Lecture on Urban and Regional Accents - Michael Silverstein

Successful New York City "accent eradication," as it is termed by speech therapists, while sought by many upwardly mobile clients, nevertheless engenders a kind of panic at the thought of being phonetically deracinated, verbally uprooted, and sonically removed from kith and kin. This talk examines the changing landscape of urban and regional accent here through the lens of a recent report in the digital pages of "Da Noo Yawk Toyms" that caused an instant uproar -- in many different accents. Noticeable in particular is an emergent cultural value running counter to long-term trends of stratification of language around a perceived "neutral" standard. It is a kind of American linguistic "AOC" phenomenon, not unlike Europe's oenological sense of "appellation d'origine contrôlée" and the palpable pleasures it gives of knowing one's place.

➡ Subscribe: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGOytSubscribe

About #UChicago:
Since its founding in 1890, the University of Chicago has been a destination for rigorous inquiry and field-defining research. This transformative academic experience empowers students and scholars to challenge conventional thinking in pursuit of original ideas.

#UChicago on the Web:
Home: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-homepage
News: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-news
Facebook: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-FB
Twitter: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-TW
Instagram: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-IG

University of Chicago on YouTube:
   / uchicago   ***

ACCESSIBILITY: If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please email [email protected].