I am Japanese and I have never lived overseas but I speak with London accent and Posh English sometimes. Some American people gets triggered and tell me to stop FAKING the accent. English is my second language and I wanted to learn British English and I thought the decision was on me but some people just throw hates. I don't understand ☹️
As an American, I don't know why they thought that was a big deal. Especially if you learn your second language at an early age you develop an accent in that language that matches the type of English you studied. They should know that.
Because people are people. Possibly they don't even speak a second language. But I think there is also so sort bitterness because you learned the British accent and not the their accent. if you was speaking with an American accent I think the reaction would be different.
Hi Jade, as someone not from the UK, but wanting to learn a clear English accent that would work anywhere in the world, I just want to say that I am very grateful to you for teaching us the RP accent. For us, it's not about talking in a "high-class/posh" way but it's about wanting to speak fluent English and be understood. The RP accent does that very well for us because it naturally enunciates each and every syllable of a word.
you must remember, that RP (as opposed to general opinion) is not posh at all. It's a regionally neutral accent, often categorised as "standard english" spoken by social groups, who had access to education. The main purpose of communication is to be understood. And RP most certainly guarantees that.
I absolutely agree with you!! I personally think this is not about posh at all, but about being understood by anyone, seeing that there are SO MANY English accents
As a native Londoner, my flavour of London accent has evolved quite a few times over the years too so this video really strikes a chord with me. I grew up in the 80s with a north west London accent, which evolved into what you've called 'Multicultural London English' when I was a teenager. That's how the majority of us spoke at secondary school. I landed my first professional job at about 19 years of age, surrounded by a fair few middle-class RP accents. I'll never forget when one of them told me to stop speaking like a "wideboy"! I had no idea what that even meant back then and they clearly hadn't actually met or been around anyone like me (back in the late 90s long before people with an MLE accent were reaching the heights of popular culture). By the mid-2010s, I'd pretty much rounded off any trace of MLE (except for my substitution of "f" for "th", which seemed next to impossible to change!) and found it did indeed have an impact on how I was perceived within the workplace. Immense levels of cultural and class bias have prevailed for years in the professional workplace and only recently - in the advent of 2020's BLM - has Diversity & Inclusion become such a hot topic... just as I'd finally found a way to consistently use "th" instead of "f"! In the last year, I've found myself relaxing my accent a little so as not to completely lose that part of my identity. But despite the D&I initiatives, I doubt I'll let it slip too much. Cultural/class bias certainly won't disappear overnight.
Spanish-speaking Londoner since 2013 here - I find Jade's words here quite accurate. My English girlfriend back then told me that I spoke English so I'd have almost no problem finding a job, but that it would depend on my accent whether I'd get promoted higher in a company. I thought that was a joke back in the day but she was completely right
Now that I know you read me 😃 just wanted to say people might not be too aware of the importance of your videos. Fortunately for them you do that job because you love words (so do I, in English and Spanish) ❤️
I once was in Toronto, Canada, and someone heard me talking. They said, "Are you from north-central Ohio?" That was so randomly specific!! 🤔 But, they were right! 😄
@@jimjungle1397 I was raised in western New York state and can spot that region's accent in a heartbeat. I wonder if it is the same as the two you mention since you have to travel through NY to get between the others?
Aww this breaks my heart! Jade seems like such a nice genuine lady...it's sad that she felt she had to change something about herself to fit in. But i guess i don't understand the Class System in UK...
You still have a little of the southern accent and I find it just lovely. The southern England's accent is the accent I prefer. I hope there are still videos where your southern accent is still pristine. Take care Vanni
I would also love to see those videos again. I was a regular viewer on this channel when it was still called "Introverts by Jade". The channel used to have playlists focusing on voice training and conversation skills, but the links I bookmarked don't work any more.
One of my mates from Brentwood had a strong Essex accent and he was alright with it until he started working as a financial adviser in the City. He was told that in order to get a promotion he needed to adjust his accent. Otherwise, he’ll spent the rest of his professional life in his position. Not quite sure if that was a main reason (probably not), but he gave up City job. Went traveling for s year as most brits do. Upon his return, he became a carpenter, then site manager, then project manager. And starter his own business as some sort of construction advising services. His accent never changed and never stopped him achieving his goals.
@@JadeJoddle not really tbh. Even if he was promoted he wouldn’t last long in there. He wasn’t big fan of the constant chase and ethical side of the job that comes with the package. He couldn’t bear to think that people’s fortune and life savings were at his mercy. There wasn’t 💯 percent win win deal. Some of the clients were losing there money on deals based on his previous advices. Some people were suited for the job. Make sure you’ve got a thick skin. I’d like to think he quit the job for the best.
I love your analytical and reflective take on the impact of accents. Born and raised in Germany by a Northern Irish-Canadian mother and a Danube-Swabian father, I have always been fascinated by language and accents. As a child and young person I felt uncomfortable feeling I didn't belong here in Germany having a heterogenous background. Now I feel it makes me rich and open. I feel like an Earthling so far. I enjoy your videos and your perspective tremendously. Thank you!
Interesting background. I used to feel similarly as my parents come from two different countries but no longer do perhaps because as an adult I have lived in two other countries, the second of which I have lived in for 20 years. I hope you are now comfortable in your skin and see your heterogenous background as an advantage or plus. Just a little curious to see you have a Scottish surname although your father is aDanube Swabian which I understand to be German? Which means means you are not completely a foreigner. Perhaps you use your mother’s surname?
I agree, its much more warm and welcoming to hear accents that are far from RP. Guy Martin comes to mind. Half of us probably don't know everything he's saying but we'd all love to have a chat with him anyway. Posh accents are cold and unwelcoming. They give you a sense that you don't belong. It's almost like it strains above standard English to try and find a more perfect way of pronouncing words, for no reason other than to distance itself as far as possible from the lower classes, sounding absolutely ridiculous in its attempt. One commentor on this channel described it best: imagine you have a hot egg in your mouth. Says it all really.
@@CheapskateMotorsports Our own personal preferences aside. I can understand where Jade is coming from both in her career and in her online teaching RP is what folk are looking for in an English teacher. Even in personal life, I can see how there would likely be a difference in how a 'Posh' young pretty thing and a 'Sarf London' pretty gal are treated in society...
Studying the UK accents is fascinating to me. Mostly because here in America our different accents are not tied to our social status- For the most part. These concepts you speak of regarding being limited on what you can do or where you can go don’t really exist here. Very interesting
@@jgpix1 it’s funny you mention that about American accents. Remember the character from MASH. Major Charles Winchester? Lived in Boston all my life. Never heard anyone here speak like that.
in america status is all about how low your carbon footprint is and how generally frugal you are. driving a car is a big no no in america and is sure to get you ostracized, esp in the highest circles. not being a self obsessed, success and money orientated materialist arsehole is also a highly regarded quality. as is being rational and not believing in garbage like christianity and psuedo science. but not having kids due to extreme overpopulation is the thing most likely to propel you to superstar status.
@@andy-the-gardener this is highly inaccurate. Everyone has cars here and loves them. I don’t know where you’re referring to. Maybe Southern California elites but that’s it
I always told my children that any language is just a tool. If you have no thoughts, then no words or their pronunciation will compensate for this. Be proud of your accent, don't pay attention to it at all. The problem begins when the accent becomes the most important thing in what you say.
Jade, I absolutely adore your videos and learn a lot from them! Being German, I started learning English at school at the age of 12; now I'm 46 years old and never really stopped learning and practising. Although I daresay I have achieved a pretty good level (basically fluent English with very little German accent) I still learn some new things from you. In my humble opinion you're a brilliant teacher and I'd love to get private lessons from you (which will never happen as I can't afford them). Keep up the good work! 👌🏼
Thank you for your support and for watching my lessons. Yes, private lessons are expensive. Perhaps consider joining my more affordable group classes next time. The best way to stay informed about group classes is via my email list. jadejoddle.com/signup/
Great video, Jade, and more power to you. I'm a Roehampton/Putney boy. My accent was never very strong but it did change over the years as I went through higher education and living abroad. I've worked in the language industry for over 20 years and have encountered situations where customers rejected certain trainers on the basis of accent. Mine was always regarded as 'proper' so I got customers on that basis sometimes. Anyway, I hear what you're saying.
I am an English teacher with a South London accent. We may be able to run away from some aspects of our estuary accent, but TH fronting is one thing that seems almost impossible to remove. I am happy when students note that sometimes I pronounce three like free as it shows their listening skills are working well. I can happily adjust my accent to a more nuetral one in certain social situations, like a job interview, but I will never be able to say football without using the glottal stop as it would just sound so wrong to me. Jade you have a lovely standrad British accent but I love it when your estuary accent pops up every now and then.
I've been in the same boat. I'm from Feltham/Hounslow in West London and grew up with a Estuary/Cockney accent. I also teach English and run a travel RUclips channel. My accent seemed to naturally change as a result of having a global audience, yet I will switch back immediately when I'm in London.
I love this person who has overcome most of the prejudices of its society. She's so self aware now, that she's up above most of the british. I can relate with the phenomena 🙏
There is still a glass ceiling in the UK, if you want the best paid careers. However, ultra-posh accents are seen as being untrustworthy, but a middle-range RP-lite with glottal stops is accepted.
Jade - Brilliant! Thank you so much for your exceptional Socratic honesty. You may not realise how helpful this is - to students and teachers alike. Recommend all to watch your talk to a Hull University Society on how you started out making your videos. It's wonderful and so enlightening.
Good video 👍. I'm a cockney speaker and proud. You made a good point, it's up to anyone how they talk. If I'm really honest now, people who speak with a fake posh accent, does grate on my ears.
Jade is an absolutely great teacher. Even when she's a little too upset in some videos, her charm and elegance is present. This is one of the best British English Channels I've come across so far.
This is interesting, at least for an American. I don't think we are quite aware of the significance of accent, compared to the British, where accent is very definitely a marker of social class. I come from the South Philadelphia suburbs where several of the, at least seven or eight distinct accents of the Philadelphia-- Central/ South Jersey-- Delaware metroplex can be heard. Aside from the Germantown accent, non of these are considered posh, and generally connote lower/ working class origins. Although I don't think a lot of people from the area where I was born and raised think much about their accents, if you step back and listen to television presenters, elected officials, leaders in business and education and other influential people you won't hear the salt-of-the-earth accents that several million people of that region speak. That means it is important, but for some reason not something that is much understood or talked about it. For the record, my father had a Latvian accent and my mother spoke with a generally Midwest pronunciation, and she was very strict in making sure I did NOT grow up speaking like the folks in my neighborhood. I eventually became a university library director and academic administrator, and I wonder to what extent this effort by my mother to drill into me a more 'standard' pronunciation influenced my career?
Hey ... I noticed some little smiles. No denying - I saw it with my own two eyes! Loved it! On topic: I'm German, and I actually speak two accents. One is the one from "my" region (where I grew up), and one is the best of what I can do speaking "Hochdeutsch", the official / federal "high German" (ideally accent-free). I enjoy hearing almost all regional accents, and after being immersed in a certain one for a while, like when being on vacation or a business trip and staying in an area for two weeks or so, I catch myself adapting to the local dialect already, meaning I start speaking it. Find that quite fascinating, and I strongly advise to cultivate and preserve local accents. But speaking a local accent can always be done as a conscious decision, depending on the situation. You can have a beer at a pub with friends and speak the local accent, do a business call and use the official style. Both ways can co-exist - and they should.
My Fair Lady, you have a beautiful soul and your words are very true. living in California there is a mix of people from other states /countries and some of them are looked down on. I personally like the variety and must tell you one of my favorite guests on the Graham Norton show is Jodie Whittaker.
My mum had elocution lessons from a young age to prevent her speaking with a West Midlands accent. Only one word gave her origins away. Vegetable. She pronounced it with 4 syllables instead of the usual 3. Mind you yam yams are well know'in for adding syllables mid word.
I actually prefer the estuary accent, as it reminds me of Greenwich! ❤️ Being from Rome, I naturally speak with a southern Roman accent, but going to a posh school I picked up the posh one as well… I wouldn’t want to give up either of them, so I’m sure you feel the same!
What is nice about your accent is that I can understand everything you say. As an American I have difficulty understanding the different English dialects. Now listening to many of the English accents on you tube I am getting better at understanding. You are speaking with an RP accent now? I like them all. It's kind of fun to listen to different people speaking. It would a shame if all spoke alike. Thank you for your videos. Your videos are teaching me to speak clearer. There are many foreigners here and I have to speak clear when I speak to them. Around others in my circle I can use a little more relaxed speech with an occasional slang word. Most of the slang I use have been around for many decades. Newer slang I learn here on you tube. From all the various English speaking countries.
I think that you are not fully aware of how wonderful recordings you made, you always gave me a lot of joy. The internet is a space for diversity, but the public has yet to learn this freedom of words, has yet to learn to write with respect to the performance - it's a long process. ANd you are amazing!
I am very sorry to hear that anyone in your audience had asserted pressure upon you to "upgrade" from natural pronunciation. Upon my entry into primary school, my mother voiced concern in her Brooklyn accent ironically over my being taught by a Bostonian teacher! We on the eastern seaboard can ascertain one's birthplace down to individual states, boroughs; sometimes neighborhoods. That's a gift. If ever I need to impress another, it isn't my New York accent I change, but my diction and vocabulary
Hi Jade - I totally agree about the hypocrisy of other English teachers🤨 . As a /sæːf/ London girl who grew up in Brixton and developed an RP accent, maybe we should do a video together 😀
Thank you for an interesting journey video Jade. I am English born and bred but still 58 years after leaving the North West, hear the odd flat vowels escaping my mouth. Some sounds remain stronger than the effort you put in to suppress them.
Hello, Jade. You are quite right. Speaking well matters. Yet intolerance is the problem, not you. Good words that become good deeds matters most, not the accent. Be true to yourself. As Oscar Wilde reminds us, we must be ourselves. Everyone else is taken. A posh speaker from Bayswater here. Have a Blessed one!
Rather a brave personal video. Although I’m American, and speak with what might be described as an ‘accentless’ standard educated American accent, I think that when one teaches British English, one does students a disservice not to teach the RP accent, or something very close to it. It will be universally understood and rarely will strong adverse inferences about a speaker be drawn because he or she speaks with an RP accent. Similarly, despite the widespread interest in what most videos, including yours, describe a a ‘posh’ accent, I think it is a disservice to try to teach it. In some 50+ years of experience with U-speakers, I’m of the view that it only takes one or two mistakes for a native U-speaker to spot an imposter, and that one is far more likely to be thought less of as a poseur. By all means, avoid many of the usages that were (and still are) class indicators, but don’t attempt to mimic U-speaker’s pronunciation or diction. Work on something more or less like RP and be regarded as middle class.
I just heard and watched one of your videos from about 6 year's ago . I found your voice just as wonderful then as it is now.. A little bit less animated with your facial expressions now but, thoroughly enjoy your video's. Good stuff 🤔🤗🙌😊.......
the main result of viewing: sincerity is a property of the soul that is not available to everyone, I recognize a sincere person out of a thousand. That's probably why I'm here.
Thank you for sharing, it really helps to look into a learning to speak with the right accent more seriously. I have picked up different accents along the way that I am not even aware of. Ridiculously enough, people can't even guess which country I am from 🤦♀️
It is so sad that ppl can just be excluded by having not the "right" accent. I understand that being a foreigner with limited knowledge of English you might face some limitations. If I understand correctly, being a native speaker, just not from the "right" part of London, you would experience serious social and professional limitations. Right? People wouldn't like to talk to you or hire you for certain positions, right? This sounds really depressing that Great Britain is still mentally in Middle Ages with class mentality.
I have had a similar experience, although I'd say 75% of my efforts have been subconscious. Like you say, your accent can be influenced by the people who you surround yourself with. Growing up in South Wales, like many people who have grown up in the same place through their childhood, I wouldn't have considered myself to have an accent; it's everybody else who has an accent! I spent my University years in England, and my working career in London, and I have tempered the lilting lyrical intonation, as well as rewording some strikingly Welsh words and phrases. For me, the benefits are twofold: 1) Clear communication. Professionally and personally it's important to be understood, and I encounter a wide variety of regional and 2nd language international accents. Laying it on thick with my home accent will loose so many listeners. In fact, this standard english represents a shared norm, an average of all the various accents out there, such that whoever I encounter, it's not too far from their own accent to bridge the gap in understanding. So minding my diction, and enunciating properly, makes sure that I'm understood first time. 2) Sticking out like a sore thumb. This one's more personal, and won't necessarily apply to everybody. I'm not particularly extroverted, so to be honest, I don't want my accent to distract from what I'm trying to say. If I'm half way through a sentence and my accent is so striking as to compel my listener to interject and ask "do I detect an accent?" or "where are you from?" or "that sounds so Welsh", then quite frankly, that's the kind of attention I'd like to avoid. I've consciously redefined my pronunciation of a couple of words which stick out and baffle most people. Saying the word "ear" is always a conscious effort. In my Welsh accent I pronounce it as "year", which unsurprisingly changes its apparent meaning quite a bit. So I pronounce it "eeeee-er" which always sounds foreign to me 😁
I was born in London and went to a very good public (i.e. private) school. But some years ago I met an English woman by the school gates who asked what country I came from. I said England, and she didn't believe me. I was nonplussed - she couldn't believe that my English came from England. I'm not making this up - it was bewildering.
Did she mean it in a good way or bad way, in the sense of your speak so well that you cannot have been raised in this part of the country you say are from because people speak in a certain way, or your English does not sound like you are a native English speaker because it has influences of a certain dialect or foreign elements.
I totally agree with you. I grew up in South Wales and having a Welsh accent is perceived very badly in London when you speak with people from middle or upper-class backgrounds.
This is a very honest and candid assessment of something we all know to be true. One has only to watch the movie “My Fair Lady” to see the real life version depicted on-screen.
I binged-watched the other RUclips (engVid) channel over the last couple of days. All that time I thought I was watching two different teachers -- one short-haired, the other long, until I'd heard both of them refer to herself as Jade. I had to watch this channel to make sure.
This video is very interesting. I've chosen your youtube channel because of your accent. I want to learn true english from UK, the lodoner one. Thank you for your sincerity 😉
amazing how do you choose colors of your dresses, that so perfectly emphasize the color of your eyes! I love the way you look in blue or green, gorgeous
Thanks for a very interesting video, Jade 👍🏼 That reminds me of that old movie My Fair Lady and that snobbish professor who thinks he can change a young girl’s life with a cockney accent by teaching her ‘proper’ English. Have you seen it? I guess we all need to conform ourselves more or less to the ‘norm’ if we want to evolve in the society. And that goes to for the accent, but it can be at the price or loosing some our identity. About what you said, I think that people who don’t fit anywhere are often the most interesting persons 🙂
I had no idea that you had changed your accent. However, even to my non-native-speaker ears, neither does your present accent sound perfectly RP. I think that the most noticeable giveaway is that you often pronounce your 'l's more like 'w's, especially at the end of words. I hope this doesn't come across as offensive, as I would hate it to. It has never stopped me from being a big fan of yours and tremendously enjoying your valuable videos in my endeavours to improve my English.
I am not a native speaker and I spent lots of time enhancing both accent and pronunciation. I personally believe that clear and understandable accent (or pronunciation) is important, just like when you write articles you avoid typo so reader can absorb what you want to express easily. It is a form of respect, you respect your reader so you write and spell correctly, you speak clearly so listener can understand you better. To avoid controversy, maybe when we talk about this topic, we can say we like people with "clear pronunciation" over "better/standard accent"
Hi teacher, I like the things you say and how you say them. Speaking about the accent, I think it should be a personal choice without any special concerns, please do not conflict with this inconsequential issue. I would say an example; if I need to do a trip, why to chose a bad shoe when I can get the best? Thanks and greets.
It’s really common for people here in Argentina to change their accents, mostly when they come from the inner parts of the country. Lots of people in television (which you notice the most) come from Córdoba, Santa Fe and other regions having distinctive accents, which are lost (voluntarily or not) when they live here in BA. And they probably speak like “locals” with their families and all... /// The same thing happens at a regional levels, there’s something called “español neutro”, which is the Spanish used in movies translations, and some Argentines speak that “awful” language (parodies included). So I understand your choice. When I went to England I had some difficulties understanding some local English accents (even in London). And even when you learn English the sounds are not standardized so it’s hard for beginners too. What a nice background!
Speaking strictly as a Yank, I really like your accent. I hear a bit of Mrs. Slocombe, and a bit of Miss Brahms. On "Young Sheldon", we're told that Dr. Sheldon Cooper as a lad, made a conscious decision to shed his Texas roots and speak with a Mid Atlantic accent. I guess the stigma surrounding "down-scale" vs. "up-scale" speech holds true on both sides of the pond.
Check out the accent of RUclipsr Haley Eich. Speaks with knowledge but everyone finds her cockney accent perfectly charming. I'm British but even I find it to be like a kind of ear candy.
The biggest objection I have here is called this accent a "Standard Modern British" accent. It is an accent that you will find almost exclusively in the south of England and you will hardly ever hear it in the north of England, in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. It is one of the accents in the UK but it is not the standard.
I set about polishing my formerly Essex accent in my teens, and now nobody can guess where I am from other than "The South". My current accent reflects my education and training having worked as a French teacher and obtained a Masters degree. The only drawback is that working class people might view me with disdain, but I am unperturbed by this as I have so little in common with them anyway.
Thank you for your honest opinion. I think you’re absolutely right. Btw same here in Germany. Here it`s called “Hochdeutsch”, comparable to your received pronunciation.
Refreshingly honest. My mother came from the North East to work in London at the Treasury aged only 20. I assume her accent then was the same as my maternal grandparents, which was solidly North East. Some times her original accent would peep through (‘bath’ pronounced like ‘cat’). Clearly she changed it at some point, or perhaps it just happened, given where she worked. I’ve worked in London all my career and colleagues would be from a wide variety of places, but they all end up with a variation of the same RP. So you have Yorkshire RP, Scots RP, even Essex or American RP. Is there a prejudice against certain accents? Yes.
'It is impossible for an Englishman to open his mouth without making some other Englishman hate or despise him.' - George Bernard Shaw, Pygmalion
I am Japanese and I have never lived overseas but I speak with London accent and Posh English sometimes.
Some American people gets triggered and tell me to stop FAKING the accent.
English is my second language and I wanted to learn British English and I thought the decision was on me but some people just throw hates. I don't understand ☹️
Well done. Stick to your guns. These people show their own problems. They are no reflection on you.
Well done !
I personally find the California accent and tone very pretentious
As an American, I don't know why they thought that was a big deal. Especially if you learn your second language at an early age you develop an accent in that language that matches the type of English you studied. They should know that.
Because people are people. Possibly they don't even speak a second language. But I think there is also so sort bitterness because you learned the British accent and not the their accent. if you was speaking with an American accent I think the reaction would be different.
Your honesty is so lovely and valuable. And moreover these lights create a peaceful atmosphere. Thanks a lot, Jade.
Hi Jade, as someone not from the UK, but wanting to learn a clear English accent that would work anywhere in the world, I just want to say that I am very grateful to you for teaching us the RP accent. For us, it's not about talking in a "high-class/posh" way but it's about wanting to speak fluent English and be understood. The RP accent does that very well for us because it naturally enunciates each and every syllable of a word.
you must remember, that RP (as opposed to general opinion) is not posh at all. It's a regionally neutral accent, often categorised as "standard english" spoken by social groups, who had access to education. The main purpose of communication is to be understood. And RP most certainly guarantees that.
I absolutely agree with you!! I personally think this is not about posh at all, but about being understood by anyone, seeing that there are SO MANY English accents
As a native Londoner, my flavour of London accent has evolved quite a few times over the years too so this video really strikes a chord with me. I grew up in the 80s with a north west London accent, which evolved into what you've called 'Multicultural London English' when I was a teenager. That's how the majority of us spoke at secondary school. I landed my first professional job at about 19 years of age, surrounded by a fair few middle-class RP accents. I'll never forget when one of them told me to stop speaking like a "wideboy"! I had no idea what that even meant back then and they clearly hadn't actually met or been around anyone like me (back in the late 90s long before people with an MLE accent were reaching the heights of popular culture). By the mid-2010s, I'd pretty much rounded off any trace of MLE (except for my substitution of "f" for "th", which seemed next to impossible to change!) and found it did indeed have an impact on how I was perceived within the workplace. Immense levels of cultural and class bias have prevailed for years in the professional workplace and only recently - in the advent of 2020's BLM - has Diversity & Inclusion become such a hot topic... just as I'd finally found a way to consistently use "th" instead of "f"! In the last year, I've found myself relaxing my accent a little so as not to completely lose that part of my identity. But despite the D&I initiatives, I doubt I'll let it slip too much. Cultural/class bias certainly won't disappear overnight.
Spanish-speaking Londoner since 2013 here - I find Jade's words here quite accurate. My English girlfriend back then told me that I spoke English so I'd have almost no problem finding a job, but that it would depend on my accent whether I'd get promoted higher in a company. I thought that was a joke back in the day but she was completely right
Now that I know you read me 😃 just wanted to say people might not be too aware of the importance of your videos. Fortunately for them you do that job because you love words (so do I, in English and Spanish) ❤️
I once was in Toronto, Canada, and someone heard me talking. They said, "Are you from north-central Ohio?" That was so randomly specific!! 🤔 But, they were right! 😄
Some Ontario accent sounds very much like a Cleveland, Ohio accent.
@@jimjungle1397 I was raised in western New York state and can spot that region's accent in a heartbeat. I wonder if it is the same as the two you mention since you have to travel through NY to get between the others?
Following you for years, YOU ARE DOING GREAT! FORGET ABOUT HATERS! WE LOVE YOU! AND THANKS FOR YOUR EFFORT!
Aww this breaks my heart!
Jade seems like such a nice genuine lady...it's sad that she felt she had to change something about herself to fit in.
But i guess i don't understand the Class System in UK...
As an American, I agree with you 100%.
Canadian here. I paused this video and went and listened to your oldest video. I find both accents just lovely.
I’ve been following her for more than 5 years since engvid videos and she’s the best teacher I’ve ever seen. Luvyo
i think you are so brave and i understand that you are someone who never settles, and that is notable through all your decisions.
You still have a little of the southern accent and I find it just lovely. The southern England's accent is the accent I prefer. I hope there are still videos where your southern accent is still pristine.
Take care
Vanni
Jade, it would be great if you bring your old videos back. They carried a lot of aesthetic value.
I would also love to see those videos again. I was a regular viewer on this channel when it was still called "Introverts by Jade". The channel used to have playlists focusing on voice training and conversation skills, but the links I bookmarked don't work any more.
One of my mates from Brentwood had a strong Essex accent and he was alright with it until he started working as a financial adviser in the City. He was told that in order to get a promotion he needed to adjust his accent. Otherwise, he’ll spent the rest of his professional life in his position. Not quite sure if that was a main reason (probably not), but he gave up City job. Went traveling for s year as most brits do. Upon his return, he became a carpenter, then site manager, then project manager. And starter his own business as some sort of construction advising services. His accent never changed and never stopped him achieving his goals.
Seems like his accent did stop him. He stopped working in the city.
And then he said: "The one that has no Essex accent won't be promoted in my firm".
@@JadeJoddle not really tbh. Even if he was promoted he wouldn’t last long in there. He wasn’t big fan of the constant chase and ethical side of the job that comes with the package. He couldn’t bear to think that people’s fortune and life savings were at his mercy. There wasn’t 💯 percent win win deal. Some of the clients were losing there money on deals based on his previous advices. Some people were suited for the job. Make sure you’ve got a thick skin. I’d like to think he quit the job for the best.
Cockney accent is the most beautiful. I like it and my friends like it too.
I love your analytical and reflective take on the impact of accents. Born and raised in Germany by a Northern Irish-Canadian mother and a Danube-Swabian father, I have always been fascinated by language and accents. As a child and young person I felt uncomfortable feeling I didn't belong here in Germany having a heterogenous background. Now I feel it makes me rich and open. I feel like an Earthling so far. I enjoy your videos and your perspective tremendously. Thank you!
Interesting background. I used to feel similarly as my parents come from two different countries but no longer do perhaps because as an adult I have lived in two other countries, the second of which I have lived in for 20 years. I hope you are now comfortable in your skin and see your heterogenous background as an advantage or plus. Just a little curious to see you have a Scottish surname although your father is aDanube Swabian which I understand to be German? Which means means you are not completely a foreigner. Perhaps you use your mother’s surname?
I like your old and new accent. A most fervent follower of your channel.
That was very sweet and encouraging Jade, good to see you around again!
OMG where were you all this time. You’re the best. Please don’t go away again. I like your channel
I like the regional variations best, I'd find those little slips back into the old accent endearing if anything...
agreed
I agree, its much more warm and welcoming to hear accents that are far from RP. Guy Martin comes to mind. Half of us probably don't know everything he's saying but we'd all love to have a chat with him anyway. Posh accents are cold and unwelcoming. They give you a sense that you don't belong. It's almost like it strains above standard English to try and find a more perfect way of pronouncing words, for no reason other than to distance itself as far as possible from the lower classes, sounding absolutely ridiculous in its attempt. One commentor on this channel described it best: imagine you have a hot egg in your mouth. Says it all really.
@@CheapskateMotorsports
Our own personal preferences aside. I can understand where Jade is coming from both in her career and in her online teaching RP is what folk are looking for in an English teacher.
Even in personal life, I can see how there would likely be a difference in how a 'Posh' young pretty thing and a 'Sarf London' pretty gal are treated in society...
I personally love the Blackburn accent. Sounds like generic Northern + Irish lol
Studying the UK accents is fascinating to me. Mostly because here in America our different accents are not tied to our social status- For the most part. These concepts you speak of regarding being limited on what you can do or where you can go don’t really exist here. Very interesting
It’s funny when Phoebe in Friends tries to sound classy!
@@Latbirget well. Your entire statement seems judgmental based on accents. So there you go, chap.
@@jgpix1 it’s funny you mention that about American accents. Remember the character from MASH. Major Charles Winchester? Lived in Boston all my life. Never heard anyone here speak like that.
in america status is all about how low your carbon footprint is and how generally frugal you are. driving a car is a big no no in america and is sure to get you ostracized, esp in the highest circles. not being a self obsessed, success and money orientated materialist arsehole is also a highly regarded quality. as is being rational and not believing in garbage like christianity and psuedo science. but not having kids due to extreme overpopulation is the thing most likely to propel you to superstar status.
@@andy-the-gardener this is highly inaccurate. Everyone has cars here and loves them. I don’t know where you’re referring to. Maybe Southern California elites but that’s it
I always told my children that any language is just a tool. If you have no thoughts, then no words or their pronunciation will compensate for this. Be proud of your accent, don't pay attention to it at all. The problem begins when the accent becomes the most important thing in what you say.
Jade, I absolutely adore your videos and learn a lot from them! Being German, I started learning English at school at the age of 12; now I'm 46 years old and never really stopped learning and practising. Although I daresay I have achieved a pretty good level (basically fluent English with very little German accent) I still learn some new things from you. In my humble opinion you're a brilliant teacher and I'd love to get private lessons from you (which will never happen as I can't afford them). Keep up the good work! 👌🏼
Thank you for your support and for watching my lessons. Yes, private lessons are expensive. Perhaps consider joining my more affordable group classes next time. The best way to stay informed about group classes is via my email list. jadejoddle.com/signup/
Thank You for sharing your thougts and feelings , it helps a lot.
I like your accent. God bless you. Love and best wishes from Sindh, Pakistan.
"Change the way you speak" and it opens doors. Hmm. Sounds like the premise behind Henry Higgins efforts with Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady.
You sound like very impetuous & incoherent Hungarian Royalties' Polyglotte Interpreter from the very play... _You don't say._
Great video, Jade, and more power to you. I'm a Roehampton/Putney boy. My accent was never very strong but it did change over the years as I went through higher education and living abroad. I've worked in the language industry for over 20 years and have encountered situations where customers rejected certain trainers on the basis of accent. Mine was always regarded as 'proper' so I got customers on that basis sometimes. Anyway, I hear what you're saying.
I'm not someone who normally does this on your vids but you are stunningly gorgeous as soon as the vid starts...
I do enjoy your videos. It took some time to realize that they are very. I appreciate that the very most of them is recorded in one piece.
You're so sweet...More important than your obvious London accent is your lovely intonation.Cheers !
Lovely chat jade. I enjoy listening to you.
Very inspirational video and channel. Thank you!
I am an English teacher with a South London accent. We may be able to run away from some aspects of our estuary accent, but TH fronting is one thing that seems almost impossible to remove. I am happy when students note that sometimes I pronounce three like free as it shows their listening skills are working well. I can happily adjust my accent to a more nuetral one in certain social situations, like a job interview, but I will never be able to say football without using the glottal stop as it would just sound so wrong to me. Jade you have a lovely standrad British accent but I love it when your estuary accent pops up every now and then.
As a student I can tell the change in her accent.
She now is awesome.
It boils down to your being gay and all-at, the "f" flows freely from fee (thee), so fair you go!
Thanks for sharing 😀
Thanks Jade! I coudn't agree more: accents matter! Have a nice day, my great Teacher :-)
I've been in the same boat. I'm from Feltham/Hounslow in West London and grew up with a Estuary/Cockney accent. I also teach English and run a travel RUclips channel. My accent seemed to naturally change as a result of having a global audience, yet I will switch back immediately when I'm in London.
I love this person who has overcome most of the prejudices of its society. She's so self aware now, that she's up above most of the british. I can relate with the phenomena 🙏
There is still a glass ceiling in the UK, if you want the best paid careers. However, ultra-posh accents are seen as being untrustworthy, but a middle-range RP-lite with glottal stops is accepted.
Jade - Brilliant! Thank you so much for your exceptional Socratic honesty. You may not realise how helpful this is - to students and teachers alike. Recommend all to watch your talk to a Hull University Society on how you started out making your videos. It's wonderful and so enlightening.
Good video 👍. I'm a cockney speaker and proud. You made a good point, it's up to anyone how they talk. If I'm really honest now, people who speak with a fake posh accent, does grate on my ears.
Jade is an absolutely great teacher. Even when she's a little too upset in some videos, her charm and elegance is present. This is one of the best British English Channels I've come across so far.
Thanks for your kind words.
This is interesting, at least for an American. I don't think we are quite aware of the significance of accent, compared to the British, where accent is very definitely a marker of social class. I come from the South Philadelphia suburbs where several of the, at least seven or eight distinct accents of the Philadelphia-- Central/ South Jersey-- Delaware metroplex can be heard. Aside from the Germantown accent, non of these are considered posh, and generally connote lower/ working class origins. Although I don't think a lot of people from the area where I was born and raised think much about their accents, if you step back and listen to television presenters, elected officials, leaders in business and education and other influential people you won't hear the salt-of-the-earth accents that several million people of that region speak. That means it is important, but for some reason not something that is much understood or talked about it. For the record, my father had a Latvian accent and my mother spoke with a generally Midwest pronunciation, and she was very strict in making sure I did NOT grow up speaking like the folks in my neighborhood. I eventually became a university library director and academic administrator, and I wonder to what extent this effort by my mother to drill into me a more 'standard' pronunciation influenced my career?
Hey ... I noticed some little smiles.
No denying - I saw it with my own two eyes!
Loved it!
On topic: I'm German, and I actually speak two accents. One is the one from "my" region (where I grew up), and one is the best of what I can do speaking "Hochdeutsch", the official / federal "high German" (ideally accent-free).
I enjoy hearing almost all regional accents, and after being immersed in a certain one for a while, like when being on vacation or a business trip and staying in an area for two weeks or so, I catch myself adapting to the local dialect already, meaning I start speaking it.
Find that quite fascinating, and I strongly advise to cultivate and preserve local accents.
But speaking a local accent can always be done as a conscious decision, depending on the situation. You can have a beer at a pub with friends and speak the local accent, do a business call and use the official style.
Both ways can co-exist - and they should.
I love your persona . It is what I experienced with my family in Britain.
Thanks alot dear Jade... Your contributions are so great... wish you all the best...
I changed the cockney accent I spoke when I was growing up. I now speak modern RP. I'm glad I got rid of my cockney dialect.
South London accent is the best without being influenced by any other accent
My Fair Lady, you have a beautiful soul and your words are very true. living in California there is a mix of people from other states /countries and some of them are looked down on. I personally like the variety and must tell you one of my favorite guests on the Graham Norton show is Jodie Whittaker.
My mum had elocution lessons from a young age to prevent her speaking with a West Midlands accent. Only one word gave her origins away. Vegetable. She pronounced it with 4 syllables instead of the usual 3. Mind you yam yams are well know'in for adding syllables mid word.
Aha! So you were active in this channel! The algorithm still shows your other channel instead. Glad I found you.
Is anyone else looking for the old videos to hear her accent? :P :) great video!
I actually prefer the estuary accent, as it reminds me of Greenwich! ❤️
Being from Rome, I naturally speak with a southern Roman accent, but going to a posh school I picked up the posh one as well… I wouldn’t want to give up either of them, so I’m sure you feel the same!
What is nice about your accent is that I can understand everything you say. As an American I have difficulty understanding the different English dialects. Now listening to many of the English accents on you tube I am getting better at understanding. You are speaking with an RP accent now? I like them all. It's kind of fun to listen to different people speaking. It would a shame if all spoke alike. Thank you for your videos. Your videos are teaching me to speak clearer. There are many foreigners here and I have to speak clear when I speak to them. Around others in my circle I can use a little more relaxed speech with an occasional slang word. Most of the slang I use have been around for many decades. Newer slang I learn here on you tube. From all the various English speaking countries.
I think that you are not fully aware of how wonderful recordings you made, you always gave me a lot of joy. The internet is a space for diversity, but the public has yet to learn this freedom of words, has yet to learn to write with respect to the performance - it's a long process. ANd you are amazing!
I am very sorry to hear that anyone in your audience had asserted pressure upon you to "upgrade" from natural pronunciation. Upon my entry into primary school, my mother voiced concern in her Brooklyn accent ironically over my being taught by a Bostonian teacher! We on the eastern seaboard can ascertain one's birthplace down to individual states, boroughs; sometimes neighborhoods. That's a gift. If ever I need to impress another, it isn't my New York accent I change, but my diction and vocabulary
Hi Jade - I totally agree about the hypocrisy of other English teachers🤨 . As a /sæːf/ London girl who grew up in Brixton and developed an RP accent, maybe we should do a video together 😀
I would love to hear this, comparing two south London RP accents
I personally think both accents of yours are lovely
Thank you for an interesting journey video Jade. I am English born and bred but still 58 years after leaving the North West, hear the odd flat vowels escaping my mouth. Some sounds remain stronger than the effort you put in to suppress them.
Jade, I think there are no "proper accent" but proper people. We are what and how we talk. Be yourself as always, you are so lovely!
Hello, Jade. You are quite right. Speaking well matters. Yet intolerance is the problem, not you. Good words that become good deeds matters most, not the accent. Be true to yourself. As Oscar Wilde reminds us, we must be ourselves. Everyone else is taken.
A posh speaker from Bayswater here.
Have a Blessed one!
Rather a brave personal video. Although I’m American, and speak with what might be described as an ‘accentless’ standard educated American accent, I think that when one teaches British English, one does students a disservice not to teach the RP accent, or something very close to it. It will be universally understood and rarely will strong adverse inferences about a speaker be drawn because he or she speaks with an RP accent. Similarly, despite the widespread interest in what most videos, including yours, describe a a ‘posh’ accent, I think it is a disservice to try to teach it. In some 50+ years of experience with U-speakers, I’m of the view that it only takes one or two mistakes for a native U-speaker to spot an imposter, and that one is far more likely to be thought less of as a poseur. By all means, avoid many of the usages that were (and still are) class indicators, but don’t attempt to mimic U-speaker’s pronunciation or diction. Work on something more or less like RP and be regarded as middle class.
I just heard and watched one of your videos from about 6 year's ago . I found your voice just as wonderful then as it is now.. A little bit less animated with your facial expressions now but, thoroughly enjoy your video's. Good stuff 🤔🤗🙌😊.......
I like how you sound & look , wish you all the best ! 👍
All British accents are amazingly unique and they're just great, I am Indonesian and I love British English ❤️
the main result of viewing: sincerity is a property of the soul that is not available to everyone, I recognize a sincere person out of a thousand. That's probably why I'm here.
Thank you for sharing, it really helps to look into a learning to speak with the right accent more seriously. I have picked up different accents along the way that I am not even aware of. Ridiculously enough, people can't even guess which country I am from 🤦♀️
You are a amazing person Jade
I am truly fascinated by Cockney accent. So amazing, energetic.
It is so sad that ppl can just be excluded by having not the "right" accent. I understand that being a foreigner with limited knowledge of English you might face some limitations. If I understand correctly, being a native speaker, just not from the "right" part of London, you would experience serious social and professional limitations. Right? People wouldn't like to talk to you or hire you for certain positions, right? This sounds really depressing that Great Britain is still mentally in Middle Ages with class mentality.
Some English accents are difficult to understand, even to English people from different places. Some jobs require clear communication.
I have had a similar experience, although I'd say 75% of my efforts have been subconscious. Like you say, your accent can be influenced by the people who you surround yourself with. Growing up in South Wales, like many people who have grown up in the same place through their childhood, I wouldn't have considered myself to have an accent; it's everybody else who has an accent! I spent my University years in England, and my working career in London, and I have tempered the lilting lyrical intonation, as well as rewording some strikingly Welsh words and phrases.
For me, the benefits are twofold:
1) Clear communication. Professionally and personally it's important to be understood, and I encounter a wide variety of regional and 2nd language international accents. Laying it on thick with my home accent will loose so many listeners. In fact, this standard english represents a shared norm, an average of all the various accents out there, such that whoever I encounter, it's not too far from their own accent to bridge the gap in understanding. So minding my diction, and enunciating properly, makes sure that I'm understood first time.
2) Sticking out like a sore thumb. This one's more personal, and won't necessarily apply to everybody. I'm not particularly extroverted, so to be honest, I don't want my accent to distract from what I'm trying to say. If I'm half way through a sentence and my accent is so striking as to compel my listener to interject and ask "do I detect an accent?" or "where are you from?" or "that sounds so Welsh", then quite frankly, that's the kind of attention I'd like to avoid.
I've consciously redefined my pronunciation of a couple of words which stick out and baffle most people. Saying the word "ear" is always a conscious effort. In my Welsh accent I pronounce it as "year", which unsurprisingly changes its apparent meaning quite a bit. So I pronounce it "eeeee-er" which always sounds foreign to me 😁
Take care. You are beautiful soul :)
You are very honest
Don't worry, be happy!
The dropped "t" at the end of words still shows through.
I do agree with you, and it is the same in every country.
Love your serious content and expression in this subject ! Keep it “dry”. I don’t mind.
Be proud of your accent!!!
I was born in London and went to a very good public (i.e. private) school. But some years ago I met an English woman by the school gates who asked what country I came from. I said England, and she didn't believe me.
I was nonplussed - she couldn't believe that my English came from England. I'm not making this up - it was bewildering.
Did she mean it in a good way or bad way, in the sense of your speak so well that you cannot have been raised in this part of the country you say are from because people speak in a certain way, or your English does not sound like you are a native English speaker because it has influences of a certain dialect or foreign elements.
I totally agree with you. I grew up in South Wales and having a Welsh accent is perceived very badly in London when you speak with people from middle or upper-class backgrounds.
This is a very honest and candid assessment of something we all know to be true. One has only to watch the movie “My Fair Lady” to see the real life version depicted on-screen.
I binged-watched the other RUclips (engVid) channel over the last couple of days. All that time I thought I was watching two different teachers -- one short-haired, the other long, until I'd heard both of them refer to herself as Jade. I had to watch this channel to make sure.
This video is very interesting. I've chosen your youtube channel because of your accent. I want to learn true english from UK, the lodoner one. Thank you for your sincerity 😉
amazing how do you choose colors of your dresses, that so perfectly emphasize the color of your eyes! I love the way you look in blue or green, gorgeous
Love you south English accent too
Dear Jade, I have loved your snobbish accent!!! Actually, I loved all your recordings. You are unique person:))))
You're the best teacher
Thanks for a very interesting video, Jade 👍🏼 That reminds me of that old movie My Fair Lady and that snobbish professor who thinks he can change a young girl’s life with a cockney accent by teaching her ‘proper’ English. Have you seen it? I guess we all need to conform ourselves more or less to the ‘norm’ if we want to evolve in the society. And that goes to for the accent, but it can be at the price or loosing some our identity. About what you said, I think that people who don’t fit anywhere are often the most interesting persons 🙂
I had no idea that you had changed your accent. However, even to my non-native-speaker ears, neither does your present accent sound perfectly RP. I think that the most noticeable giveaway is that you often pronounce your 'l's more like 'w's, especially at the end of words. I hope this doesn't come across as offensive, as I would hate it to. It has never stopped me from being a big fan of yours and tremendously enjoying your valuable videos in my endeavours to improve my English.
I am not a native speaker and I spent lots of time enhancing both accent and pronunciation. I personally believe that clear and understandable accent (or pronunciation) is important, just like when you write articles you avoid typo so reader can absorb what you want to express easily. It is a form of respect, you respect your reader so you write and spell correctly, you speak clearly so listener can understand you better.
To avoid controversy, maybe when we talk about this topic, we can say we like people with "clear pronunciation" over "better/standard accent"
Well I love the london accent don’t ever change it
Well said!!
Hi teacher,
I like the things you say and how you say them.
Speaking about the accent, I think it should be a personal choice without any special concerns, please do not conflict with this inconsequential issue. I would say an example; if I need to do a trip, why to chose a bad shoe when I can get the best?
Thanks and greets.
It’s really common for people here in Argentina to change their accents, mostly when they come from the inner parts of the country. Lots of people in television (which you notice the most) come from Córdoba, Santa Fe and other regions having distinctive accents, which are lost (voluntarily or not) when they live here in BA. And they probably speak like “locals” with their families and all... /// The same thing happens at a regional levels, there’s something called “español neutro”, which is the Spanish used in movies translations, and some Argentines speak that “awful” language (parodies included). So I understand your choice. When I went to England I had some difficulties understanding some local English accents (even in London). And even when you learn English the sounds are not standardized so it’s hard for beginners too. What a nice background!
Speaking strictly as a Yank, I really like your accent. I hear a bit of Mrs. Slocombe, and a bit of Miss Brahms. On "Young Sheldon", we're told that Dr. Sheldon Cooper as a lad, made a conscious decision to shed his Texas roots and speak with a Mid Atlantic accent. I guess the stigma surrounding "down-scale" vs. "up-scale" speech holds true on both sides of the pond.
Check out the accent of RUclipsr Haley Eich. Speaks with knowledge but everyone finds her cockney accent perfectly charming. I'm British but even I find it to be like a kind of ear candy.
The biggest objection I have here is called this accent a "Standard Modern British" accent. It is an accent that you will find almost exclusively in the south of England and you will hardly ever hear it in the north of England, in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. It is one of the accents in the UK but it is not the standard.
I set about polishing my formerly Essex accent in my teens, and now nobody can guess where I am from other than "The South". My current accent reflects my education and training having worked as a French teacher and obtained a Masters degree. The only drawback is that working class people might view me with disdain, but I am unperturbed by this as I have so little in common with them anyway.
Thank you for your honest opinion. I think you’re absolutely right. Btw same here in Germany. Here it`s called “Hochdeutsch”, comparable to your received pronunciation.
¡Gracias!
Refreshingly honest. My mother came from the North East to work in London at the Treasury aged only 20. I assume her accent then was the same as my maternal grandparents, which was solidly North East. Some times her original accent would peep through (‘bath’ pronounced like ‘cat’). Clearly she changed it at some point, or perhaps it just happened, given where she worked.
I’ve worked in London all my career and colleagues would be from a wide variety of places, but they all end up with a variation of the same RP. So you have Yorkshire RP, Scots RP, even Essex or American RP.
Is there a prejudice against certain accents? Yes.