Can't Americans Understand Plain English?

Englishman

I watched an interesting film last night. "A handful of dust" with Kristen Scott-Thomas and Alec Guinness.

It wasn't bad, so this morning I idly took a peek at the write ups on the net, it being a movie made in the 80's. To my astonishment, some American viwers were complaining that the movie didn't have any sub-titles!!! Worse still they complained about OUR accents!!!

I mean, the movie is in English..made by the nation that sort of collated the English language, I mean it's OUR language and you Americans swiped it, so really you ought to try harder to understand the original language doncha think?..and some people can't understand English English so that they need sub-titles?

Jesus wept! What is the world coming too!

Englishman.

unbeliever

Gotta link? I would like to read some of those reviews.

Pleasuredome

i think a lot of americans cant comprehend how people who live outside the US that speak english dont speak with their accent. it's too difficult for them to recognise a word just because it might be pronounced slightly differently. i love it when websites or software asks for you to choose a language, and they offer English or British English. wtf??

tijkmo

i hate it when i go on holiday anywhere in the world and the locals havent bothered to learn english

its just plain rude

greendawn

Pleasuredome, microsoft windows, or word have English UK and English United States. But the two versions are not different enough to be hard to understand, do any Brits have problems understanding Hollywood films?

Some words differ like: period=full stop, sodas=soft drinks, diapers=nappies
but not much of a difference.

luna2

There's only one Brit show (of the ones they show on public tv here in CT) that I had a real hard time following. Wish I could remember which one it was now. It was almost like listening to a foreign language. LOL

trevor

Living in Southern England, I understand English spoken properly and have no difficulty with the American accent. What I struggle to comprehend is the version of English spoken by Northerners in England. Not the Scots, Welsh or Irish.

I was put through to a call centre up north or ‘oop Narth’ the other day. I had such difficulty understanding the grunts coming down the line that I asked to be switched back to their call centre in India where they speak English properly. I know from conversation with people in other countries, that they have the same problem with the Northern accent when trying to take food orders from Northerners on Holiday.

I expect this will offend those from the cold, rainy disadvantaged North of England, who will label me a rude, brainless, insensitive, snobbish, smug, Southern B*****d.

That sound like a fair assessment to me but I think ‘insensitive’ is a bit harsh.

Sirona

I had such difficulty understanding the grunts coming down the line that I asked to be switched back to their call centre in India where they speak English properly.

Grunts? I'll tell you what, I speak with a Northern accent but I speak English WELL thank you. I use the same words as you but I don't put the queens english up-your-arse twang onto it.

I used to be so SICK of speaking to pompous southerners on the telephone, who wouldn't give me the time of day because I was from the North.

DONT put us all into one basket. There are some Northerners, just as there are scots and other groups, who have such strong accents as to be difficult to understand, but to suggest that we as a group don't speak English properly and you'd rather speak to Indians is SO insulting to me.

You really think they speak better English in India? For Gawds sake, I can't understand most of the indian call centres who ring me trying to sell telecoms or whatever.

So we "grunt" up North eh? Maybe I can grunt F**k Off to you one day.

Sirona

trevor

So we "grunt" up North eh? ; ;

Pardon?

Sirona

Some formatting problem LOL

I'm still angry at you though.

Sirona

Can't Americans Understand Plain English?

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