# Personal problem **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 21, 2003, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791 "2003-08-21T22:56:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2003, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/41 "2003-08-24T18:20:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by chrisk72 \* > \*\*As far as the term for this - I think it should be wimey. \*\* I think “seppom” has kind of a nice ring to it, myself. I suppose you could try renting a bunch of movies from different parts of the English-speaking world, watching them one after another, and hoping all the different accents would even out into something vaguely normal-sounding. Then again, the results could be quite comically disastrous if they didn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Cyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e4f/32.png) [@Cyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyn)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/42 "2003-08-25T01:41:16Z")
I spent a summer in Europe when I was 17 and to this day I still eat with my fork in my left hand. Scarred for life. Don’t let this happen to you! ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/43 "2003-08-25T10:48:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cyn \* > \*\*I spent a summer in Europe when I was 17 and to this day I still eat with my fork in my left hand. > Scarred for life. > Don’t let this happen to you! \*\* This is the first I’ve heard of this. You guys eat with your folk in your _right_ hand? ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/44 "2003-08-25T10:50:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by skeptic\_ev \* > \*\*And for all you Brits (and others) being catty about Madonna, try to show a little understanding. It’s very difficult for some people to not adopt the accent of the people they’re around. \*\* She didn’t just pick up the accent of those around her. She actually took _lessons!_ Or so I heard. (Although personally, I don’t see anything wrong with it.) ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/45 "2003-08-25T14:21:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AngelicGemma \* > \*\*This is the first I’ve heard of this. You guys eat with your folk in your _right_ hand? \*\* Amongst those I know, it depends on whether you’re right- or left-handed. Being right-handed myself, if I tried to eat with a fork in my left hand I would surely end up poking myself in the eye. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/46 "2003-08-25T15:04:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AngelicGemma \* > This is the first I’ve heard of this. You guys eat with your folk in your _right_ hand? Yes. Proper American eating etiquette involves (assuming you’re right-handed) eating with your fork in your right hand. You hold it in the left hand if you’re holding a piece of food still with it while cutting (and as a side note, proper American eating etiquette requires that you cut one bite at a time, rather than cutting up the whole piece of food at once), then you put the knife down, transfer your fork to your right hand, and eat. ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/47 "2003-08-25T15:34:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ferret Herder \* > \*\*Yes. Proper American eating etiquette involves (assuming you’re right-handed) eating with your fork in your right hand. You hold it in the left hand if you’re holding a piece of food still with it while cutting (and as a side note, proper American eating etiquette requires that you cut one bite at a time, rather than cutting up the whole piece of food at once), then you put the knife down, transfer your fork to your right hand, and eat. \*\* Well you learn something new everyday. You know, Ive spent a total of 7 weeks in America in my life and never ONCE noticed. It seems like a lot of hassel to me. Although I am left handed so it makes sence to have my folk in my left hand! Although it took a lot of time as a kid to learn to cut using a knife in my right hnd. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/48 "2003-08-25T18:55:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dwalin \* > **I went to a summer camp a few weeks ago and acquired a British accent.** Good on you! All my kids brought back was a leaf in a block of plastic. > [@](#): > > \*\* Unfortunately, I’ve never even been to Great Britain, so my family doesn’t let me speak with an accent. \*\* Is your father the ex-Argentinian governor of The Falkland’s Islands? > [@](#): > > \*\* > I’m going back to school in a few days, and I’m not sure whether to subdue my accent\*\* If you can “subdue” it, why is it a problem? > [@](#): > > \*\* > …or to let them know that I have one. What should I do? \*\* Definately let them know that you have one, only make sure you are only heard using it for Monty Python quotes. _Cheerio!_ ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/49 "2003-08-25T19:02:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dwalin \* > \*\*For those of who who said I should drop the accent: > A. It’s not that easy. > B. I was suggesting subduing it, not dropping it entirely. Eventually I hope to be able to do that, but for now, I can’t do it. > > \*\* I see by your profile your live “near DC” if this means Washington D.C. then your problem is solved! Just get some British diplomatic plates on your car. You’re welcome. p.s. how old are you? ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/50 "2003-08-25T20:05:21Z")
You can get rid of the accent. It is just as easy as acquiring one. It just takes some attention to your speech. When I was about 14 my father taught me to quit saying, “um, like, y’know” all the time, and, while it was tough at first, it quickly became second nature. Now I speak in complete sentences. And it will be worth it. As others have said here, speaking with a foreign accent is an obvious affectation and does not serve to make you seem exotic or mysterious. I’m still curious as to how you acquired it; were there a lot of English kids at the camp? Did they force you to watch Merchant and Ivory movies? Was it this summer’s camp-fad to affect an accent? ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/51 "2003-08-25T20:47:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mascaroni \* > \*\*Brummie? > Geordie? > Scouse? > Cockney? > Black Country? > > Which British accent did you aquire while at summer camp? > > (I know, I know, it’s a dialect before anyone pulls me up over it…) \*\* My vote is the Millie/Spide accent. Did it come with a tattoo…? ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/52 "2003-08-25T21:54:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by quietman1920 \* > \*\*My vote is the Millie/Spide accent. Did it come with a tattoo…? \*\* you mean [Estuary English](http://www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/estuary/crystal-2.htm)? ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/53 "2003-08-25T22:43:55Z")
I find this whole thread absolutely bizarre. It’s the Twilight Zone thread. I have a tendency to mimick accents unconsciously. When I spent a couple weeks in Britain in 1998, I was worried that I would begin to adopt the accent and people would think I was mocking them. Rather to my relief, this didn’t happen. In fact, it seemed like my American accent got _stronger_ and more pronounced. Maybe I was imagining this, comparing it to all of the British accents I was hearing, or maybe I was subconsciously pronouncing my difference, making sure that everyone knew I was a foreigner. (In London, no one seemed to care, but I did get at least a couple double-takes in a small town in Wales.) Sometimes, being different - ie, having a foreign accent - can be fun, hm? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2003, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/54 "2003-09-05T23:41:11Z")
“I’m still curious as to how you acquired it; were there a lot of English kids at the camp? Did they force you to watch Merchant and Ivory movies? Was it this summer’s camp-fad to affect an accent?” No to all three. To those of you who have suggested watching a bunch of American movies and repeating the lines or whatever, it wouldn’t work. I’ve quoted from American movies and it still came out in a British accent. I’ve been trying to subdue it, but it’s getting harder and harder. I’ve given up trying to fake an American accent at school, because nobody really cares, and a few girls really like it, which is a nice change. “Sometimes, being different - ie, having a foreign accent - can be fun, hm?” Being different, yes. Having a foreign accent . . . not so much. ---
**Author:** ![Smashed\_Ice\_Cream](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Smashed\_Ice\_Cream](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smashed_Ice_Cream)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2003, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/55 "2003-09-06T08:29:57Z")
My youngest sister has some social anxiety issues and adopts accents when she’s feeling nervous or in new social situations. (She’s 22 now.) She picks up false British accents most commonly; second most commonly she picks up speaking like my brothers or me, as we’re deaf and have distinct “flat” speech patterns. She sees a therapist for the anxiety, but the accent-picking-up-itis isn’t easy for her to beat. Her therapist says it’s common enough to not be at all surprising; anxious people use it as a mask to hide their true self from new people to shield themselves from the rejection they believe they’ll get. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2003, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/56 "2003-09-06T22:03:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by skeptic\_ev \* > \*\*It’s very difficult for some people to not adopt the accent of the people they’re around. (I, for instance, sound like my little sis for a few hours after getting off the phone with her. Or so my husband says.) Just because it _sounds_ affected does not mean that it _is_ affected. \*\* That’s a good point-sometimes, after I’ve been reading Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters for a few hours, or watching a movie set in say, 19th century Russia, I start thinking in that sort of dialect. And then “regular” prounounciations sound weird to me. However, **dwalin** , perhaps in the mean time, you can try a [Pittsburgh accent](http://www.pittsburghese.com/)? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Palewriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/db5fbb/32.png) [@Palewriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palewriter)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2003, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/57 "2003-09-06T22:34:25Z")
Though I live in Texas, I have an English (London) accent. No, I didn’t acquire it using Madonna’s loo or going to some posh summer camp. I was born with it. Few things are more irritating than hearing foreigners who believe they’ve picked up perfect English accents. To begin with, I think they’re taking the piss out of mine. Then I realize they’re delusional enough to think they’ve “got it”. Get rid of the accent, dwalin. Your U.S. friends will think you’re being snooty and your English friends (if you have any) will think you’re taking the piss. And for the rest of you, here’s a guaranteed way to make this Limey very sarcastic and grumpy: - Oh, I lurve your accent. Where are you from? - England. - That’s so COOL. I went to London once. - Really. - Yes, we went to a pub and shopped in Oxford Street. - Really. - Yes. Do you know ‘The Flying Douchebag’ near Victoria Station? - No. - Oh. Well, the beer was warm and I tried your fish and chips. - Really. - Yes. You know they put vinagar on the fries? - I know. - So when are you going home? - I am home. - Don’t you ever go back home, then? - No. I don’t like it there. That’s why I live here. - Oh. Well I’m going back to London maybe next year. - Wonderful. - So did you want to order a drink or anything. - No, I really came into this bar to talk shit about London with some bimbo. - PW ---
**Author:** ![SanguineSpider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SanguineSpider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanguineSpider)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/58 "2003-09-07T19:47:45Z")
This is friggin’ hilarious!! I just find it sooooooo completely irrelevent to a “problem”. Now, I’m not going to get into preach mode and rant about real problems, we all have far too many of those, for which you’ll thank me but still… delusions of grandeur this ain’t. Maybe you adopted this accent to make yourself sound more intelligent? Like Madonna… but she does have a Brit hubby and does live at least half the time in England. Do you have real problems? Other than this one… ---
**Author:** ![Merejane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@Merejane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merejane)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/59 "2003-09-07T22:31:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dwalin \* > \*\*“I’m still curious as to how you acquired it; were there a lot of English kids at the camp? Did they force you to watch Merchant and Ivory movies? Was it this summer’s camp-fad to affect an accent?” > > No to all three. \*\* OK, so how _did_ you acquire it? If you have no idea – if you just woke up one day with an accent – please just say so. But if you know how it happened, please tell us! ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791/60 "2003-09-07T23:26:14Z")
I went to camp, and there was a guy from England in my hall. I spent a fair bit of time with him, most of which was unavoidable. Over three days, I gradually started to think in a British accent, then I started to talk under my breath in a British accent, then I started to speak normally in a British accent. I don’t know why it happened, I don’t know how it happened. To answer your second statement, I have no idea how it happened, but I have given my synopsis of the relevant events. It might help, it might not. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/personal-problem/196791.md?page=4)