Lois’s answer to “But wouldn't the Vor have their own accent, like the Brits with their Queen's English?” > Likes and Comments
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Sorry, I meant I know there are many accents in the UK, but almost all the upper class people speak in the same posh accent? Would a similar situation exist on Barrayar?
Probably not, due to the 4-languages issues.
Ta, L.
You might be thinking of 'Received Pronunciation', which was used on the BBC for an extended period. Note that this is NOT quite the same as the 'Eton and Harrow' accent which people in the '20's used to think of as 'upper crust'. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pZ-N... - note that a number of the British isles ALSO speak other languages - Welsh, Scottish gaelic, Irish gaelic, plus a whole stack of imported ones, but it's not at all easy to determine someone's 'class' from their accent, especially as a lot of very privileged kids deliberately speak poorly so as not to put people off.
There are also people who deliberately learn received pronunciation, whether from BBC radio announcers or go to classes, who started life speaking in a regional accent.
Not to mention code switchers who change their accent according to their company. I did something similar when I lived in England. I participated in the Sealed Knot, an English Civil War re-enactment group-think cavaliers and Roundheads. In order not to blow the 17th century ambiance, I would use my Elizabethan accent, honed from many years doing the original Renaissance Faire. People placed me as being Cornish.
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Alexandra
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Sep 04, 2019 11:28PM
Sorry, I meant I know there are many accents in the UK, but almost all the upper class people speak in the same posh accent? Would a similar situation exist on Barrayar?
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Probably not, due to the 4-languages issues.Ta, L.
You might be thinking of 'Received Pronunciation', which was used on the BBC for an extended period. Note that this is NOT quite the same as the 'Eton and Harrow' accent which people in the '20's used to think of as 'upper crust'. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pZ-N... - note that a number of the British isles ALSO speak other languages - Welsh, Scottish gaelic, Irish gaelic, plus a whole stack of imported ones, but it's not at all easy to determine someone's 'class' from their accent, especially as a lot of very privileged kids deliberately speak poorly so as not to put people off.
There are also people who deliberately learn received pronunciation, whether from BBC radio announcers or go to classes, who started life speaking in a regional accent.
Not to mention code switchers who change their accent according to their company. I did something similar when I lived in England. I participated in the Sealed Knot, an English Civil War re-enactment group-think cavaliers and Roundheads. In order not to blow the 17th century ambiance, I would use my Elizabethan accent, honed from many years doing the original Renaissance Faire. People placed me as being Cornish.
