Re: British English or American accent?
Wong wrote:
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I am a student in China. Because of the Hollywood movies, American songs and much more frequent contact with US than that of UK, American accent seems more popular.
It is, but at certain levels of strata within the society. There's no absolute here. Some people prefer one over the other. In Asia, preference is related to business, which is tied to education. That is, it's a matter of who you deem as the best language educator and who you deem you can make more money from once you're educated.
Wong wrote:
However, the college teachers suggest that British accent is more acceptable in the world, especially in the world outside US. Is it true?
Well, history is the answer there: the British have set up store in a few more countries than the Americans have, so I guess one could assume or suggest BE is more acceptable outside the US because the Brits have had a few more years 'educating the natives' than have the Yanks. However that may be, that was the past and this is the present. We are now living in the age of Media (tell your college teachers), and the US, I believe, leads the international market. Who needs English classes when a video will do? Tell your college teachers.
Wong wrote:
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I want to know how would UKers react to American accent speaking callers and vice versa. Do Americans like British accent on the phone when it is a sales call, for example?
Your question borders on the absurd. Money's money. If you want someone's business you find a way to communicate irrespective of accent. As a corporate trainer, I have had opportunity to sit in on many sales meetings via phone conferences, and let me tell you, no one person can be said to speak BE or AE. Chinese-English, Japanese-English, Tiawanese-English, and so on, are the norm. No one sales person focuses on accent; they focus on the business at hand. I believe it's called professionalism.
Wong wrote:
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I want opinions from only native English speakers, mainly UK and US citizens. Please state your nationality and your feelings about the accents.
Oh :oops: I'm Canadian, eh? :D
Re: British English or American accent?
Re: British English or American accent?
I agree with most of the Americans that have replied saying that they enjoy the sound a British accent (or at least what we think is British) but find our own accents easier to understand. We always enjoy the more exotic. I personally prefer the "small town america" accent that a lot of people associate with cowboys.
I also fully agree with the statement that as long as you use proper grammar and are clear, I could care less. I called a company to order something I *needed* and was so disgusted with the operator's improper grammar, rude manner, and totally incoherent english (yes, he was from the US, I went to school with kids that spoke the way he did) that I was inches away from canceling my order.
I have heard that when you're traveling, and you have an American accent, it's better to say that you're from Canada. I'm not sure how true this is because I've never done much traveling. But Canada's neutrality might be admired by some and disliked by others.
Re: British English or American accent?
This American doesn't really have a preference. Every once in a while I see a British reporter on my telly, and I have no trouble understanding him.
One more thing:
Welcome to our friendly forum!
:hi:
English idioms
http://www.usingenglish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1697
Brief Verse (Couplets)
http://www.usingenglish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1579
:D