Language and Identity

From September 1st to September 4th this year, I was in Hong Kong attending a course on the Intonation of English Grammar.

It was technical, we were looking at sound waves EVERY SINGLE DAY. It was the physics of prosody. Dry as it was, it was useful to know. At least I now have a tool I can use to objectively track the intonation patterns for Singapore's Standard English. Which I could use as the ultimate goal for therapy with the kids who have prosodic issues.

As things got too technical, my mind went tangential. I started thinking and linking up how the musicality of the language is so much tied into with your identity. For instance, I'm fully aware that I don't speak with the same intonation patterns as my parents, when I speak Singapore Standard English. As my course mate, an academic from Thailand pointed out, she thought I was some English chick when she first met me. She expected me to use Singapore Colloquial English (Singlish) intonation patterns, when I introduced myself as a girl from Singapore.

I explained to her that I can do that, but I choose not to when I'm overseas as it's inefficient. So I code switch. I think in a mixture of Singlish or Cantonese. That's for sure. In Maslow's hierarchy of needs, I have self dialogues in Cantonese all the time when it comes to the physiological level, the most basic level.

So she asked me how did I "pick" up the British accent. It took me a while to figure it out, but I watched a LOT of TV during my formative years. I remember shunning the American accent on Sesame Street (cos I thought they didn't sound very clever), and modeling after the people who read the news on channel 5. And my Thai friend agreed, that I did sound like some of the people who read the news on Channel News Asia. Come to think of it, back in the 80s and 90s on Channel 5's news, there was this ONE British guy, Duncan something. And then there was Lynette Tye and Norman something.

Any thoughts, Singaporean friends of mine? Does anyone else think they speak with a British accent cos they watched too much Channel 5 news while they were growing up? Although, NOW I think I have the occasional Aussie twang from my years of phonetic transcription! For example, sometimes I say "wot" instead of "what"! So farnee...