How accents make language more beautiful | Muftiat Adeyi | TEDxUniversityofMississippi

Key Concepts

• Linguistic Profiling: The practice of judging or discriminating against individuals based on their accent or dialect.
• Cognitive Benefits of Bilingualism: The advantages bilingual individuals possess in problem-solving, multitasking, and cognitive flexibility.
• Cultural Fusion: The blending of different cultures, often reflected in language, cuisine, and art.
• Worldviews: The fundamental cognitive orientation of an individual or society encompassing the whole of the individual's or society's knowledge and information about the existence and the values they characteristically hold.
• Accent Hierarchy: The societal tendency to value certain accents over others, often reflecting power dynamics and prejudice.

Summary

Introduction: The Experience of Prejudice

The speaker recounts a personal experience at a water park in Philadelphia, Mississippi, where a stranger reacted with disgust and audacity to their conversation in Yoruba, questioning if it was "Jamaica." This incident highlights how the speaker's native language, a source of comfort and identity, was perceived as a "threat" by the stranger, illustrating how prejudice can manifest through linguistic judgment. The speaker contrasts this with an ideal world of diverse linguistic expression, likening a monochrome world to painting with a single dull color, emphasizing the richness that accents bring to human expression.

The Complex Relationship with Accents

The speaker, a Nigerian scholar in Mississippi, notes Nigeria's own complex relationship with accents. Despite English being the official language due to colonial legacy, there's a tendency to view those with British or American accents as more sophisticated or intelligent. This phenomenon is not unique to Nigeria; research on French and Creole languages reveals a similar "social and um a dynamic power play" where certain accents are deemed "proper" and others "foreign." This raises critical questions about who defines "proper" and "foreign" and what these hierarchies reveal about power, prejudice, and privilege.

Linguistic Bias in Academia and Beyond

This accent hierarchy followed the speaker to the University of Mississippi, where a student wrote in a TA evaluation, "She needs to speak in American accent. A voice gives me migraine." The irony was compounded by another student's request to speak louder, suggesting the issue was not volume but the speaker's accent. The speaker, whose country's official language is English, was told their English was "not English enough."

The speaker argues that celebrating accents and languages does not threaten identity but fosters cultural appreciation and deeper understanding. Research by Allen Moyer indicates that accent enables "linguistic profiling," leading to qualified individuals being denied jobs based on how they sound. Conversely, research by Ellen Bialystok at York University shows that bilingual individuals have better problem-solving skills and are adept at multitasking. Despite these cognitive advantages, accents are often perceived as deficits, with some deemed "proper," "fake," or a measure of intelligence.

Challenging Linguistic Biases in the Classroom

To address these biases, the speaker introduced a classroom exercise. On the first day of the semester, they write "Ajangadi," the name of a vibrant community in Lagos, on the board and ask students to pronounce it. Their initial struggles and laughter are met with the explanation that difficulty in pronunciation doesn't equate to unintelligence but rather highlights linguistic limitations. This exercise shifts the students' perspective, enabling them to see navigating different sound systems as an exploration of other linguistic worlds. "Ajangadi" becomes a "mirror to check our unconscious biases," challenging linguistic biases and demonstrating that accents are about connection, not just perfection.

Language as a Tool for Cultural Preservation and Fusion

The speaker cites Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, a Nigerian, who uses English to carry the weight of Yoruba philosophy. Phrases like "even a tear veiled eye preserves its function of sight" are not merely poetic but serve to preserve worldviews and demonstrate that language can be a tool for cultural preservation and linguistic fusion. This fusion is evident in everyday life through culinary examples like Mexican-Korean or Indian-Chinese cuisine. The quintessential Southern dish, gumbo, exemplifies this, with its name from West Africa, filé powder from the Choctaw, okra from Africa, and roux from French. Each bowl tells a story of cultural coalition. The speaker points out the paradox that people who readily enjoy gumbo might still cringe at the West African word that brought a key ingredient across the Atlantic.

The Global Stage and the Power of Accents

In recent times, the celebration of linguistic diversity is evident on the global stage with the success of Korean dramas, Nollywood, and Bollywood. Social media banter, such as "wisdom is chasing you but you are running faster," showcases the poetic genius of Nigerian people. This demonstrates how language can be used for cultural appreciation. Accents, the speaker emphasizes, are evolving stories shaped by our environments. Lupita Nyong'o's feeling of losing herself when she lost her Kenyan accent is contrasted with Chimamanda Adichie and Sophia Loren, who authentically use their accents to achieve global impact, proving that global reach and accent can coexist and that accents are not obstacles to intelligence.

An Invitation to Embrace Linguistic Diversity

The speaker concludes with an invitation: when encountering an unfamiliar accent, approach it with curiosity, like a dish on a friend's dinner table. Lean in, ask questions, and savor the nuances. Every accent is a "recipe passed down through generations," and every unusual pronunciation is an "ingredient that adds depth to our collective human expression and experiences." Accents, rather than diminishing humanity, refine it. The final question posed is whether one is "brave enough to listen" to an unfamiliar accent.