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Canadian actors, for the most part, when working in the US, and want to succeed there, get rid of their accents.
This was true a few years ago, when friends in the business explained it to me. In the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, where this friend was taking classes, he was told as much. It has now become his true accent, since he lives there and has for decades.
The role they are playing is American, so they want them to sound American.
As for Canadian actors in Canadian movies, it can be hard for someone not from the US or Canada to detect the accents. Americans usually spot our accent quickly. Not only in the use of certain words, but mainly in the vowels. Americans have a drawl, even if it is slight, like in California.
Well sometimes I can tell the difference with Canadian and American accents. After all if you spend a considerable amount of time with them you do notice the difference. Yet most people in my country Australia would not tell the difference.
Well sometimes I can tell the difference with Canadian and American accents. After all if you spend a considerable amount of time with them you do notice the difference. Yet most people in my country Australia would not tell the difference.
Exposure certainly helps.
My comment about Australian accents vs New Zealand ones, would be a case in point.
If all these countries I've read about are so much like the U.S., I know what to avoid, particularly "woke", weak, and countries that aren't social. I'm looking for the opposite of those when I retire. That said, I don't want too "third world", just not exactly so materialistic and yet somewhat advanced. I think parts of Latin America fit the bill.
I was in Sweden and noticed that many younger people speak English with an American accent, to the point that you cannot tell whether or not they are American or Swedish.
I was also appalled to find that American tv shows like Jerry Springer actually play on tv in foreign countries like Sweden and the UK. The world has become a very small place. I wanted to shout that California produces most of these shows...nothing to do with the rest of us...(although maybe that's not true, I don't know, but it's quite depressing to be in a civilized place like Stockholm and find that they are being exposed to the same trashy things that we're exposed to in the US).
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Originally Posted by brickpatio2018
I was in Sweden and noticed that many younger people speak English with an American accent, to the point that you cannot tell whether or not they are American or Swedish.
I was also appalled to find that American tv shows like Jerry Springer actually play on tv in foreign countries like Sweden and the UK. The world has become a very small place. I wanted to shout that California produces most of these shows...nothing to do with the rest of us...(although maybe that's not true, I don't know, but it's quite depressing to be in a civilized place like Stockholm and find that they are being exposed to the same trashy things that we're exposed to in the US).
Jerry Springer is British by birth, he as born in Highgate in London and he is always happy to come back and visit London and the UK.
As for the tabloid talk show there were home grown shows such as Trisha and Jeremy Kyle in the UK, however such shows are now seen as cruel and are no longer shown.
The final straw in terms of Jeremy Kyle was the suicide of one of the shows guests following his appearance, and this became a national scandal.
As for American accents, the Swedes do often speak English with an American accents however in other parts of Europe it is mainly spoken with a national accent, and the number of English speaking individuals often depends on the country.
I'd turn the question around and say what 10 countries have built America to what it is today. We assimilated their cultures not the other way around. If you count countries that have American military bases there would be some influence.
If a country is a democracy it is not because the USA brought them democracy. The ancient Greeks did that. USA borrowed the British system of government from the framework of English Bill of Rights and Magna Carta and amended it into a republic with their own constitution.
1. UK - brought the English language, colonization by loyalists, structure of law and order and the constitution, and a large influx of UK immigrants (Irish, Scots, Welsh, English).
2. Canada - by virtue of same influences from UK as above. Canada has not copied from the USA. We were both born at the same time as the USA maintaining our British roots which we still do today (except for some separatist French-speakers).
3. France - colonizers of Louisiana in 1682 and named after the King Louis of France and sold it to the United States with the "Louisiana Purchase" in 1803. Hence the French Quarter and Cajun (Acadian french). 10.4 million in USA declare French as their ancestry.
4. Spain - no surprise here. Given by the French to the Spanish in 1762, were Kansas, Wyoming, Montana, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, North and South Dakota and most of Minnesota and Colorado.
5. First Nations: Indian Nations although not sovereign ones, heavily influenced by USA cultures and by way of containment in reserves managed by the laws of the USA and residential schools.
6. The Phillipines: USA colony for 48 years, Americanized.
7. Panama- "Americanized" by way of US presence building the Panama Canal (1903-1914), built with US supervision by treaty between the two countries, US ownership of the canal 1999.
French speaking areas of Canada, including Quebec, are still proudly North American. If you look at things like urban form, lifestyle, holidays celebrated (A Thanksgiving day with turkey, Halloween) you'll see it's definitely more American than anywhere in Europe, which would make sense considering the history and geography. I'm not saying English Canada isn't more American, but Francophones are certainly more like their neighbours than any European country is.
Halloween originated with the Celts and the first thanksgiving in North America was in Canada.
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