Dialects in films

[Kathryn Remlinger]

Here are a few more film suggestions. (My previous message got cut in
transit. )

Mickey Blue Eyes (good for discussions of accommodation and dialect
"passing"--Hugh Grant tries to pass as a member of a New York mob
family)

Selina (Chicano English, code-switching)

Barber Shop I (varieties of AAE, good for dispelling myths about
speakers of AAE)

Escanaba in Da Moonlight (Michigan's southwestern Upper Peninsula, bad
imitations--lack of consistency)

Smoke Signals (Northwest and Southwest varieties of Native American
English)

And an example from TV: This week's Extreem Home Makeover--How'd They Do
That (ABC, Monday) there was quite a lengthy discussion of "southern
accents", including  a "southern vocabulary" quiz by Jeff Foxworthy and
examples of accommodation and style-shifting by Ty, the host of the
show.

--Kate





--
Kathryn Remlinger, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of English: Linguistics
Grand Valley State University
Allendale, MI 49401 USA
remlingk at gvsu.edu
tel: 616-331-3122
fax: 616-331-3430