Queens English

Throughout history: contest betw forces of standardization and localization, both at the written and spoken levels. The appearance of the 1st E dictionaries in 18th cent: move towards written standardization During Queen Victoria (1837-1901): the idea of spoken standard to which lesser breeds could aspire

 Old Hindi proverb: Lg changes every 18 to 20 miles Even today, despite the influence of TV and radio, one can find a large nr of regional varieties of spoken E within USA, Australia, but esp within the British Isles. In the early 19th cent these regional differences were great

 The industrial revolution with its roads, canals and trains helped spread a standard of written E: people travelled more, both geographically and socially. The pressures of class ambition speeded up the emergence of a standard form of E speech: RP (Received Pronunciation)

 RP- the outward and visible sign of belonging to the professional middle class. Education Act in 1870: accent levelling, the melting pot of upper- and middle-class speech and society: preparatory schools Before 1870: most eminent Victorians retained their regional accents By 1890s: accent levelling due to peer pressure; parents feared local schools, non-standard E stigmatized as the mark of the under-educated

 At Oxford: condition of social acceptance: speak the Queens E with a specific accent and intonation Term RP used at the end of 19th cent (accepted in the best society), the educated accent of London and south-east England Spoken by the British Army, by civil servants: recognized as the voice of authority

 RP identified with power, education, material success Thus encouraged imitation Also stimulated antipathy: people resented its snobbery: became subject of parody

The BBC
From WWI to the end of WWII: radio most influencial Establishment of BBC in 1922: a milestone for the E lg. But what kind of E? Many problems: acceptable vocabulary: airman vs avaitor, borrowings, Americanisms, which accent? ACSE in 1926: Advisory Committee on Spoken English

 To arbitrate on the usage and pronunciation of words, English and foreign Decisions by simple vote Roundabouts vs gyratory circuses Stop-and-goes vs traffic lights Shaw: canine ca-nine or cay-nine?

 Director General of the BBC, Lord Reith, a Scot: the lg, the speech and pron (RP) that the announcers were taught to speak... was the very best thing we could do. Uniform BBC E was to promote the sense of impersonality and impartiality. Intended to unite the colonies.

 Within the British Isles, the spread of RP helped reinforce the strong connection between education and Standard English. Even though spoken by few, this influence was enourmous. Desirable even in the US: Hollywood films of the 1930s- stars had posh accents, Wall Street businesses had English secretaries, English accents still favored in TV commercials (Grey Poupon Mustard)

Types of RP
Mainstream or the unmarked version Elite version, posh English or the marked one (linguistics: having an extra or less usual distinctive linguistic feature) Also divided into: conservative, general and advanced RP accent

Functions of an accent
Gives us clue about the speakers background Indication of his values Research: RP speakers creditied with qualities such as honesty, intelligence, ambition, even good looks! The lecture Also valued: Dublin Irish and Edinburgh Scottish

 After WWII, the dominant voice in the Espeaking world was American. Evolved their own Network Standard: regional characteristics modified in the interests of clarity, has NO class connotations Accents not an obstacle to presidency Californian E

+/ Neg: highly idiomatic; th pron, rare vowels Pos: gender of every noun is determined by meaning, no masculine, feminine or neuter ariticle; Grammar simple and flexible: nouns, adj-s simplified word endings, flexible parts of speech Rich vocabulary, 80% foreign born

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/routesofenglis h/storysofar/posh.shtml OR: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/routesofenglis h/ Then click Talking Posh