Essay

The spoken word

By Tan Ying Zhen

音声ダウンロード

A British friend working as an Assistant English Teacher (AET) in Japan recently wrote on his Facebook profile: "Every time I teach American spelling, I die a little."

He was half-joking (or was he?) but I know how he feels. Singapore, which used to be a British colony, uses British English. So I grew up spelling "color" as "colour," and "favorite" as "favourite." My English teachers were very particular about spelling, and the use of American spelling was greatly frowned upon.

However, since I started working as an AET in Japan, I have had to spell words the American way on my worksheets and in the classroom. To be honest, I haven't gotten used to it yet and I still have to resist the urge to correct words that have been spelled the American way.

Then again, I suppose it doesn't really matter whether we use American spelling or British spelling. After all, if English is truly a lingua franca, we should understand and accept regional differences in how the language is used.

The same logic applies to pronunciation and accent. People from different regions pronounce the same words in different ways and we all speak with our own accents, regardless of whether we are native speakers or not. For example, in Singapore and England, we pronounce aunt as "unt" (aːnt, as in part). In America, the same word is pronounced as "ant" (ænt, as in pants). Neither is wrong. We just have to understand that other people may pronounce some words differently from us.

This is why I felt sad when I met a Japanese person who said he didn't like speaking English with a Japanese accent. Another Japanese teenager I know said, "If I speak with an American accent, I feel like my English is good."

I know many Japanese people who speak perfect English with a Japanese accent. I also know many native speakers who have a poor grasp of grammar, or are difficult to understand because they don't pronounce their words clearly. Accent simply has nothing to do with your level of English.

Perhaps I feel strongly about this matter because Singaporeans have often been ridiculed by other native speakers for having what they call "a strange accent" or "speaking with an accent." I don't think any accent should be labeled "strange." Besides, doesn't everyone speak with an accent? The only difference is whether it is slight or thick, and whether the listeners are familiar with that accent or not.

In Singapore, most people speak with a Singaporean accent. Of course, some Singaporeans who have been living abroad for a long time, or who grew up overseas, may end up speaking with an adopted accent. For everyone else, the Singaporean accent is a given.

There are so many different English accents that, even if we are speaking the same language, it may be difficult to understand one another at times. What matters, though, is recognizing this and making an effort to make ourselves understood, whatever your accent may be.

共通語の発音とアクセント

世界の共通語として各国で使われる英語には、さまざまな発音やつづりが存在する。そのことを理解し、地域ごとの違いを認めることが大事なのではないかと筆者は考える。

The Japan Times ST: June 7, 2013