Why Asians learners of English THINK they have to totally lose their accent and talk like white Americans?

Question

always see this. They try to hard, many of them even sound like a white person say from new york or something.. and they always add "you knows", and "uh's" . Good for them, however they want to lose their accent totally like they are really ashamed , or as if if you have an accent is a sin.. or as if having and accent you will not REALLY fit in with REAL AMERICANS which is kind of true if they want to fit in with Assimilated White or Black people( i don't even feel like i fit in with those americans)..Then, they see me. and hear me, cause i have a spanish accent and they think i'm not even American. i answer SO WHAT if i have an accent? it doesn't matter! etc.. i try to teach them something about real americans. but they are like trying to be robots or something.. Be yourselves! come on.
Are the ESL teachers going abroad spreading this bunch of BS that you have to turn into someone else?

Answer 1

Some Asian cultures are in the pursuit of perfection.
They just want to talk like everyone else.

Answer 2

First off, please don't generalize, it's very rude to assume that all Asian learners of English are the same. Being related to the people that you are asking about (I also learned English as a third language, but it's different because I'm born in the U.S.) the reason they try to sound "American" is because other people degrade them if they don't, or if they sound different. You can't honestly say that caucasians haven't mocked chinese people by putting on a fake accent. They think they have to sound a certain way in order to be looked at as an equal and to not be degraded. You can't blame them for wanting respect, or at least trying to familiarize themselves with the English language and pronunciations. That's true, so what if you have an accent, but isn't a spanish accent easier to understand than an asian one?

Answer 3

Why does that matter? If they want to talk like White Americans, then they can. I don't think they're ashamed or think their accent is a sin, I think they just want to fit in. Theres no crime in that. I'm a asian, and I'm fluent in English and I have a white accent. I was born in the US and lived my whole life here. No one hates me for that.. There's NOTHING wrong if YOU have an accent, just don't be criticizing others that do, or try to have an accent. It's personal preference, and they are being themselves. Wanting to learn and adapt to the community is normal. Now.. ESL, that's fine, but surgery on tongue to have American accents.. now THAT's pretty crazy.

Answer 4

I am an American, and an ESL teacher in China, and I've found that not all learners of English want an American accent. Some have said to me that they prefer a British accent, and think American English sounds like dogs growling. (I tend to agree, with all the rrrrrrrr's) I of course speak in my natural accent (flat Mid-Western) when I teach class, but when my students use a different English accent to say words (for example, the other day we had the "tomato, tomahto" discussion), I tell them it's their choice, and either way is correct.
Also, as to your accusation of "trying too hard" and "being like robots", I see it in a different way. When it comes to study and education, Chinese are perfectionists. They make fun of each other if their Chinese isn't like the standard national pronunciation! Everything is done to the nth degree over here, and most of my students are over-achievers. So don't be so quick to judge. They look up to us as a developed nation, and to learn how to speak English fluently is a goal of almost all students here. Mimicry is the best form of flattery!
Jen

Answer 5

Actually, I think this happens for a lot of people who really want to learn a language well. I used to be obsessed with improving my Spanish accent. So much so, actually, that I would listen to Bebe songs and try to imitate her accent (she's from Valencia, I think), and I would try to talk with that same accent in everyday conversation. Eventually, though, I realized that a Texan speaking with a thick southern Spain accent probably sounds a little silly.

Part of, I think, is that some people are just so interested in the culture that they want to be as much a part of that culture as they can be. That's part of what fueled my obsession with sounding like a valenciana. But I don't think it's because of how they're taught, at least not if they're taught by ESL teachers in the US. All of the ESL teachers that I know personally (which is a small sample, but a few nonetheless) would agree with you that a person's accent is something that makes them interesting and unique, and they never try to make their students learn any particular type of accent.

I agree with you, as well, your accent in whichever language you speak (foreign to you or native) is part of who you are and you shouldn't worry about it as long as you can make yourself understood.

On the other hand, I have a Romanian friend who is currently actively trying to lose her accent in English, but she's doing it as sort of an experiment. She wants to see first hand if people will treat her differently if they don't know right away that she's from Romania. So, it's in the name of science, you might say.

Answer 6

I'm Asian, but I dont have the white American accent.

But I do know that my own accent is not getting me anywhere when I speak to other English speakers from different regions.

Basically, I try to listen more and use really simple English until I'm confident that they have adjusted to my type of English.

After all, language is supposed to help us know each other better. If the ideas need to be expressed effectively, then a change of accent is no big deal.

Answer 7

I see what you're trying to say, but it's like that in all languages and countries, not just the US. I work in Mexico, and I'm fluent in Spanish, but I really had to work on my accent before I could interact with people there for my job. They just didn't take me seriously and/or they couldn't understand me if I talked with too much of a "gringo" accent. Being yourself is great, but if your accent gets in the way of how people perceive you or whether they can understand you, it's not really worth it. It's like that between different regions of the US even, people with a New York accent or a Southern accent are seen as being dumb in certain parts of the country

Answer 8

Like you, I have noticed that many of my ESL students put it as a goal that they want to sound exactly like native speakers of English.

No, EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teachers abroad are not spreading this idea. In fact, many EFL teachers are not that proficient of speakers of English themselves. Many of my ESL students say that they were really surprised to find out how English sounds when they got to the U.S., because it didn't sound like the English they heard from their teachers! As one of my students once put it, "I spoke Chinese English..."

Perhaps learners of English want to have native-like accents because they perceive, as you have, that they are not completely accepted in American society, and they think that their language proficiency is to blame. I am sorry to say that I don't think the language is the issue; I just think that some Americans are racist and just don't want to understand. So I agree with you that if they did gain a completely native-like accent, they still might not be accepted. (For most people, it's basically impossible to get a native-like accent anyway.)

I recognize that, as an ESL teacher, and especially a teacher of pronunciation, I contribute to the problem somewhat. It bothers me that I teach ESL pronunciation, but I never teach a class that teaches native speakers how to understand accents better. However, I make it a goal for my students, and the way I teach the class, to help the students be more understandable, not to sound just like Americans.

I also recognize the hipocrisy in the fact that, as a second-language speaker of Spanish, I pride myself on having a very native-like accent and I enjoy the compliments that I get on it from Spanish speakers.

Answer 9

it's natural for people to lose their accents. i dont see anything wrong with learning the language and being able to communicate better. the unnatural thing would be for a person to talk in an accent on purposely...

Answer 10

When we hear someone speak with an accent , we think they are uneducated. We respect someone who tries to speak English in a manner that can be understood anywhere in America.