Well since I'm feeling utterly wretched at the moment, i thought I'd just engage in some public bitching.
Why is that people feel compelled to speak some kind of condescending and retarded form of English around immigrants who don't have the greatest command of the language? I mean, I certainly modify how I speak somewhat in that I try to slow down a bit as I am slightly manic in my speech at times. I may also try to simplify my language a bit, in the same way as I would if I was speaking with a younger person.
What I don't do though is either speak in extremely loud tones (because the person is non-English speaking, not hearing impaired) or speak in a stilted and grammatically incorrect manner. I overheard a co-worker yelling at a tradesman, saying something along the lines of "You come his house. You come for fix his fence. I give you address, okay?"
I find the whole thing utterly distasteful and insulting. Newly landed immigrants may not speak English properly upon first arriving to Canada, but they certainly aren't stupid. Also, maybe the reason they might take longer to learn to speak correctly is that idiots deliberately slaughter the language on the premise that they are helping out.
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10 comments:
It's because people just DON'T THINK!!!!!!!
As for the bad grammar, this will just teach the immigrant to speak badly, won't it?
I agree with both of you. Mine peeve extends to children as well. Baby talk might be (for some) ok until they start speaking, after that, speak properly.
I'm assuming your co-worker doesn't speak like that all the time then? ....
To my mind, under no circumstances is it permissible to mangle the language. How are people supposed to learn to speak grammatically otherwise? English may be wonderfully flexible and forgiving, as languages go, but "dumbing down" (I loathe that particular term, BTW) in this way is .. well ... just dumb. For everyone concerned.
Admittedly, I do simplify my language when I speak to someone who's clearly having difficulty following what I'm saying. (I should point out that this is not only those for whom English is a second language, since I have a bad habit of sounding like something out of an 18th century novel at times and am equally capable of confusing the hell out of a native English-speaker. [she says sounding oh-so-slightly smug.])
Me go now. Time for food. drink. work.
Dickey: My point exactly. It scares me that we share a planet with so many people who just don't employ good sense though ...
Greg: I can't abide baby talk! I NEVER spoke to my kids in that way even when they were babies. Which would explain why one of my kids was saying "metamorphosis" by the time he turned three!
Ink: You said it far better than did I. Or as my co-worker (who does not speak this way all the time) would say to an immigrant "You smart. Speak good".
Sister: I don't understand that whole phenomenon of shouting to get your point across. It really is weird.
About the volume thing... I agree that it sounds silly and people take it to extremes, but it helps me to understand. I listen to the tv much louder if it's in French or Spanish. I know that sounds weird, but part of it's that I can't intuitively figure out the words I only partially hear. No, I don't need someone screaming at me, but if the person speaks quite a bit louder and slower than normal, I'm incredibly grateful. I don't need the language spoken to me in baby talk though.
Snooze has a good point - although I'd say proper enunciation is more critical than volume for me. That having been said, I put the subtitles on French-language tv whenever I'm working on my comprehension.
P.S. Who could resist saying "metamorphosis?" It's just such a fun "rolling-around-in-your-mouth" kind of word!
Snooze: So maybe that's the logic behind people automatically raising their voices when they are speaking to someone not so well-versed in their own language? I guess I can see your point then.
Ink: I'm not so sure subtitles will help with comprehension. I find they are so often off the mark.
Girl, you KNOW we could bitch about this one for hours on end, from personal experiences to just plain observations. I'll save the stories for our luncheon!
Snooze, try turning the Closed Captioning on. I do that when watching French channels, especially that Tout le monde en parle show, where they sing and do weird interview stuff.
Epi: I would be eternally grateful is subtitles appeared when I was speaking to one of my Quebec clients.
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