Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Language is funny. I heard an ad in Spanish for Chrysler, with "Dr. Z", the "German" guy. Hearing "Doctor Z" speak English with a German accent doesn't seem weird, but hearing him speak Spanish with a German accent was a bit mind-bending!
When you think about it, he's not actually speaking German in either case, so it is not really any different. But mentally, when we hear English with a German accent, we think "He's speaking German", even though he's really not. I think that's because of the movie/theatrical convention of having someone speaking with a particular accent to represent that they are of that nationality, and speaking in that language. But when you hear a third language, it messes with your mental shortcut, and your mental gymnastics are exposed.
When you think about it, he's not actually speaking German in either case, so it is not really any different. But mentally, when we hear English with a German accent, we think "He's speaking German", even though he's really not. I think that's because of the movie/theatrical convention of having someone speaking with a particular accent to represent that they are of that nationality, and speaking in that language. But when you hear a third language, it messes with your mental shortcut, and your mental gymnastics are exposed.
Subscribe to Posts [Atom]
