‘English is a funny language’....is perhaps one of the most memorable and hilarious dialogues in Indian cinema. I often notice in pleasant situations like watching a sitcom or the not so pleasant situations like racial slurs being hurled ( not necessarily on me) invariably closing with a mockery of the English accent of the non-white person. The French, Italians, Germans, Australians, Irish all have an accent which is made fun of but the accent of the Asians like Indians or Chinese is mocked. Right there is the difference!
First of all, English is NOT the ‘mother tongue’ of these countries. With the population of over a billion people in each, the zest in people to learn English is also high. The past two decades especially, have seen a rise in the number of people who want to or have learn the language in these States for business, education and employment opportunities to name a few.
The Indian accent that people find so ‘hilarious’ is different, yes. How can it be the same as it is in the U.S or U.K or any other nation for that matter, when it is taught by people who have learnt the language in India? Enthusiasm and necessity have driven the populace to acquire the communication skill set of a foreign language. Naturally, there will be the ‘mother-tongue’ influence! And what is this ‘perfect’ accent that people seem to ‘lack’ everywhere except the U.S and U.K? The Americans seem to make fun of the British accent, and even in U.S itself there is the ‘Southern’ accent, the ‘Jersey’ accent and the midland accent.
I know that it is the ‘neutral’ accent that is correct, acceptable and ‘ought to be’ form of spoken English. I agree that as is the case with any aspect of life, we should constantly strive for improvement and we should aspire to come closer to the correct if not the perfect accent.
With so many different dialects and accents, its important to celebrate the versatility and adaptability of the language. Accent is an inherent part of a people. What I find absolutely unacceptable is the mockery of the so called 'less-than-perfect’ styles of speech. Placing undue importance on the accent rather than the speech itself is sign of a conceited and a messed up mindset.
The search for sameness in the present world is futile and disappointing. Each time you encounter a ‘different’ accent don’t jump up and mock that. Hurling racial slurs is abusive, inhuman, sinful and plain wrong and mocking the accent tantamounts to racism! Using something as superficial as an accent as the criteria for emphasizing a sense of superiority is petty, stupid and like scraping the bottom of the barrel!
Urooj Fathima
