Aug 17. What's in an accent?

Accents are important indicators of attitude,for they derive from more than upbringing and environment. Ego has its center in the medulla oblongata at the base of the brain. Tension at that point tends to draw the head backward, causing one to “look down his nose at the world,” and thus to speak with a slightly nasal accent. Aggressive will power makes one force his words out. He therefore emphasizes his consonants. Expression of the kinder emotions tends to soften the consonants and emphasize the vowels. Sounds like ü and ö, though common in certain languages, also suggest, in the tightening of the lips, an attitude of mild reluctance. Consonants in which the h is pronounced in conjunction with b, p, t, and k (like the Bengali bhalo [good]) are pronounced similarly in all languages when the feelings are expressed emphatically. The American flat a is a soft, double sound as in “man” (“ma-uhn,” wherein the second sound is almost inaudible); it sounds sweeter than the same word spoken with an open English accent. The r in the word, “better,” sounds warmer and more welcoming in American than in the British English “bettah.” On the other hand, the American double “t” sounds muddier and less precise than the English: American, “bedder”; English, “bettah.”Support the show