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| You say tomato we say tomato What do you see? Two words identical in their visual form and yet depending on where you live spoken with different emphasis. Interestingly, not everyone from the land of opportunity sides with the pronunciation which to the average Brit conjures up thoughts of pizza sellers in the Bronx. The opposite cannot be said though; never in my life have I met an British citizen naming that fruit (or is it a vegetable?) as tomayto. My American buddy agrees with me that it should be spoken in the same way as 'mark' or 'far' and certainly not 'pay' or 'say'. So when I say to-mar-toe and you say to-may-toe who really is saying it correctly? Maybe this is just an example of utter amlish: a colliding of accents and simply a matter of preference. However, it opens up another war of words and battle of wills. The above list of words only serves to show how a word written and read the same by both countries have strange ways of being articulated. Recent conflicts in the verbal world have given birth to this blog. Is it slightly narrow minded? Well, yes, after all it only takes in two countries of the world. Probably the two most loathed countries of all and both guilty in their own way of arrogance. Yet maybe the scribbling thoughts of a few might path the way for a better understanding. So bring it all to the table, thrash it out and knead away. Argue your case, hold your ground and show your opposing country that if they say tomato we say tomato. Remember don't take it all too seriously! |
Thursday 19 January 2012
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In our virtual worlds, perhaps all we have is our written words to allow others a glimpse into our soul. On the flip side of the coin, the only way to understand what is going on inside another person's mind is to listen to their words. Without inflection, intonation and facial quirks, words can easily be misconstrued. One thing is for certain, everyone has something to say and a determination to prove that what they proclaim is the truth. With much bantering back and forth, my Brit friend and I have learned to laugh at the differences in our interpretation of certain words , while each proclaiming to hold the proper definition. Take the song "Skip to My Lou" for example. While I envision square dance partners stealing a dance with another (Lou coming from the Scottish word Loo meaning love then Anglicized to Lou) I am sure if mentioned to My Brit friend..he would see a poor soul hurriedly rushing off to the toilet skipping as fast as he could. The Brits do have some peculiar words like cheeky, waffle and clear off and a new one I just learned of.. crack on. Can we hear from our American friends as to what they think these words mean? No cheating and consulting the Guru Mr Google. Let's see how colorful ( or is it colourful) and creative we can become. I do hope we can depart from just semantics to other topics of interest and let this blog take on a mind of it's own and soul search new friends out there in the Viral World!
ReplyDeleteAaah, the difference between the Queen's English and American English. Pronunciation, enunciation and meanings. The Queen's seems stiff and formal to the American ear. Perhaps, it is due to the class system in England. America's English is more democratic, being influenced by wave after wave of immigrants starting in the 1700's and continuing to the present day. My interests would be in the turns of phrase that have come about over the years. "He's as crooked as a dog's hind leg." Is one that comes to mind. I once heard an Englishman refer to a fool by saying that the person in question was a "member of the Tom Noddy Society." Once worked with a guy who expressed his frustration with various situations by saying: "It's enough to make a freight train take a dirt road."
ReplyDeleteYet there are other words between the two countries that diverge wildly. In Britain, a spanner is a wrench. In the U.S. it's just a wrench. Then there's the question of the metric system and how that influences differences between the two. Trying to guess the temperature without a handy reference chart is damn near impossible. Or the English system of weight. How many pounds are there in a stone???
The whole idea behind words is to communicate ideas, thoughts, emotions, etc. Sometimes words seem inadequate depending on the comprehension level of the person you are talking to. If we do not have a universal definition of words, how can we effectively communicate? In the age of computers, cell phones and texting, a whole new form of communicating has taken form...the ubiquitous acronyms...LOL...WTF...PMSL..almost cutting off a segment of the populations that is not text literate. But the same held true in the "60's when the flower children came along with a whole new lexicon and jargon. Maybe that's what keeps words interesting...they evolve..they change. New ones come along and some are dropped by the wayside. When's the last time you heard anyone say: "She's the bees knees." Or "Far Out Man!" ??? But I digress.....
Thank you for your comment. Not sure if I want to be referred to as the "Bee's Knees.. conjures up some awful hairy image. Our colloquial does change over time, as we continue to find ways of expression according to the latest trends of society. Seems our new texting vocabulary has a universal trend along the lines of the Euro dollar currency. This may have a positive influence in the future. I suppose we may have to wait this one out. Irregardless of the British quirky ways of expression, you must admit they have a remarkable accent..In my eyes view, much better than most New Yorkers. Something in the accent makes them sound superior, although we know this is not always the case. I have wanted to move there just long enough to adopt the accent, tho I am sure I'd leave there sounding more like the fake Madonna version . Or even worse... wind up like Johnny Depp with that ex-patriot accent not knowing where in the world I have migrated from.
ReplyDeleteI would say that the acronyms will be here and will only become more complex as time goes on. I'm in the computer industry and it is the only way we really communicate. When we talk about accents, it's funny because you go Australia and people there love the American accent. They love to figure out where you're from and from my point of view, I loved their accent. It's part of what made the people so interesting to me. I don't put a lot of "thought" into words so I think this blog will be eye opening to me as I get to learn what other people think about what they write and how all of us communicate.
ReplyDeleteThank you PuppetMaster for joining our site. I too find that people are in awe of an accent that is different to the ones they are use to. It seems to create a bit of mystique. I am just the opposite of you. All my thoughts enter into my words, whether auditory or written they deliver insight to my soul. Feel free to discuss topics that interest you, as a blog has a direction of it's own. We welcome your viewpoint.
ReplyDeleteI usually don't get into political discussions but with voting so close, and the Republican party offering the weak choices it has, I feel I must say something. First of all we have Mitt...who to me looks like a robotic image of what a President should look like. He seems to be the Republican answer to a John Kennedy image. Judging from the amount of mailings and phone calls I receive ,he has probably spent more money on advertising then funds necessary to cover the cost of financing social security for the next 25 years. Granted he would make a better looking Chia pet then Newt or Obama. Oh I could go on but like I said , I don't discuss politics.
ReplyDeletePolitical discussions..hmmm, they can be fun especially if you're having one with a person that just won't listen to any other point of view than their own. I don't say that because I enjoy listening to the rhetoric it's more because I enjoy getting them so frustrated that they walk away and call you every name in the book. If you get them to that point, you've succeeded in making them realize how wrong they really are and their only defense is to throw sticks and stones. You did bring up an interesting topic though, the Chia Pet. I went out to chia.com and saw all the choices of chias and found out that the same company also owns The Clapper but I digress...so back to who would be the best looking Chia. I can see Mitt with the cheesy grin and the dead eyes just looking back at you every morning when you water him. Newt would look more like a Shar Pei as a Chia. He has the wrinkled face and those sad puppy dog eyes that scream please just vote for me. Obama looks well perfect as a Chia. They have the grass growing perfectly out of his head. So as much as I hate to say it, I think Obama probably is the best looking Chia.
ReplyDeleteOk...I'm not a big politcal talker, I'm really not but lets talk about how the media covers it. You have NBC which of course really means DNC (Democratic National Committee) for those across the pond that may not have such a love or hate of our political system as we do here in the states. They do their best to show every Democrat as a champion of the poor and they never would hurt the American people. It's a very left side of the aisle TV channel when it comes to politics. They enjoy bringing Republicans on and doing their best to pick a fight. Now to be fair because they're not the only game in town, Fox News or Faux News depending on who you talk to would be the RNC channel (Republican National Committee). They couldn't be much farther to the right, between all of their news shows, talk show hosts and other "celebrities". I can't speak a lot for ABC because I just simply don't watch their news programs. CBS is the player that likes to play in the middle of the field. They don't want to ask the really tough questions or ruffle any feathers so in my opinion, they're always the last place to go for political information. It's definitely an interesting media world that we live in when it comes to politics or anything else for that matter.
ReplyDeleteIn the words of Shakespeare (while oh so relevant today)...our news broadcasts represent "Much Ado About Nothing"! In many ways so similar to our various party representatives. I agree CBS plays it very safe equivalent to Canada or Sweden..neutral to maintain their amiability. And let us not forget the mindset that "the Dems r always for the poor, the Repubs are strictly for the rich" while each party claims to "be there for the middle class". In case they haven't noticed ..WE HAVE NO MIDDLE CLASS . It dissolved and drowned in the great waves of immigration along with our outsourcing and foreign manufacturing. I am sure we are not alone in the US having these issues and we are still the home of the Brave ..Land of the Free.. all we need is honest political contenders. We need to put an end to the special interest groups that run our country..wave goodbye to the lobbyists and reclaim the US from its foster parents China and Japan. To see a label "manufactured in the US" is akin to waving the flag...but I don't talk politics ..just being "cheeky".
ReplyDeleteWhat disturbs me is that Newt can have numerous women chasing after him without having to get a face-lift but if he were a woman not one man under 80 would look at her let alone cast a vote..I'm rambling here nothing to do with politics ..just saying..it's still a man's world.and his "family-non values seem pushed under the rug..while Paylen's skeletons remained at the forefront of discussion. I wonder who's attire cost more Mitt's or Sarah's? bc they sure commented on the cost of her suits during her campaign
ReplyDeleteWell cross..you are definitely correct in saying that it's still a man's world. Men are championed for being natural, rugged, and whatever other words you want to substitute while women are vilified for doing all the same things that men do. I do agree that Palin had every single detail of her life scrutinized and we can discuss whether that was right or wrong but it does go back to the perception of women in society today. I bet if we compared wardrobes, Mitt's would cost more for sure the guy is a millionaire many times over. Today's world is definitely a fend for yourself place and if you're mean or nasty, you will get ahead and screw the other people on your way up. I will say though, you could NOT pay me enough money to be in politics. If I was the most perfect person in the world, people would still want to destroy you for being nice. The stress of all it far outweighs the serving your country aspect of being in politics. Oops...did I just say "serving your county", ummm yeah that's another discussion because we all know they didn't get into the game to serve anyone but themselves.
ReplyDeleteSo true Puppet but isn't that the way most people are? Self serving ..gratifying only themselves, their needs, their wants..Not saying EVERYONE but I find it has become the ME generation. Even breaking up with someone you have loved is just a click away..no face time needed. People can hide behind their comps..form relationships, leave relationships ..no explanation needed. Judging from all the time people spend on their comps, are real relationships becoming a thing of the past? Are they still necessary ? Let's face it a divorce on the comp is much easier than in reality and no bills to worry about either. Just saying , don't blame the politicians when the general population is just as guilty of "self service".
ReplyDeleteWell southern cross what you have said tells alot about this day and age and where this country has gone down hill.I can remember praying in school saying the pledge a allegiance and it actually meant something.This day and age you are right its all about the me and not the who or what.The now generation has become more afraid to mention the word God and take it out of everything and instead of the 1 nation under god its a nation that oh the word God can be taken out of everything that way all the immigrants coming to this free country can get what ever they want to feel better about themselves. The land of the free is only free if you come here from another country and not born here. Would be nice to have a goverment that would work for the people of this country and not for everyone else forgien to this land. Right now its who has the deepest pockets that can buy the goverment right now and that dictates what they believe in and who they work for.
ReplyDeleteThank you Wolffman for contributing to the blog. While they can remove God from the written word, he is still deep within the hearts of those that hold him dear and that tie can never be severed. Your points are valid ones but as yet I have not found Utopia.
ReplyDeleteyou and me both so until then just keep watching the downfall of this nation and us as a people that i guess alot can cahange there point a view with the right amount of money. The saying is true for most people "Everything is for Sale" dam shame ....
ReplyDeleteI came across this quote -attributed on the web to William James(1896) and found on Evan William's home page in 1988 -then mentioned in Scott Rosenberg's book "Say Everything"
ReplyDeleteWhen a thing is new,people say,"It is not
true." Later,when its truth becomes obvious,
they say,"It is not important." Finally,when
its importance cannot be denied, they say,
"Anyway, it is not new."
Just thought I'd share this in case some of you are afraid to voice your opinion here. A blog is the one place you can share thoughts that muddle your brain without having to raise your hand and ask for permission to do so.
Well said well said....
ReplyDeleteUtopia, that's an interesting word. It means so many different things to people. To some but not all the people that come to the US from other places and receive free government services, this is their Utopia. They know that the they will be taken care of for the rest of their life and things couldn't be better.
ReplyDeleteUtopia to me isn't an easy thing to achieve. I've worked hard and done many things but yet the satisfaction or fulfillment with my life is missing. I think I'd find Utopia if I could be happy, secure, and confident but I'm not sure since I haven't achieved all of those at once.
Wow, how we got from tomatoes to american politics is amazing. Some of what I have read is new to me but it did resurrect one question in my head: why are the two parties called republican and democratic?
ReplyDeleteI should have looked this up before but have never got around to it but now I have a few american minds at hand I can ask them. Isn't the whole system democratic i.e. the people vote. So why is one called Democratic?
If this is blatant ignorance forgive me.
Real life or on the internet, men are looking for sex and women are looking for love.If your heart is beating out of control, don't mistake it for love, it's just insecurity.It's our natural instinct of fight or flight.Once you realize this , your better off. Have fun, there is no prince charming, we are all broken.Look for a friend , then it may turn to love.Lust is addicting but it sure is fun.
ReplyDelete