Why people in England change their accent at work

Sharing observations about people who put on an accent (make it sound more posh) at work. I also talk about why this has something to do with a person's social class and why it happens more in Waitrose rather than at Poundland. Learn more about life in England and how a person's accent may change at work, according to the social class environment the employee is in.
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#socialclass #accent #poundland #waitrose #England

[@JadeJoddle]

Improve your accent by taking one of my courses: Get a Clear Accent: www.clearaccent.co.uk Get a British Accent: jadejoddle.thrivecart.com/british-accent-training-course/

[@johnmurray5573]

Can you train me as to the best accent to use for my upcoming Poundland interview? It's a shop assistant vacancy

[@vladislavlagunoff4882]

Thanks Jade for your incredible work! I've been following you for many years. Fell in love with you 😍and your lectures when I was learning the language. I still watch your videos even though I no longer interested that much in the subject, just wanna hear your voice for therapeutic effect! Thank you once again, Jade - you are the most beautiful teacher!

[@JadeJoddle]

Thanks for watching. 😊

[@JadeJoddle]

Not sure if you’re joking @johnmurray Just be polite put without putting a posh accent on.

[@johnmurray5573]

@@JadeJoddle I was but I feel like you could do it if required as your very wise and your content original and valued

[@Bethster12345]

This is actually a linguistic phenomenon which happens in all languages. It is called speech accommodation. If you want to be respected by someone, you will naturally sound more like them. If you want to create a barrier in between you and someone else, your accent will diverge away from theirs even more than usual. Once you realise this, you will hear your accent shift!

[@adamroodog1718]

you took the words right out of my mouth

[@TheHaining]

As a phenomenon, it is definitely more marked in the UK because people there are obsessed with class.

[@randigerber1926]

@@TheHaining When I taught pre-primary and primary here in the U.S., we referred to it as "code-switching." We were supposed to teach Standard English to inner city students. Some staff and parents were on-board with it, but lots of others resented and resisted it. It's very much a racial situation. Speaking Standard English makes learning to read much easier, as the letters sounds are more distinct and less confusing. Examples: "Keith" pronounced as "Keef." "Father" pronounced as "Favva. Words from dialect (cant, crypto-language) were also used by students and others as weapons, to exclude the teacher. We're living in tricky times!

[@sreenathatirunarayanapura9296]

Yes absolutely

[@liv0003]

in Italy Is not likes that. We have different dialects depending on the different geographical areas and obviously different accents depending on where you live/come from but we don't have "social class accents" . It's seems like a very English thing more than anything else, I don't know if it also happens in other countries besides England🤷

[@cookymonstr7918]

In Slovakia people not only change the accent, but sometimes they speak completely different language at work. 😄 But really, some people try to emulate an accent of the western part of the country - the Capital - to appear more sophisticated. Sometimes people speak local dialect at home and the "TV standard" - so called literary language at work. Most often they speak dialect all the time.

[@JadeJoddle]

Interesting, thanks for sharing.

[@xxxnamkhaxxx]

Thanks for sharing your input.

[@manuelfg2902]

Very interesting

[@Maya-cb3tg]

What do you mean - different language? Is it still Slovak? Or Chech? Or is it Standart vs dialect?

[@cookymonstr7918]

@@Maya-cb3tg In U.S. Steel (Košice) managers communicated in english (will it be japanese next? 🤣 ), I imagine, that in VW it would be german. Many job ads require knowledge of some foreign language. Some Hungarians speak slovak only at work. And recently we have many Ukrainians who speak russian ...

[@JanBanJoovi-ol1qv]

This is true in most countries. Because in general people from the capital have the tendency to look down on people from other regions by the way they speak, thinking they’re less educated because they have that regional accent.

[@joshua6244]

Correct. I've witnessed this in many countries.

[@M_SC]

The capital/central areas of most places have most of the universities, etc

[@lh2435]

In Germany the people from the capital are the ones with the funny accent :)

[@nahidhkurdi6740]

Very interesting! Do you have that phenomenon in your country? I tended to believe that it is a peculiarity of countries like mine with lower than average education of the whole society. I thought people in the capital in such countries get stunned by the contact with the recently arriving cultures and tend to underestimate others because of that.

[@user-sf8jg6kl1z]

@@nahidhkurdi6740 It sure was a thing in Greece (even though it has receded in recent years, because people tend to get linguistically homogenized, more than they used to)

[@RudelTaktik1889]

What really caught my eye is the enormous difference among different social classes’ accents. Upper, upper-mid…etc

[@allaboutthebclicksinnit1148]

But a south east accent heavily can sound like RP

[@RudelTaktik1889]

@@allaboutthebclicksinnit1148 innit?

[@allaboutthebclicksinnit1148]

@@RudelTaktik1889 'calles'?

[@allaboutthebclicksinnit1148]

@@RudelTaktik1889 Dearest Pasa, my "innit" is a joke but this is a phoentic way people say "isn't it" in mostly south east England. Which itself is "is not it" a construction considered old fashioned now. Where a I am from it is said as "hentut" (isn't it but actually "aint it" which is arn't or are not) but same meaning as "isn't it" is not really used. Spelling was not standardised in Britain until the 1910s education reforms when standard Oxford English was made based on the south east upper class dialect and imposed in schools that punished speaking your natural normal dialect. Anything else interesting you would care to comment on? Hentut?

[@andreytolmachev1435]

I wonder, how will a person of "low class" speaking with an accent of "high class" be perceived by that "high class"? Will he/she be accepted as equal?

[@stephanledford9792]

I have a strong US Southern accent that I use everywhere, whether at work, social interactions with others or when relaxed. I used to work a job that required travel all over the US sunbelt, and on rare occasions I had issues with people understanding me outside of the South, and when that happened, I would switch to the "standard English" version that many TV announcers use so I could be understood. Doing that all day would be hard because it required concentration, and I would slide back into my normal accent without realizing it. I cannot imagine having to do this all day at work.

[@M_SC]

I would like to both validate your experience but also point out that people who weren’t used to your accent had to concentrate just as hard to understand you. If some people absolutely couldn’t everyone else not from where your English is spoken who could understand you was making a lot of effort to do so.

[@MarkAnthonyHenderson]

My experience exactly. I had to change my accent to be taken seriously at work. Surprisingly, I was asked to narrate quite often in presentations.

[@123abc-wy6fe]

I am South African and have been to the US twice. The Southern accent is by far the most charming. ❤

[@amiwho3464]

I completely agree! Its the best of all English accents 🙂@@123abc-wy6fe

[@stupor_mundi]

I'm not American but I love the Southern US accents, they sound so friendly and real and trustworthy.

[@graemeclifford6358]

My day is always brightened by a video from such a lovely lady. Having worked in the Police for many years, I appreciate the importance of talking to people in a way that makes them feel comfortable.

[@properimpression]

You're absolutely right. My partner is middle class but developed a working class accent as a child and it massively impacts how people perceive her. The lack of trust, doubting her intelligence, assumptions made. The UK is a classist hell hole.

[@EgoShredder]

Class is both social and genetic. One can be climbed and negotiated, the latter not so much as they protect their bloodlines carefully.

[@markmclewis6737]

@@EgoShredder🤯

[@Brenda-ny1gw]

The US too

[@sunkintree]

@@EgoShredder They are more than welcome to enjoy their Habsburg jaws, hemophilia, and the other assorted virtues of their precious bloodlines

[@jesseleeward2359]

@@Brenda-ny1gw The US is worse than the UK when it comes to classism. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it. Considering how 'quaint' and 'English' the whole thing is to Americans.

[@artmallory970]

That's funny, the Brits I meet in Australia still have their accents clear as day, & many came out in the 1960's with their parents, when they were young. They speak like they just got off the boat & they've been here 40+ years...

[@meikala2114]

sounds like youre meeting them in WA, most show some sort of accent levelling and they converge on some generic englishness, not quite RP And not quite cultivated Aus.

[@artmallory970]

@@meikala2114 For sure, there's loads in WA, in Qld, seems like 1 in 4 people here has a pommy accent...

[@hypergraphic]

I lived in South Africa for almost a decade and people would always ask me why I still had an American accent after living in the country for so long. I found it a funny question because in South Africa there isn't just one English accent, there's many!

[@earthwyrm6756]

My American cousin married an English guy and their 5 year old daughter has somewhat of a British accent despite living in the US her whole life.

[@jamesdewane1642]

My aunt married a Kiwi in the US, and he's kept his accent to such a degree that she occasionally "translates" for him, that is, repeats what he says so I can get it, and not just for me. He was in sales all over the world, and I'm sure his accent was an asset. Being a little distinctive helps clients remember you.

[@tanvir2118]

Really like your input about the Uk, culture, accent, etc. viewpoints... please keep them coming. Thanks

[@G02372]

Middle class people can sometimes talk to builders and cabbies in a slight mockney accent. It’s not all negative, sometimes it just makes people more comfortable and relatable

[@properimpression]

It is a fascinating phenomena, subtle code switching.

[@patrickpaganini]

I hadn't heard of mockney. I must develop that - it sounds a lot of fun!

[@misterlexx2721]

I am a Jamaican from the Caribbean. Educated Jamaicans speak standard Jamaican English which is derived from British and Irish varieties while most inner city and deep rural less educated people speak a creole called patois.

[@IgorJagec]

I'm Croatian Londoner, I've been here for 6 years and I believe you everything you said in this video.

[@gmanlee575]

Do you have citizenship

[@testyterminal-bi5kj]

Accents do matter in the USA and people do change them here as well but it's mostly about first impressions. Your competence in whatever subculture context you're in rapidly sets one's assessment beyond the accent. I believe this is the main difference between the US and UK in this regard - one can be incompetent or marginal but still be thought of well and be given opportunities if one has an RP accent in the UK but such people will often in the USA quickly be dismissed literally or figuratively if they're screwing up. As a saying goes, about the USA: success is never permanent and failure is never final.

[@24X7CARZ]

A young man from India I met here in California said, after having traveled to and having lived in different countries, that “the US is a place where a homeless man may become a billionaire, and a billionaire could become homeless.”

[@24X7CARZ]

@@skyyyrose - The whole world functions that way.

[@tedlovejesus]

In us, you are born to be slave if you are black, like when veterans returned from WWII they were given free uni education And they blocked black veterans from getting uni education, what a crime US is such a disgrace

[@oldishandwoke-ish1181]

Hmmmmm ...... I think your class system has come to more resemble our Brit one over the years. Your oligarchs seem pretty well entrenched to me!

[@WhoJustReplying]

I think in the USA the qualification would also be important because, as far I have seen on the KZbin video, there are a lot dumb people in there and also, often most of them show their reaction with guns.

[@scrambledegg7908]

I like that you mentioned how it happens in both directions. I have a southern RP accent (but I'm not from a posh background) and I've felt a little alienated in certain work environments before, and felt the need to change my accent.

[@aevans-jl9ym]

So, basically. Everyone living in the UK regardless of their social class changes their accent if the need arises.

[@stardust4001]

What is RP?

[@joshua6244]

@@stardust4001 Received pronunciation. As spoken in South East England and by BBC news readers and others.

[@M_SC]

@@aevans-jl9ymno, not basically. You’re trying to oversimplify to deny a real problem recognized by everyone

[@Owlandpie]

Once I regularly made a few clients believe that there were two people in my team when in reality I was on my own, that way I could pretend that the other one was absent, in order to not have to answer them right away. I would switch between a UK and a US accent depending on which persona I was pretending to be.

[@blackcow1185]

😂 i once played two different persons on the phone to get a discount for a big order. It went well.

[@rusgon]

Really funny 🙃

[@thiagonunes4294]

O miserável é um gênio

[@hypergraphic]

I was in South Africa for 8 years and sometimes they didn't understand my American accent on the phone, so I would end up mirroring their accent back to them. It was pretty fun to switch between all the different accents. It's quite funny when you know it.

[@bookmouse2719]

Did you speak with a Bronx accent or Southern?

[@thebritishenglishteacher]

I do this all the time! I grew up in a working class area, then went to university and met people from all over the world. I changed my accent to help other people understand me. I don’t use RP, just a clearer, more neutral version of my own accent, with fewer slang words. This is my “professional voice”, which I use for teaching. I also work in a pub, where I use my natural accent because the professional one would sound a bit posh!

[@maaziy_ghaziyIYI]

So, what's your regional accent then if you don't mind sharing it?

[@thebritishenglishteacher]

@@maaziy_ghaziyIYI My accent is from Derbyshire. Even within Derbyshire there are slight differences depending on social class and work environment. It's not difficult to switch to standard (no slang) English, since we all grew up hearing it in school and on TV.

[@m-a122]

Canadian here. I understand that it's a conscious decision at first to speak in a different accent. But does it get easier over time to do the other accent? When you wake up in the morning do you have to consciously think about how you're going to pronounce things or is it just automatic at this point?

[@thebritishenglishteacher]

I don’t think about it at all, it just happens! There are situations where it’s clear that I am supposed to be a respectable adult (professional voice), and others where it doesn’t matter if I mess around and swear a bit! 😄

[@CUNDUNDO]

I have a friend who's got a very strong foreign accent and he is highly respected everywhere he goes because he is rich.

[@Monkdewallydehonk]

Hi Jade. I love the fact in the UK you can travel 20mins along the road and hear a completely different dialect. It's the bees knees. All the best to you Jade🙏

[@magyarbondi]

No, it's the dogs *****. 😅

[@nicolaj665]

In my home city of Hull, there are two accents and dialects which are separated by the River Hull.

[@Krwler]

Brilliant video. I love these conversations

[@barraqali336]

So true! Great video. Thanks.

[@bbearsmama]

I’m an American and this is kind-blowing. There are different accents around the country but we don’t look down on one another because of it. Proper grammar and a good vocabulary is valued over an accent.

[@eichhornchenwibbleflup7688]

Code-switching is quite normal. Changing accent and words the words/idioms you use happens often automatically so that you fit in with your surroundings. I remember being surrounded by belligerent squaddies in a pub in Colchester. My accent changed to save my life (well - my front teeth). I became quite Essexy.... innit.

[@richardcook5919]

I code-switch in my second language, Spanish. For the most part, this entails switching between Peninsular Spanish and Latin American Spanish, which even differ in their use of grammar.

[@eichhornchenwibbleflup7688]

@@richardcook5919 The same is true for Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese - more differences than one would expect.

[@richardcook5919]

​@@eichhornchenwibbleflup7688 you're right. I also speak Brazilian Portuguese.

[@GeoffreyCaesarSolicitor]

An insightful video, thanks.

[@declanmurphy417]

love your accent Jade🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

[@hellofromdavid]

English people often say they have difficulty understanding my Scottish accent. However, subtitle systems, convert my speech, more accurately, for me, than for them. Understanding requires a willingness to respectfully _listen_

[@frankgradus9474]

"Understanding requires a willingness to respectfully listen." - I thoroughly agree. As regards subtitles, on YT - I make a point of using them solely as a last resort, when all my attempts to understand have failed. By the by, when in Goldap make a point of trying zeppelins out.

[@lc6594]

I absolutely agree on this. I am foreign national living in UK for some time and it was something new to me when I saw subtitles on TV shows when a person from Scotland was saying something. Weirdly enough everything was understandable even to me - non native English speaker. So how is it possible native English speakers needs subtitles? Of course, sometimes there are people from different areas of Scotland and when you hear them, you are feeling lost, because they are even using different kind of words etc., then maybe yes, I would need a translation of that, but in most cases I agree, it depends from willingness to respectfully listen. I apologize about my English as I am sure there is still plenty to learn.

[@EgoShredder]

That is somewhat true but at times Scottish accents can be VERY challenging to hear and decipher. Usually though its more down to the speed or "meter" of the speech, and whether people place long enough gaps between words and sentences. Some people just deliver a flurry of words without any spacing.

[@hellofromdavid]

@@lc6594 ---- your English is better than mine. I speak _standard English_ with a Scottish accent. This should be understood by anyone. A *dialect" is regional, and often contains words that can only be understood locally (by someone from the parish - parochial )

[@diligenceeke3023]

​​@@lc6594 A Scotsman speaking on TV is a 360 degree difference from same man speaking in the streets. Come to Scotland sir and hear things that would throw you off balance. And I say this humorously. I can mimick some of the Scottish accent and slangs and it's funny. So, in general, the Scotsmen you see on TV speak standard English with a dumbed down accent. It's different from what is spoken in the streets with lots of swallowed words, slangs and whatever added to it.

[@manojkumardash1491]

I am very happy to see you Jade. I used to watch your videos 5-6 years back and you were not well at that time. Suddenly today thought of checking you and your old channel says last video was uploaded 3 years back. I got worried but thank God, I got this channel and you are active here. May God bless you Jade. Your videos have helped me in my college days. 😊

[@AMJ.JAGUAR]

It's been ages since I watched one of your videos Jade. You were one of the first online English teachers that I used to watch. Good to see you.

[@angrybird-oc4rg]

Thanks for this video, now that you mention it, I think the same thing happens in Spanish in Mexico. I changed the way I spoke at work to blend in, and my mom and husband frowned upon it since it was considered a lower education accent.

[@superman9772]

there was a time ( until the 1970s) that a "mid/trans atlantic" accent was the accepted accent between the U..S., Canada, Ireland, and U.K....many old news reels (pathe) have examples and of course, many modern comedic skits use it for their comedy of "earlier times" and "by gone era"... the american president Flanklin D. Roosevelt was a speaker and of course there's modern american actors who attempt "english" accents

[@tumbler9428]

The related subject of the "sociolect" seems to go back to the oldest languages in the world, including Sumerian (cf. Emesal). So this appears to be a thing that goes through time and space.

[@joshua6244]

This is true.

[@JohnCashin]

Accents are a funny thing. I come from a working class background originally and I can do a typical working class accent if I feel like it or I can even talk street lingo but where I am most comfortable is speaking in what many might call an educated, middle class accent and the reason for this is because I grew watching a lot of classic British TV shows in the 70s, things like The Saint and The New Avengers and the heroes in those shows all spoke like that and I guess it just rubbed off of me growing up and I just wanted to grow up to be like them.

[@lepolhart3242]

Why would you bother putting on a middle accent unless you want to be accepted by that group of people if you are working amongst them or have married into that class. Unless you're just trolling with this comment?

[@JohnCashin]

@@lepolhart3242 I'm not sure how you define 'trolling'. My definition of a troll is someone who posts offensive or threatening comments that are designed to upset people. If someone just expresses an opinion or an idea that some might not understand, I don't consider that to be trolling. I appreciate that maybe not everyone will understand what I mean, maybe you won't but that's not trolling.

[@lepolhart3242]

@@JohnCashin Sometimes people troll just to wind people up as they get a kick out of it. It's not always to be threatening or offensive. It's difficult on social media to gauge where a person is coming from because you can't read their body language. Sometimes people take comments on social media literally as if the person is being serious when they're just being humorous. That's why I sometimes ask people if they're being serious or not or trolling.

[@JohnCashin]

@@lepolhart3242 OK, fair enough, social media can be a minefield, and I appreciate that. What I would suggest though, and It's up to you, I can't presume to tell you how you should do this but I would recommend not suggesting that someone is possibly trolling that quickly unless they are clearly being antagonistic because saying that can, in itself cause offence if someone, like myself, was just trying to make a genuine point that may have just appeared odd to some. If someone just posts a comment that seems strange, funny or hard to understand, then maybe just ask them to expand on it. If they are sincere then I'm sure they will be happy to explain further and if they are not, well it will probably get more obvious with further posts. They might then start to chuck insults and then you will have more evidence to justify suggesting they are trolling, Does that make sense? Best wishes.

[@lepolhart3242]

@@JohnCashin That is a more polite, subtle way of asking them but it's not really my problem if they get offended easily by someone asking if they're trolling. It's the same as asking if they're serious or not. Only weak, overly sensitive people would get offended at a direct question like that. I have neither the time nor inclination to worry about it. It's simply not important as too many people make a habit of getting overly offended at stuff that is simply not offensive.

[@streamingaccess4719]

Were you crying before you recovered this video? I've been following your videos for a long time. I hope everything is ok with you. You're one of the best teachers people can find on this platform. Sending you all the love I can from Boston, and thank you for all you do for us ❤❤❤

[@ROCKINGMAN]

Very true all of these observations. I've noticed it too. Watch many of your YT lessons. Very informative.

[@drd4059]

I lived in the UK as a post-doc at Cambridge. I was told that my Canadian accent is Sussex: probably inherited from the people who set up the education system in Canada. I frequented the deli at M&S (cherry cheesecake is highly recommended) and gave the bags to my land lady. She went shopping at Tesco and put the Tesco bags in M&S to walk home.

[@lepolhart3242]

Quite pathetic about the bags. Cares too much about what other people think.

[@dumfriesspearhead7398]

Ha ha! How old is your landlady?

[@drd4059]

@@dumfriesspearhead7398 Then mid 30's.

[@dumfriesspearhead7398]

@@drd4059 I thought that was the behaviour of someone much older.

[@eddiebrugal8660]

Thank you- learnt something today

[@TheBjmose]

I totally believe you. I think about these things often. I will sometimes lean into my rural midwestern united states accent for fun.

[@Davysprocket213]

This is fascinating to me, as an American, who has visited England, and can barely distinguish between the different accents.

[@mariotabali2603]

Jade great to see you again in the internets

[@yahjangalmilotakphailahuahai]

Channels like this are a contributing factor

[@d.p.jvandeelen5390]

Love your English lessons

[@JadeJoddle]

Thanks for watching.

[@nedkelly2677]

well put. I do believe you. Studying at the British Council as Second language English learner, I came across the same argument taught by the teacher themselves. Their idea was not to give away any detail about your background using a very neutral accent, a mild Version of rp. I found it quite intimidating and it left a permanent scar on my ability speaking this otherwise Beautiful language. Matter of fact I have always Felt comfortable speaking to Aussie or Americans as you said not so obsessed by their accent.

[@lepolhart3242]

I'm British and I urge you never to lose your accent or ever be ashamed of your natural accent. Don't speak with RP as it's part of the New World Order ideology to make everyone around the world sound the same and speak with one style of English accent. Make everyone the same so they lose their identities and become like the Borg in Star Trek. What a world to live in where there is no variety and everyone is the same. Like George Orwell's 1984. He wrote it as a warning!! Please wake up.

[@icebergstorm]

i came across your channel accidentally... you are soo soo beautiful.. feels like watching Jane Austen's films (Pride & Prejudice, etc) .. i used to live in NW London for a very long time.. it's true that i sometimes changed my accent depending on who i spoke with back then... eventhough im not a native speaker 😅 your elaboration is very thorough and soothing.. you've got a new subscriber 😊

[@bensanderson7144]

I’m going to poundland right now

[@buju7]

Not sure why I enjoy your videos so much. Feels like I could sit for a coffee and moan with you forever 😂

[@Parawingdelta2]

When I had my own small business, my wife answered the incoming phone calls. She's got a reasonably 'educated' accent anyway but it certainly went up a 'notch' on the phone. It reminded me of an old sixties television comedy starring Thora Hird and Freddie Frinton where she 'elevated' herself whenever she spoke to a shopkeeper or tradesman.

[@fernandomilicich8160]

G day Jade !. Greetings from Argentina.

[@anabaron2240]

I've always wondered about Margaret Thatcher's obsession with accent. Thank you Jade, you've made it so clear.

[@galaxytrio]

I believe you and appreciate your telling how it really is.

[@wrestlingterrier8366]

As a Canadian who has spent time in the UK and as someone who has worked with the British, there were times when I had a hard time understanding sales people or clerks at stores.....specially in Manchester and Northern England. Honestly, I felt like telling them to make an effort and speak clearly, although I never said anything of course. When you're dealing with customers, they need to understand clearly what you are saying. Same thing applies to multinational companies and online meetings and what not.... In Vancouver, there's a community of well-off British people who live mostly in West Vancouver area (the most beautiful and expensive part of Vancouver). They speak the typical PR very posh, upper society British English. They do not do it to impress anyone. That's the only accent they have. Something similar happens in Spain where some people from the South (Andalucia) try to speak a much more neutral Spanish in Madrid, specially when they are working. They do not want to come across as being a farmer or from a little village or with poor education..... Celine Dion is from Quebec. The French accent in Quebec is different than Metropolitan French. So everytime she goes to Belgium or France, she tones down her accent so everyone understands when she is being interviewd. Bottom line is that speaking in a very regional accent is not the right thing to do when dealing with people who are not that used to it. Students of English oftentimes claim that Standard North American accent is the easiest to understand and chances are PR British accent comes second. American Deep South accents have always been my favorite and let me finish by being honest and saying that I do love the PR British accent. It's just beautiful.

[@superman9772]

here's an example of the U.S. "dirty south" accent "i'ma gonna git me sum rizz sews i ken git me un ona 'em dixie dimes 'n git 5150 wit 'er " ... (translated " i need to improve my style and appearance in order to attract a nice southern lady to improve my social relationship and life")... don't get me started on the southern "border" accent

[@b3n3d1ct10n]

The RP accent is a manufactured accent - it stands for Received Pronunciation, and is a standardised form of English, designed particularly for film and broadcast. My people in the U.K. actively dislike it, mainly because of its inauthenticity, and assumed superiority, and it’s association with privilege and social dominance. I would guess that your experiences in the North of England with local accents probably involved people who were already ‘toning down’ their local accent so you could understand them - it would be unusual for people to deliberately made interactions with foreign people slower or more difficult on purpose, especially in a retail situation.

[@superman9772]

@@b3n3d1ct10n i can understand a person perceiving those dislikes and discomforts about RP or any standardization of language ... but here's the deal... i grew up with a subset dialect of the American dialect that i call border slang.... it's a mix of Mexican slang , Native American, English and then tossed together... i definitely don't think of myself less than someone with "status" and "privilege" but by everyone using a standardized and common verbiage then everyone can communicate with some precision and understanding... the feeling of status and privilege is something that's unique to the UK because of the royalty and peerage thing (and that's kinda of a different topic but definitely does impacts language)

[@lepolhart3242]

I'm from Northern England and I can tell you now that most retail workers would have toned down their accent to be understood and used standard English. There are strong accents but also gentler accents like anywhere in the world. If you didn't like the North of England then why didn't you go to the South with such an attitude? Also it's not PR but RP - Received Pronunciation. Get your facts straight. Unless you're deliberately trolling with this comment to wind people up, then that's funny.

[@wrestlingterrier8366]

@@lepolhart3242 I don't have to like every single accent. Not everyone has to like my accent either. It's just a matter of personal tastes.

[@girldoes289]

Agree. It's all about how you are perceived..I have a friend who has a very distinctive West London accent who has been struggling to move into permaneant office corporate roles as everyone in the office type jobs speak a certain way, share similar humor and probably social class/education. I remember myself not connecting with my colleagues as they were raised differently to me, I was excluded/ignored/let go many times for no apparent reason...Basically if u fit in, fit the "mould" your life will be 10x easier, your hardwork will be recognized, promoted. Otherwise you have to really be careful in selecting where you work, public vs private, corporate vs NHS also what job u do e.g. PA/Executive Assistant vs Nurse..

[@lepolhart3242]

It's disgusting really but some people are unfortunately like that. I would not want to go anywhere near these types of people. They're not worth it.

[@mr.franco4572]

Very interesting info. Thanks a lot. Here in Uruguay, we do not change our accent at all!

[@sugarfree1894]

When I was at school I once faked an accent for a supply teacher. She was quite discombobulated when I reverted to my natural accent. Accent is powerful in terms of how others see us.

[@daviddionisio]

very true!

[@evabarczak3025]

A comment to feed the algorithms; harsh, authentic, brutal and at the same time lovely, empathetic and soulful videos about the reality we're living in. Not what I would expect from language tutor, but do keep them coming :) I fell in love with British culture, not for the backward aristocracy, but rather for kitchen sink dramas and dancing to the northern soul

[@itsMe_TheHerpes]

is there... anything wrong with the aristocracy ? i don't get it.

[@lepolhart3242]

​@@itsMe_TheHerpesListen to Lady Glenconner who was lady in waiting to Princess Margaret. She's written her memoirs as well. Too much inbreeding took it's toll.

[@ClintInDaHouse]

I certainly appreciate hearing another accent other than I own. It is the spice of life.

[@jackkruese4258]

This is all so true. For some reason I’m quite good at different accents and will often change it when talking to strangers just because I enjoy doing so or to see how they react differently to you. I’ve learnt that the best way to do it is just to tilt it a bit in the direction you want whether its a Birmingham, Liverpool , welsh, German, Australian or a posh or more common accent. And secondly to adjust what and how you speak with just the right amount of inflexion on certain words. I’ll also often use a completely different accent on different days with the same stranger if like in the same shop just for amusement. A bit ridiculous I know but harmless and I enjoy it.

[@user-vr1mp2ef7d]

As I mentioned in a comment on your video concerning social mobility in the UK, I am a native speaker of English, but I haven't lived in the UK since 1967. Also, I then had a slight non-rhotic South Coast accent (I lived in Bournemouth, Southampton. Winchester and later Wembley), but I now speak with a "modern" RP accent, as many of the people I converse with are non-native speakers. My father had a slight London accent, but I didn't inherit his glottal stops. Also, as a foreign resident with a foreign name, when I'm in the UK, I fall outside the English "class" system, so I can go into all sorts of places with no problems. ;-)

[@thomashutcheson3343]

I loved hearing Peter Sellers switch to Fraffley when he was scamming the Uppers in "The Magic Christian" (co-starring the Liverpudlian Richard Starkey, by the way).

[@andyda931]

Thank you, Jade, for your honesty. Your input is greatly appreciated. And as you mentioned, it's neither good nor bad; it's simply a reflection of cultural norms.

[@mariec7092]

She didn't say it wasn't bad

[@Stefan-]

I may be wrong but i dont think its much of a thing here in Sweden but we also hardly have any class hierarchies.

[@billyliar1614]

You do things so much better in Norse countries. I just don't get why we can't follow your example in the UK/US

[@emmak.1313]

As a person from Northern Finland with acquintances in Sweden's different regions... I respectfully disagree. While it might not be like the *British* class system, the whole of Sweden's population, wealth and media are so heavily pushed to the Southern parts of the country nowadays, that the regional unequality does taint the attitudes towards regional accents, too. What's more, Sweden has a colonialistic past (and present) system what comes to Sápmi and Sami languages. The Finnish influence in spoken language has been for long frowned upon, even the millenials still carry these attitudes - needlessly. While Sweden has lots of lovely qualities, I don't see Stockholm or other centers free of class, hierarchy and regionally based mockery. It's an old monarchy after all situated in the Global North. Some upper abd middle classes are just terribly used to being relatively comfortable and wealthy, so they don't see anymore who the workplace culture or the lunchtime chitchat marginalizes. What do you think of this outtake?

[@Stefan-]

@@emmak.1313 I still think my short basic post ring true but of course there has in the past been oppression and whatnot towards certain groups or people and if we go far back enough the Vikings even took slaves etc. People that live according to old traditions often tend to be marginalised probably much due to that it doesnt fit in that well in the modern times. I dont know how much you can do about wealth and media etc, most people live in the southern part of Sweden, myself in Stockholm and i was born here so that does concentrate everything and also make it practical for business etc. My mother was actually from Finland and i have been there many times but she was from the Swedish speaking population and moved here in her early teens in the 60´s, from what i have heard though the Swedish language has been more and more marginalised in Finland and many Swedish speaking has moved over here. For me wealth and power is not class, anyone can accumulate wealth really and also become powerful, it has been proven over and over, class is more what you are born into and i dont feel any real differences in class here and not much heriarchies even though some may still use the term class, i dont think it means that much anymore though. Some kind of heriarchies are of course needed, someone has to make decisions and be the boss etc but you never call your boss sir or crawl on the floor or the like you usually speak to the boss more or less as an equal. The King and the other royals is perhaps an exception where you have to call him King or your majesty etc but even he seems like a surpricingly down to earth guy.

[@abubakary.abubakar-no9uv]

Thanks a lot.

[@FarmanF.O]

Very interesting video 👍

[@honour82]

Code switching. Interesting!

[@evgbiz1467]

Your accent,Jade,is superb!When I hear RP or Posh people speaking-it is a kind of magic,incomparable with any other accent of English.

[@ckzf1842]

RP is essentially accent- less .

[@remycallie]

@@ckzf1842 LOL There's no such thing as "accentless." Guess what? We in the mid-Atlantic states think we're "accentless" too but I bet you don't think so (nor does anyone else in the country). The way every single person on the planet speaks gives evidence of where they come from. That's what an "accent" is.

[@EdwardLindon]

She's not using RP.

[@EdwardLindon]

​@@ckzf1842Nope. Not at all.

[@nickel7002]

She isn't RP at all.

[@terryo5672]

I have a Scouse accent having been brought up in a council flat in Liverpool. I think my accent has changed over the years having worked all over the World. Never had a problem as such. Regional accents are ok it’s what you say that matters.

[@olegcherkasky2755]

Maybe it depends on the specific field you're in and the work environment too.

[@terryo5672]

@@olegcherkasky2755 yes I am in science and engineering and it’s just not an issue. I expect it may be different if I was a lawyer or a stockbroker.

[@EdwardLindon]

Surely the point is that you have worked all over the world rather than, say, in the UK Home Office. Accent discrimination is a real thing. Lucky you for not encountering it.

[@leonardolise7029]

Hello 👋 jodie. I went to England three times.my brother lives there.and it's still hard for me to understand brits, everyone speaks different!! You speak very clear though .Is that your real accent? If not,could you make a video showing us how you speak with other natives. I like the way you teach. Thanks you. 😊 I'm From Argentina

[@mustapha2]

Hi Jade, I think this happens not only in UK, this is the case in several countries across the world, just like in my country where people change their accent according to the situation to the point that some people speaks other language (often french, as it was always linked to the posh highly educated class in my country)

[@WeTakeOverIreland]

I love how you mix learning accent with the real life untold truth that nobody likes to hear but deep inside they believe so to be the case

[@theodentherenewed4785]

This is absolutely spot on. When people talk to someone that they don't know, they look out for clues to which drawer, so to speak, put their interlocutor in. The accent is used as a point of reference, even at the subconscious level. The 2nd point is that we adjust to people we are around, including our accent and it's partly because of empathy.

[@Ken_oh545]

Very often a normal English person speaks the same way to everybody, I know I do. .

[@jj9k]

Interesting to hear this articulated. I british and had middle/upper class grandparents who sounded posh to my ear and i grew up in Norfolk with friends with strong Norfolk accent. I find myself talking up to people who her very very spoken, speaking like grandparents did, and talking in a more ‘norfolk’ and sometimes rather colloquial way with people who speak with a more working class accent. Half subconsciously but within my control i guess if i realise. A strange kind of mimicry or attempt to make myself more intelligible perhaps. Certainly with more upper class persons wanting perhaps to appear more patrician than plebeian.

[@ps-dn7ce]

In Eastern Europe, we look at cars people drive to tell their social status :-)

[@AlexTourkin]

Thank you for the video, Jade! I wonder - what about foreign (not English speaking country) accent? Is that considered to be certain class, what kind of impression does it make in professional setting?

[@offthebeatenlife995]

As an Aussie living in London, I’ve found in general that I’ve been treated quite well. In fact, I think my accent has unconsciously softened. Although a couple of times I’ve witnessed bewildered looks when I’ve told someone I’m Aussie 😂

[@BOTarot]

I do believe you ! As a foreigner myself it was really hard to pass through interviews in London. I find it weird and closed-minded , but who cares about my opinion. 😂Hence , I started my own business speaking my way of speaking English with the world and I am doing ways better than working for an uk employer lol. I think this is a mechanism of ethnic groups to preserve their identity and belonging to a group. Language is the most important and comes first .

[@briane596able]

Kept expecting a small comparison of the different accents for those not from the UK. Informative video overall thou

[@sachinkainth9508]

I can really relate to this. I come from a very poor, working class background in East London and as soon as I joined my first company in Surrey, after graduating from University, I unconsciously put on a RP accent. I've kept using that accent at work ever since.

[@DigitalDebris]

At least I can say WOW!

[@1234holdsworth]

I thought I was the only one that did this! That's good ti know It's actually a thing! 😊

[@mia_djojowasito_malik]

No wonder the best actors in the world are from the UK 🩵 I personally found your channel & changed my accent for geopolitical reasons. I'm from Indonesia but spent my formative years in the US and had a northern US/Canadian acccent on me. I was told (by many non-Indonesians) that indonesians tend to sound slightly British when they speak English so i learned a soft British accent in an attempt to sound more Indonesian & be closer to my roots. Thank you for what you do 🙏🙏

[@rudyberkvens-be]

In Flanders that is the case as well. We even change our accent when taking to children.

[@smvwees]

In other videos i actually found out that there is still a massive emphasis on classes. Though i must say in other countries you'd also adjust to for example a conference with ceo's and use more easily an accent when the window cleaner or plumber comes around.

[@pink221]

My RP accent was a problem for me growing up in school (as a Londoner that moved up North) but has been a huge benefit as an adult in the professional world.

[@betsybarnicle8016]

In the U.S. there are area accents that come across as less professional (class) for work. I grew up in an Appalachia mountain part of Pennsylvania, and I've learned how to adjust my grammar, colloquialisms, and accent depending on the occassion.

[@maryhaddock9145]

Well done for discussing this. Social hierarchy in Britain is incredibly pronounced and is an integral aspect of what makes the country unique. I think British people's physical features and general appearance are also quite a clear indication of this although not as much as accent.

[@MrStrocube]

Very interesting. Yes, I totally believe you. What a minefield to navigate everyday, ugh. I live in Southern California, so it’s a different situation here in regard to accents. Here in the US, accents are more typically regional. Although, there are also marked class differences. That’s with English. Since we’re just two hours north of the Mexican border, Spanish is the second dominant language here after English. I’m from South America, and work as a Spanish language interpreter for the criminal courts here in Los Angeles. What you’re describing, as far as accents, certainly applies more to Spanish here than it does English. Though most of the people we interpret for are poor, working class, from remote rural areas of Mexico and Central America. There is a major difference between how these people speak and the way their more educated counterparts from their own areas speak. You can spot the difference immediately,regardless of which country they’re from.

[@ProfoundFamiliarity]

Thank you for talking honestly about your views on class and the lengths that we might go to, to fit in. It may be considered inappropriate or politically incorrect to make generalisations around our differences, however I have occasionally noticed a colleague varying his tone considerably at work, compared to how he talks on the phone to his mates so I can verify that it does at least happen sometimes.

[@AlaKareem]

I liked your accent 😊

[@i.o.3563]

It happens everywhere in the world. Some countries don't have such variety of accents, though.

[@luckyluckydog123]

there's nothing really comparable in Italy

[@i.o.3563]

@@luckyluckydog123 have you got lots of accents in the country?

[@user-yk8tt3ce1n]

For instance, Russian does not have accents at all

[@johnmurray5573]

USA? Really?

[@markmclewis6737]

@@i.o.3563towns 10miles apart might have distinctive accents and different words to refer to things…Italy 🤯

[@markmuller7962]

The middle ages heritage causes a lot of social problems here in Europe like the lack of egalitarianism and the difficulty in making new friends in a family/group centric society. Even dating is heavily affected in some countries, mostly southern Europe

[@cratuki]

I moved to London from Australia. I changed my accent for work. On the telephone my customers had trouble understanding me often enough that I wanted to do something about it. I had no problems adopting an accent that I thought of as bbc news service. This seems to be neutral - easy to adopt and to understand. This removed the distraction of me having an unusual accent. My accent swings around depending on who I am with and how much I have had to drink.

[@m-a122]

After all this time do you have to consciously think about maintaining the accent? Or do you just wake up and start speaking without wondering how all the vowels sound etc?

[@PHlophe]

Moving from an OZ accent to an RP Brit one isn't exactly a big "leap" since your own is closely related already. It is not as if you jumped from a Mandarin accent to a British one. get real

[@cratuki]

@@m-a122 No, I find it looks after itself. One time I was with friends in Adelaide and they all reacted with surprise when I entered a room and spoke to my wife - then pointed out I had used the wrong accent. I found the accent easy to adopt. If you place your voice in a certain position of the mouth, it just happens. It feels further back in the mouth than Australian, which is forward.

[@user-sq4vz6dz1e]

That is so interesting. As a Canadian, I find our accent doesn't vary much from coast to coast (if you don't count the Newfoundland and Cape Breton accents, which are not so different from the rest of Canada, and the younger people don't have it as much). So I think for the average Canadian to use a different accent, it would require a lot of conscious effort on our part to maintain it. @@cratuki

[@kickpublishing]

I’ve always refused to do this. I’m PhD educated and have taught at 3 of the best and “poshest” universities in the UK. I’m only comfortable speaking in my natural voice and refuse to put on any airs and graces - I was dragged up on a Manchester council estate by a single alcoholic Mum and I’m not ashamed of it, I have nothing to hide. I’ve had people attempt to speak down to me and they always regret it because intellect always pierces the paper thin veneer of the class system that many dullards cling to for comfort. Be the fiercest, sharpest and most thought through person in the room and do it as your real self, unapologetically so, it terrorises the thick posh.

[@charlesedwards4160]

Jade doesn't beat around the bush. She tells you it as it is and if you don't like it then tough luck, just suck it up.

[@dukebubblebutt5256]

Once I've met a guy from Manchester and could barely understand him as he sounded like he was having mouth full of mushpotato. Ppl have to work with their accents to sound clear!

[@davidostrowski679]

I'm from West London. but not the posh part. I grew up in Feltham/Hounslow so my original accent is very typical Feltham/much closer to Cockney. I've always had to use a different accent in work environments otherwise be prepared to face ridicule, to the point that now I'm in my 40s, I can't even fake my original accent. However, I went back to Feltham last year for the first time in years and within minutes my accent returned. Crazy!

[@lepolhart3242]

I've got to give it you to be able to put up with snobby types. It is how the world works in some places but I cannot stand those types of people and actively avoid them.

[@Jnnist]

I totally agree with you the accent is is very important. I'm Spanish by origin but I moved to the UK because I'm married to a British person. I've always struggled to get decent jobs despite having a bachelor's honors degree, master's degree and various UK qualifications such as CIPD and experience. I feel that my accent is not helping me, maybe in London it would be easier but in the northeast of England the truth is that it is being difficult to find a better job and advance in my career. Despite all that, I love this country.

[@JadeJoddle]

Interesting theory.

[@lucyjohnson7943]

This is very interesting! Now I know why some of our UK colleagues sound differently from other UK colleagues.

[@tshandy1]

In the U.S. we have some distinctions and status around accents. Southerners have always suffered a bias because of their accent. Perhaps we don't really have a posh accent here in the U.S., but the standard "American business" accent may come closest to being the most highly regarded. My impression of the U.K., at least on this front, is that RP is the most "correct sounding" accent, but I do love the more regional accents, even if I find them difficult to understand sometimes.

[@pamelacox540]

This happens everywhere unfortunately. My parents grew up in rural Kentucky USA and had very country accents. Both went to college and had very good careers. Both changed their accents. Even as a little kid, I spoke with a rural Kentucky accent when I was visiting our family in rural Kentucky and switched to a “normal” American accent when we went home to the suburbs in Lexington.

[@Michael___xxx]

Very true

[@aquahomeritto]

In Mexico, something similar happens, there are many accents and when we’re working we tend to speak like people from Mexico City or from TV