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by dmitriid 2078 days ago
Every British person is taught Received Pronunciation etc.

And yet, you still have dialects, you still have people using words and grammar in slightly and not so slightly different ways from the prescribed standard.

Funny how it "literally works".
1 comments
LudwigNagasena 2078 days ago
If everyone speaks and understands RP then there is no problem. But it is not true, especially when we talk about all anglophone countries.
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dmitriid 2078 days ago
It's enough to talk about the UK. They have standardized the English language. And yet...
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LudwigNagasena 2078 days ago
And yet what? You have just said everyone understands RP, it means they can watch TV and government speeches without problems.
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dmitriid 2078 days ago
> And yet what?

And yet everyone speaks in their own dialects, pronunciation, many places have their own twists on grammar etc (RP is an accent, so grammar isn't relevant when discussing RP). Let me quote myself from my original answer:

--- start quote ---

"Standardising a language" never works. Prescriptivism rarely does because languages are living things and evolve no matter how many rules you throw at them.

--- end quote ---

So, Britain has standardised English. Did it work? Well, not really, almost everyone keeps speaking in their own way. As for government speeches... Here's SNP's Ian Blackford in the House of Commons (not government, but still, a high-ranking politician) [1]. And I believe Americans, Australians and New Zealanders have no problem understanding their politicians despite English not being standardised.

As for TV. Have you ever watched British TV outside BBC News programs (which traditionally, but not necessarily use a "BBC accent" which also changes with time)? Just a few samples: Big Narstie Show [2], Eastenders [3], and, yes, BBC News (around 10:02 mark, 16:30) [4] Or even something like this [5], but this is an extreme example.

All that despite English having been standardised for more than a century.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiE9f8jM4SE

[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDmGAlRMIS0

[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR2BEQKMyJ4

[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcBt_klPbAw

[5] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=le_uNGdpa4c

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