build a se:cond Soun(1 I louse:. \\ 'hy L':lll't ,\Ir, K:lhakua - Ilho afrer :111 has ,Ill Engli~h Sound Il 1Iu~c to IM.:!{in with - just lIl;!ke a few adju~tllll.!ms th:1t wi ll transfonn it into wllat p:l~SCS ,IS a gl.!neric English Sound I louse? Stephen ,\ loyer - a Ilrit hom and T'JiS(.·d - makes a ,'ety(."On,'in(.;ng l..oui~iana I'ampire on TllIr I1IQ01.I. Surely " I r, Kahakua L11l11d pull off s()undin!{ le'is 11:lwai'ian,

The ~ nswer is, actors l'an't autolllatically :ldupt a foreign aL'Cent, no m:ltter hul\' cas)' the)' mah~ it louk, In the filming process the L'al1lem rolls for short lx:rilJ(ls of tillle, 'lnd in a limited COli text. The actor h:15 had c(lachi ng, JlIo~t likcl}', from SOlileOlle who is ~t3n(l i ng on the sidelines ready to pitch in if the actor's :lecel1t begin~ to di~integrate, If the actor gets it wrong, the)' ~to)l :lI1d try 3br:lin, Under these r,\I"orable circumSUm:es, 1Il3nr people could imitate another ,':!riery uf Engli~h (Iuite ,l(lmimbly - hut fu r otheN, not el'en this i~ possible.

Thcre arc Il13ny exalllpies of 3CtOrs criticized roundl), for not pulling off an ,ICL'CIlI, in spite of eXIx:nsil'e tllloring, and the p()'iSibility of 1I13ny tllkes of each IIttl.!r:J nL'e, In eithcr case, whether we hJ\'e :1 \'I.!T)' English Hugh L:lIlrie who truly sounds - UJl on the ~!; reen - :IS if werl.! a crankYlloctor hom 'lr1d T'Jisc(1 in thc St~tes (Fux's IlolfJt), ur Dominic \\'~t - IM)m in Yorhhire - who nics hut fai ls to conl'ince us that he is a tough Baltimore homicide detecth'e (I lBO's 'J'bt IVirt). we arc not (:llking about a P"nn:lJIenl Sound I-louse. The~e accents arc fake store frontS th:lt won't stand up to a strong and persistent hrt'cze, And it (;Ikes ,Ill cxecption:11 talcnt (a SUhjCl·t to be raised ~honly) to :lchicl'c el'en thi~ limited :lIllOunt,

At a sociolinb'l1istics L'ulltcTence soJlle ye,lrS ago, a colleague who smdies the ~~Irthem Cities Ch:lin Shift L'arlle to my prcsclltlltion, ,\fterv."Jrds she <;:Jid to me "You know, it was really fascin:u ing 10 listen to rOll. - oh. ,lnd your t:llk was gOO\I too," The whole time I

THE MYTH OF NON,ACCENT 51

had Ocetl presenting my \Iork, shc had hecn listening dosely to my vowels, lind making notes to herself. \\'bi:n I W:lS reading from prepaTed te.~ t, she told me, my \'owcls pretty nltu.:h st:l)'ed put, hut when I looked up from my p:lpcrs :lI1d SI)()ke extetllj)()r:lI1cously, Iny \"Owcls surtel'! to mon:: the chain shi ft in action, T he more anentiou I pay to ~1K:ech, the less I participate in the shift; this is an indication th'lt some p~rt of me feels compel ll.!d to

lIIo,e Jway from mr hackground when I am speaking as an academic, But when I 3m in"oked in my subject, when I forget to moni tor my spttch carefully. my origins come furth: [ ~ 1lI ,\ natl\'e ofChil:ago, 'Illd I C:lllnOt pretend to he anything else, This has hecn pointed out to me by m,lI\), non-linguists; pcople are proud to be able to listen to me (or to anr l)lxly clse) for a minute :md then put me on the IIl:lP,

All this happens in spite of the fact that my profession:11 rT'Jining has 111:1de me awa re of the wa)' I use suutle choices :I\',lil:lhle to lIIe, and in spite of the fact that sometimes I don't particularly "':tnt to announce to the world where I alll from. I ha\'e no choice but to live in the Sound Iluuse I first treatell :IS a chilli, which hears the stnlCtul':ll h'l lIll1arks of the suciallK:ing I ,lin, ,

It is tnle, howel'er, that some people are Ilener at pUlling together second or el'en third al1(1 fourt h Sound! louses in adulthood, Not Jlerfect ones, but \'CI)' good imitations. Thl.! differential ahility to do this is something not l'eT)' I\'ell understood. but ~trong circum­stantial el'i(lence indicates it has nothing to do \\'ilh intelligence aud nOt I'ei)' much to do \Iith hoI\' hard you work to learn the t:1rget lanbrtlage. On the other haml, it cert:linly\loes hJI'e Slmlething to do with cugnition, and - for bck of a better or more precisl.! term­with an car for lanbrtl:lge,

There arc 11I:111Y plLblishe~ 1 smdies which underscure the relcvance ;lIld illl lxlftance of age (and hence, the critical bn~'lI:lge period) to the suc!;cssflll learning of a n,ltivclr­accented SL'(.'{)mllanguage (,\1arx 1001; ,\ Iunro tt al. Z008; ,\Iunru :1Ilt! ,\bnn 2005; Piske It (II, ZOO]), The importance of other factors - length ofresi~lcnL'}' (that is, e.~pu!iure to

L1), geuder, form:11 instruction, and ulutil'3tion - h31'e not Ix:en suflicil.!luly studie,1 to

tim\\' any finn condu~ions, Perhaps the most interesting factor is one that C'Jn hardly be studied in controlled circumsr:mces, and th;1t is wh,1( Illight he l'alled talent, Early sUldies of pos~ibje links between muskal 3hilitr have not established ,I L'Ollnection, while other studies ~II3\'e idl.!ntilic(1 mimicry abIlity as a signih(':lnt predictor of tll.!b'Tee of L1 foreign aecem~ (Piske rt /11, 100 I: 101).

Fociised training - the prucess of drawi ng the 'Idult 1'lIlgu'lge learner's attention to

clements in the proo.luction of spceeh soumis she would 1I0t otherwise notice - (':111 hal'e some effCL't, It is possi ble to adjust an a(:cent, to some (legree, \ Ve call work on that se(''OlId

Sound Ii ollse, with guid:lIlec, But it i~ not pussible to suhstimte the second Sound I louse f(lr the oribrinal. ,\ccen! reduction courses. if ther arc II ell done by IH:NOnS thuroughly tr:lillell ill phonolob'Y 3ml phonetics, \\ ho underst:lnd the structural <Iifferences betlleen the languages, nmy help peuple 1c3rning English as a secomll~nbrtlagl.! toward a better pronunciation,

The tnll: abili ty to build second and third Soulld I-louses past the la"brtlage acquisition stage is llll(locumented, It may exist; there ,Ire certain ly nlmors enough of such persons, \lho liS adults aC(luire allUther bnguagc with :I],solute and LUmplete nativc fluency, A person who is C'JI);lble of this woul(lnel'er let the phonolob'Y of their first language interfere 'lith their second laJ1brtlage, regardless of the topic being tliscussed, or the 3 1l10ll llt of emotion brought to the t;!ble, Such a lK:rson 1I'0ul(1 hal'c to be able to st~1\(1 up tn dose phonetic analysis of her 1:lIlb'llagl.! - and not just by phoneticians, hut also hr nativc "1K:akers, who :Ire incre(libly sensiti\'e to the subtle variation in langu:lge, Perhaps IllOSt

~PA,

8@ '""f' •• '

§)~. ;'.,~'"

52 THE MYTH O F NON,"CCENT

Ilnporr:mt. sm:h a IlCrsol1 Iloulil h:ll'c to h:II'e cnmpletel:untrol of the simeru red l':"Irialion .Ktil·c in thc t'lrget l:mgu:lgc.

Tu undcrstand thc iml)(lItmce of th is. im:lgine roursclfin an,lthcr country. sl!eakinga b ngu:lge yuu h:l\"c ~mdicd in schuol for a nUlllhcr ofrcars. Nutonly do you h:1I"c to kcep the suhjuncti,'c smight. forcx:ullple. but ~'ou ~hould he able III interpret tonc nfl'oke: and l ex i{'~Jt choice. If yOIl c:IrI't interpret such langu:Ige ~igll~l s . you hal'c no way of knowing if you arc heing r:lken scriou~ly. or for:l ridc.

If there arc adulLS who an:: cap:lhle oflcarl11ng to :Ib .. o]utdy and de,mty ~uhstiture one IU:Cent for anu ther. rhey arc as [,Jre:lS intli\'iduats who ~':ln do long (Iil'ision insl:mt:mcously illiheir heads. IIr hal e photognphie memories. If they lIo e~i)t. it lIould oc imen:sring :UlJ impnrr:lIlt 10 st\llly thcm. l>Cl':llL'>i; it would seem that thcse ~rc .Idul ts II hOM: bngu.lb'C :lC(lui­~ition functiun - the hard wiring in the hnin - f":liled to )top functioni ng at the uSlmltilllC.

If a l}Cr~on is I'crr dcdic:lte{l, works h:ml. and has W)()( I b'l litbnce. it IlIJ}' he IMlssihlc [L)

tool SOLLIe oflhe people sollie of the time. But therc's a crudaltlue~tion that ha~n't been :l~ked reI:

\\lm do we :ls I.: to iULllp through these hOl)IIS, :\IId wh)'? If 'SAt:: is s4.JJl1clhing logil':.llIy .mll rC:Isonablr re{luirCII of bro:1LIc~st news rep<lrte rs, why Wi1 5 it rc(}uirci l of James Kall,\kua, and not of Peter JcnninJ:.'"!> (Callalb ) or Dan Rather.; ( 1'ex:ls)?

And, ;1 mon,: {Iiflicuh tlue'tion: wh~t is right o r wrong alMml n) king .\IT. Knhakua to preten(l~ I f he is capable of fJking ~n :Il'Ccnt. II h~' shouldn ' t his employer :lsk him to do this, for those few minlltes he is rClllling the we;lther on the ['Jdio?

\ d ose alld l1'niC:11 rcJder of Ill}' arf,'Illllents - of Ilhich there will be nULlr - Ilill lX)i nt out th:1t I havc madc 111'0 ~tJtelllents which seem to conrntlirt cach other. I h:lI"e gone to

SI)[Ile length to e~l:abli~h thaI all spoken 1a11b'llagc is I·ari,lllie. aLltl Ih:u all lallf,'Ilages change. '1lIUS, t hc Suund I luu!>t.'S we build change over our lifetimes. At the same time. it seems that I am arguing that Sound H ouses l':mllot he ch:lllged . I h:l\"e becn cri tiC"JJ of specch thcnpislS who daim th is is possible.

.\ Sound I lou)!': i) ,I lil·i ng. "'I'oking I)f{xhu.:r of our mind~, :1 mirror o f our ch;lnging sucb l heings. \ Ve reticl'Ol"lIte l'OnsI'Jmly. with a keen ere fo r whal the neighbors 3re doing. Little by linle. we Lll;l)' move :\ wall. rcarnmge th l: hricks, add windO\I~. ()I\e per..lln builds :I p~tio. :md maroc that clIches on. in the same: Ilay th:l[ somewhere. o nc ,by (i n a W:iy

s'Jeiulinh'l, ists h:lI"e nClcr heen ~hle to obser .... e) hundrct ls of othcr ch:l1lg"es callght un and began to ~ra in ling-uistic ami social eurrenlY.

\ Ve 3re :111 suhjcrt It) the 'Igoi ng pn)(.'e~s; n(} one i) ",.~elll pt from those ch:lnges O\'cr timc. Thus o ur Sound I lnuSt.":; do changc ol'er lillie but in wapi which ;Ire "utsitle direcr t·nntrul.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND EXERCISES

• Whal doea the idea of style ahifting do to the Sound House analogy? Many people are

bilingual or multil ir"IQuai. and lor each language lhey aIao have multiple styles. Islhere a way 10 adapl the metaphor 10 Iccoont lor this, or doea It simply break down?

• How many prominent people (politicians. ac tors, poIicy·makers, educators. media per.onslities, etc.) can you Ihink 01 who apeak English with an l2 accent? Whal impact does a foreign IICC8flt seem to haYe on the oo;vidual'. ~Ie?

THE MYTH OF NON·"CCENT 53

• Interview some lriends or lamity - a group ollhree or four people - and try to elicit how they feel about different varieties 01 Eng~sh and different l2 accent .. T like nole .. On what do they agree? Where do they differ? (One might find accent I "frieodly" while the other one finds It "uoeophisticatad,' for example.) Can you account for the dIfIantncea, or lack of differenc8l? Whst surprised yeN?

• What accent. do you peraonally dislike or fiod irritating? Oeecribe • situation in which you reacted thia way to • variety of English Olher than your own. After reading this far,

do you have any inaight into your own reactiona? • Think aboulthia alstement: DiScrimination does IlOI juatify diecrimination. How might this

relata 10 the topic It hand? • Do an intamet search for "accenl reduction" sod"loee your accenL' What kind 01 articles

and advertisements come up? What credentials do Ihe people offering these couraea have? Do you 888 any patterns?

Notes

The Ol/Imi E'IKlisb f)1l·tiOlillry Ji\'i(k'S the usc of myth into threc {IOIll:Iins: (I) purely tietitiolh llarr:ltil'cs which Sen 'e to il1\J~tr:lte :tn{i e.~pbin n~turJI or socLLI phenomena ( rhc Legeml of I lercu les: :--;'o:lh .mtlthe ,\rk): (1) fiCtional or im agi nary persons, ohjecb or pbce~ (Big Foot. S:lnt:l Chus, Shangri-La); .1IIt! (3) untruths. or rumors. For a hmger. lery illlcresting Ji ~cu~sion abuut TH. /.\'/o.:Sgi::illg. ~ee Language Log at h((p;II~F{IO.gl/~ \'Oju. ])ialect is:1 term which linguists liSe prilll 3ril ~' to t:llk "bout I.lIlbru'lg"e JifT(:ren l~es "I'er gCObtr.lphic space . It is, howcver." fairl r prickly tenn. Laq)Crsons often a!>SOCiatc the Illl rd tl i.tlcct 'IS something le~~ 1!c\"t~ll1pell. (·"pable. or Il1Inhy . . mll hence :l11I'ays ~ubordi natc to;1 "reaJR b nf,'Il:lge. This is an unfomLtl3te amlmisc:l~t usc .. f the tenll and for th'\I rC,lson I ,woid dialecl morc gener:llIy .md lise. :IS lI1an), linf,'1lio;;rs do. the tCml ,·,/rift}'.

" For:l vcry' aCC"e~sible ()\'en'icw of Ihe resean'h on secund langtlagc acquisition . the nitieal ph;lse hypothesis, :In,] the i~sLLe uf ;1Cr.:CIlI. ~ce IlylrcnslJm ,md t\bra h:tmson (1000). There i~ cOlltrOI'crs}' .tmung ling'ui)!S ;lhnut whJt has hcen e'llled the criILC.::l1 periOlI or the cfltiC"J IIJCri.xl h~'pothesi s (C PI I). Some l inb'lli~ts (l i~llliss thc concept cntirely. ,\lid nther~ h;ll'e prolMlSed :llllemlmellls. In his chapter "Ihhy Born T.llking - Descrihes Ilea\Cll . R Pinker sumlllari/CS the view uf the majority flf iinb'llisrs:

In Will. 'lcquisi tioLl "f;\ 1I0rLll:l11.II1b'l I:tg"e i~ b'll:lf'lIIteeJ f\lr {,hilllrcn up to the (Igc of ~i~. i~ 'te'ldily ctllllp romised frol\l dlen until shortly .!fter pubeny. 3nd is rnre therc,lfter . . \ 1.ltll r.llion~1 dl~ng"c~ in the hr~in, )uch 'h the Iledine in mctabolic n tc .mll numocr of ncurons tluring the e,lfly schtM11-Jge year~, .lIId the huttom ing" out of the numhcr of )} tMpSe~ .!IId !\Iet;loollc nilc around puIJl,:rt),. arc plJu)lhle c:lUSC). \\'c du knOll that the bnguag-e-Iearn lLl g" cirnliuy of the 1\I~l i Ll i~ LTlu rc plJ~tic in dllldhOl)lI; dll lJren le:lfll ur renlVer hlllb'Uab"C II lien the left hemj'phere of the hnlin i, II.lln;Jgell or elen )Urgic.llly reLllu,ed (though nut (Iuite ,I t Llort!ullelcls). hut ctlmp;lrable ,bm3ge in ;In adult t1,ually le;ltl, t" lM:nnanelll Jph.l,il.

(100i: 1<)3)

U THE MYTH OF NON·ACCENT

6 For a first per.>On :lccount of accent issut"S in the aCtluisit io n of a s.t.'Comll:Illb-'l.l:tge as an adult, see Abrx (1001).

7 I a\'oid an in-depth dis.t.'Ussion of (.'Ol1l1liunkati\·c comllCtcnce here, bcC".!.usc it r.!.iSt.'S the issue o f culrurJI and ~tylis lic appropriateness, which will be :ld{l rl"SSeti bte r.

Suggested further reading

Dcrwing and ,\lun ro's Pllrring A rallt ill lIS Pilla : Rnbil1kil1g Ohmlrirs 10 COlllfll/lfI;Cllrioll (2009) provi(ies an e.'lce llc nt o\'cr\,icw of rescareh on the socio linguistic :ISpCCts of foreign accent, alo ng with :In extensi\'e bibliognphy,

Other articles that would supplemt:nt th is chapter include:

FinCb":ln, E. (201H) AlIlerican English and its Disrim:tiveness, In E. Finegan 31111j . RicHard (cds.) l .nnglfllKr ill thr {;s.+ Tlxmr! for thr T-:..nrnry_ffrn em",'], Cambridge: Cllnbridge Unin:rs ity Press.

Si..:ge l, R. ( 1999) Comm entary: Foreig n ACl1!nt ,\by Be a Detriment to an Immigrant. In transcript of / 111 Tbi/lf{J COl/sitlrml, Nad on:!l Public Radio, O cwber 26.

T :lgl iamonte, S. (200 1) Comt:/Callle Variation in English Dialects. AlllrrioJ/l Sprub 76: ~2-6 1.

' I'an, A, (1?90) Mother T Ollg\IC. Tbr 'l7Jrupr/l/lJ Rf"I.'if'/;: ~J: 7-8. \\'olfram, \V. lind Schill ing-Estes, N. (2006) Social and Ethnic Dialects. In Amrri((w

RlIgftsh: Ditlluts 111111 Vt,ritJtiOIl. O :<for& Bhlckwcll.

The standard language myth 4

I therefore claim to show, not how mc n think in myths, but how mrrhs OllCf:l.te in men's minds without their being aware of the fal..1:.

Lcd -Stf:l.uss(19M)

It slmuld be dear by now why linguists consider the idea of a ~poken sr:lIIdardi7.ed bngu~ge to be a h}'pothcti(.~1 (.XJnstruCI. In his sun,e)' of the evolution of the conccpt of:1 st:lIluard, Crt)\\ Icy (2003) uscs the [efm idf(t!;~(1 /iIl/KlIIIKf, \\ hich t':1ptllrcs the ~ensc of an hononble

and rightful perfection. ?'\m mudl has ch:mged sincejollath:1Il Swift \\fo tc his ~A propos:! 1 fo r correcting,

illlproving :lI1d ascertaining the Eng lish conb'l.le" ( 1712). Those who take it upon Ihemsch·I..'S to protl.."I.."t English from its spea kers arc still Ijuite S\lre of their right to do so. j :lI11es Kil p:ltril'k is :1 modem-lby c.~;lmple of someone whu hrinb'S tremenllous ellloti(Hl ;lnd more than ;1 linle Il1dolll';lLlla to \\ h:lt he clearl)' 'iCes aS;I banle for rhe o ne true English:

The le.'licngrapher's ioh is to dist ill the grapes of IIS;\gc ~ t the different Ic\·cb. Thus, -he doe!>n 't go thefe anymore" (.'On~·e)"S the samt: information that is tr:lIlslIIined by "ht: don't bTfllhere no IllOre," hutlhe one is st:uub rd Amcric~n English ~nd the other is nOI .

Is t he (lne Minferior" to the other? Of ("Qursc. \ Vho sars ~o? Th is is [he si lent, cOll1mon ju{lgmell t of II Titers, cJirnrs, tClichers ami p rescripti\'e lexicog'f:l.phefs. The setting of ~ I ~ndards in lanb'l.l:lgc is:\ content ious 11LL!>ines~, hur some1xH.I}' has to do it, \Vithotlt st:mdards, without dcli nitions, \\ ithnut stnlctunl bw, we bpse into lill b'l.l istic anarch y.

(Kilpmid: 19(9)

(;t)ogle sean:hes prm'i{le :I sc:nse of how large ritest: issu<:s loom in the minds of peop le morc generall)' ( fabl e ~.I ), :\ sUf\'ey o f discussions on the topic uf gr:l!llmar hrin,!,'S up hundreds of t:.~amples. A large po rtio n of thcm h3\'e not to do with gr:umnar in Lhe w~r it has heen defincd here, but with maner'S of p Ullctu:n ion. No m:\Ucr rhe wpic, the tone ca n be :Iffronted, SUTl':lstic, condescend ing, servile :md, o n occasion, silly to the 1)C)jm of absurdity ;IS in an unanribure\1 ~daptation of :.l. Nal.i l)()sterorij:,'inlllly de<iigned for llOSting in IIolland (Figure.J. 1).

Table 4.1 Number of Googlc hits for grammar terms

Google lerm search

"bad grammar" -grammar adVICe" "English grammar orrOlS'

No. hilS 811(ly October 2009

8,4 10,000 8,630,000 5,050,000

1