ipl-logo

Received Pronunciation Essay

1384 Words6 Pages

Introduction The aim of this essay is to give an overview of Received Pronunciation as the most prestigious variety of among the English accents. First of all, there is an introduction about what RP is, which is followed by the answer to the question of who speaks RP. To continue, I will focus in the different categories in which the accent is divided according to several phoneticians who have studied the accent. Following this, I will centre in the main changes the accent has suffered, following by some information about the current situation in relation to the number of speakers. Finally, there is a conclusion to summarize the most important aspects of the essay. What is RP? RP, Received Pronunciation, is an English accent, known as the most prestigious one. It developed from what was essentially a …show more content…

As this accent emerged from the accent of upper and privileged classes, it is spoken by the higher ranks of the society such as aristocrats. Due to this fact, speaking with this accent gave the impression of belonging to the upper society, so that; the elite members could not speak with any regional accent. Although this accent is widely understood and recognized, it is nowadays spoken just by the 2-3% of the population. It is also the accent of the Royal family, hence it is also known as the Queen’s English. Besides, it was the accent of the court and of some politicians, but their accent is being modified for other more similar to Estuary English rather than RP. During the 1930s and 1940s, RP was heard in the voice of the BBC radio announcers, reason which also gives it the name of BBC English. The fact of being the accent of the BBC makes people more conscious about the prestige of this accent as Rebecca says: ‘By using only RP speakers as announcers and newsreaders, the BBC underlined the social importance of the accent, and in the public mind RP became even closer linked with high status and intellectual competence’ (2006:13) RP

Show More
Related

  • Character Analysis: Language Forming Identity In Elijah And Xavier

    559 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since Elijah “had a gift for the wemistikoshiw language” (59) he is easily able to transition into an English gentleman. Elijah even employs a British accent, that starts as a joke but slowly consumes him. Later in the novel, Elijah admits “he couldn’t speak in his old voice even if he wanted to now. It’s gone somewhere far away” (138). As he

    Read More

  • Paul Roberts Speech Communities Summary

    254 Words  | 2 Pages

    In his essay "Speech Communities," Paul Roberts mentions the importance and impact speech communities have on an individual's form of speech. According to Paul Roberts language is always changing due to three distinct features: age, social class, and geography. All which are the basis for forming speech communities and causing then to eventually adapt and evolve. When discussing the speech communities of a child, Roberts makes an intriguing point. He states that no matter what speech habits were engraved in a child from birth through its parents, they are all prone to change once they interact with a different speech community such as school.

    Read More

  • Noel Pearson's Article 'Reconciliation'

    707 Words  | 3 Pages

    Pearson's purpose is to emphasize that the Voice is the solution to the problem of recognition and that it

    Read More

  • Use Of Diction In Richard Rodriguez's The Hunger Of Memory

    1037 Words  | 5 Pages

    “So many words were still unknown that when the butcher and the lady at the drugstore said something to me, exotic polysyllabic sounds would bloom in the midst of their sentences. Often, the speech of people in public seemed to be very loud, booming with confidence. The man behind the counter would literally ask, ‘What can I do for you?’ But by being firm and so clear, the sound of his voice said that he was a gringo; he belonged in the public society”(12). Rodriguez describes the way English sounds to him creating an image that the language was very complex to in his perspective.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analytic Conversation

    1339 Words  | 6 Pages

    The overall substance of history is somewhat underwhelming—damaging their credibility. However, they are able to make up for this lack of information through the overall sense of professionality. With the use of high level vocabulary along with the length of the sentence provides the audience with a sense of intellect coming from the narrator. Adding to this sense of credibility and intellect is the accent of the narrator. In the article Does your accent make you sound smarter?

    Read More

  • Ap English Language Interview

    1886 Words  | 8 Pages

    On the other hand, Sally, who is a native born British Speaker, omits the “r” and extends the open-mid, back vowel (line 12). The same goes for the word “what” in which Sally omitted the letter “t” in the word “what” (line 8), which compared to American English speakers, there is no omitting of the “t.” That is why I sounded weird trying to imitate her pronunciation of the word (on the recording my intonation was slightly higher than Sally’s). This is interesting because similar results – the omitting of t’s within British English – has been observed in other research papers such as “Drilling Down to the Grain in Superdiveristy” from Ben Rampton (2015). Witnessing that evidence that has been pointed out in other articles was intriguing.

    Read More

  • My Father's Lunch Poem

    813 Words  | 4 Pages

    In contrast to Funkhouser’s tone, Margarita Engle’s speaker’s tone in

    Read More

  • Deaf Culture Essay

    588 Words  | 3 Pages

    According to Cristina De Rossi, an anthropologist at Barnet and Southgate College in London, “Culture encompasses religion, food, what we wear, how we wear it, our language, marriage, music, what we believe is right or wrong, how we sit at the table, how we greet visitors, how we behave with loved ones, and million other things.” I think basically culture expresses the ways we live. Every region, every family and everyone has their own culture. For example, people usually call “Western Culture,” “Eastern Culture,” “Latin Culture,” or “African Culture” etc. Therefore, with Deaf people, they also have their own culture, which is Deaf Culture.

    Read More

  • Inherit The Wind Clarence Darow Character Analysis

    675 Words  | 3 Pages

    Crack, crack. That’s the sound the gavel made as the judge used it. In the book Inherit the Wind by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee the character Drummond is defending Bertram Cates in the case of the scopes trial. While it might seem like a weird case this did happen in real life as well. The real person for Drummond is Clarence Darrow.

    Read More

  • Zaroff Persuasion Quotes

    287 Words  | 2 Pages

    He advanced to Rainsford and held out his hand. In a cultivated voice marked by a slight accent that gave it added precision and deliberateness, he said, ‘it is a very great pleasure and honor to welcome Mr. Sanger Rainsford, the celebrated hunter, to my home’” (Connells 4). According to the quote, it exposes the tone of his voice was talking to a friend that he cognized for a long time.

    Read More

  • African American Vernacular English Essay

    479 Words  | 2 Pages

    Language, though primarily used as a means of communication, can be used to form community-like bonds with additions to and evolutions of different regional, cultural, racial, etc., vernaculars. What is one community’s “how are you?” is another’s “what’s good?” or “‘sup?” Those terms are understood and accepted almost unilaterally in their respective communities, but beyond those borders, they may or may not be. The push to broaden mandating “proper English pronunciation” is a direct attack on those communities that do not fall in the narrow definition of those whose community is deemed “correct” by mainstream society. When this is enforced, its roots are usually found in racism/white supremacy.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Mother Tongue

    458 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout the article, Tan uses a number of personal examples to show and support her point. These examples span from phone conversations and hospital visits to standardized tests. By using examples that cover a wide variety of topics, Tan is able to demonstrate the large effect that her mother’s style of english had and how it was woven into her whole life and not just a part of it. Particularly in the hospital example, Tan also brings in the stereotyping of people who speak “broken” english as not being very smart. In bringing this issue that is at the very root of our society, she darkens the tone to melancholy.

    Read More

  • Aristotelian Rhetoric Techniques Used In Queen Elizabeth's Speech

    612 Words  | 3 Pages

    Utilizing elegant diction, The Queen mainly employs appeals of Pathos and Ethos. Addressing her audience

    Read More

  • Pamela Meyer How To Spot A Liar Summary

    761 Words  | 4 Pages

    14. Pamela Meyer: “How to spot a liar” Pamela Meyer is an American author, certified fraud examiner, and entrepreneur. Described by Reader's Digest as "the nation's best known expert on lying," Meyer is the author of the 2010 book Liespotting: Proven Techniques to Detect Deception.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Standardization Of English Language

    1762 Words  | 8 Pages

    Finally, for mainly historical reasons, certain English dialects or varieties have been viewed more positively than others. Thus, Standard English, because of its association with being the national English language, has been perceived as the most prestigious of English varieties. However, the fact that some dialects and accents are seen to be more prestigious than others is more a reflection of judgements based on social, rather than linguistic, criteria. As society changes, so too do attitudes towards dialect, accent and variational use of English generally.

    Read More

More about Received Pronunciation Essay

Open Document