March 21, 2005

Dialects and the analogy
Bob Praz

A quick word on the analogy I used in my previous article. Firstly, don’t worry Elendur, I take no offence; I was merely offering one of many possible views, which I don’t hold to be particularly right or flawless. But as for the analogy, maybe I didn’t bring my point across well enough (and certainly it’s not the best analogy; I was writing quickly, so I just took the most ridiculous thing that came to mind at the time). I wasn’t actually comparing guns to nukes; obviously, that IS absurd, both weapons have very different natures. I was merely trying, instead, to prove something about human society and human nature, which is that weapons in general (guns, knives, or WMD) are more likely to be used for evil than for good (i.e. self-defense or other). Therefore, the easier it is to have access to a weapon, the higher the potential risk is for disaster. At least, such is the way I see it; you may still disagree, but I hope that might help specify what I meant.
Anyhow, another vague example might be the various arms’ races in history; particularly leading up to WWI. At the time, each side was under the impression that possessing more powerful weapons and forming grand alliances would deter one side from attacking the other (thus making them feel safe and secure). But to quote Black Adder: “There was just one problem: it was complete bullocks.”

Speaking of accents, I can affirm the statement of Opalys the Crow: french-canadian accents when speaking in English are absolutely hilarious, at least in extreme cases. Being french-canadian myself, I can allow myself to say that. However, I’ve grown up in Ontario, which is mostly english but has the largest french population outside Québec; so my English is as good as my french (or so I hope). On the other hand, the french-canadian dialect is strikingly distinct from the dialect in actual France; and I suppose both seem equally funny to the other.
I just don’t know what distinguishes the english dialect in Canada (which is surprisingly homogeneous across the country) from the other english dialects. It seems to be very similar – if not the same – to most of the north-eastern US. By curiosity, what does it sound like to those outside this dialect (seeing as we must have many on this forum)?