He’s really thinking about their language exports in particular. Small pieces of Americana drip-feeding into our psyche. Example: Have you tried renting a film recently? You might have more success renting a movie. Would you like me to post it to you? Yeah, “mail” it to me. Not sure? Do the math. That sort of thing.Now, he’s not suggesting that our blacktops will be lined with sidewalks or that we’ll be buying diapers and candy with our hard earned greenbacks just yet… but it may happen eventually. Does the gradual colonisation of the English language from across the pond matter though? Language has continued to evolve since, well, since forever. We don’t talk or write like our Victorian ancestors any more than they spoke or wrote like their Tudor predecessors.
So if this has always been happening, why the fuss? I “guess” it’s because the pace of change has increased significantly in more recent years due in part to the proliferation of American television programs; oops, that should be programmes. Also the vast number of websites written in (at best) international English but more likely spell-checked by the U.S. dictionary version of MS Word must be guilty of cultural imperialism.
How does that makes you feel when you’re on the receiving end of Americanized marketing material? I know how it makes my father-in-law feel because he told me. Several times. And in great depth too. It might be fair to say that a younger audience wouldn’t give “a rat's ass” and may even embrace cool, Americanised txt msg style yoof speak whilst the older consumer would much prefer the written word to be spelt in precisely crafted and fully Anglicised English.
The point is that clear audience segmentation prior to any form of communication is the key to successful marketing. A business might have a very wide audience encompassing twelve year olds boys through to octogenarian nuns, but to manage one marketing campaign to successfully engage with them all would be ridiculous to the point of possibly being offensive.
God bless America.
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Whilst not of the old school like your father-in-law I am most certainly in agreement with him in respect of the Americanisation of the English language. It has been a relatively slow process over many years fuelled mainly by our love affair with American films and television programmes.
ReplyDeleteIndoctrination starts at a very early age - have you watched (or more importantly listened) to children's cartoons on television?
American phrases are increasingly being used as part of everyday language. The word 'guys' is now common when referring to both sexes. An even more irritating example which is catching on fast is 'can I get......' when the user means 'can I have......'. If there is a redeeming feature in the use of Americanisms it is that normally they are spoken with British accents.
What then for the worst crime of all? The pronunciation of the word schedule as skedjool as constantly promulgated by no less than the BBC and all other UK broadcasters.
What hope is there for our beautiful language?
I think this issue isn't so much the "exportation" of the American English language as a product but as a byproduct of the goods and services imported by the UK.
ReplyDeleteEveryone wants to be popular, and it is fashionable to be "a little different" - and hence, you have the example of the BBC, as they fight Sky for younger eyeballs.
Why are Americans so enamoured by a British accent? Because it's different, and somehow sounds more sophisticated. But in America, a society where we once considered making Spanish, Eubonics, Hmong, etc. as regional "co-official" languages with "English", merely emphasizes the popularity-craving politicians and lawyers are to blame.
What will you call your bottle of sparkling water today? Seltzer? Tonic? Soda? Pop? Fizz?
Could be "worse". We could be speaking French.
Parisian French or Quebecor French?? ;-)
@Mike Portman: Wonderful use of the word "promulgated" - we just don't see words like that enough any more!
ReplyDelete