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Why Are Fantasy World Accents British?
kodiaktau writes "An interesting article from the BBC News Magazine explores the reasons why most fantasy worlds use British as their primary accent. Citing specific examples from recent and upcoming shows and movies like Lord of The Rings, The Hobbit and Game of Thrones, the article concludes British accents are 'sufficiently exotic,' 'comprehensible' and have a 'splash of otherness.' It would be odd to think of a fantasy world having a New Jersey accent, or even a Mid-West accent, which tends to be the default for TV and movies in the U.S., but how do UK viewers feel about having British as a default? More specifically, what about the range of UK accents, like Scottish, Welsh, Cockney? The International Dialects of English Archive shows at least nine regional sounds, with dozens of sub-regional pronunciations in England alone. In the U.S., there have always been many regional accents that might be used in interesting ways. Filmmakers should consider looking at speech accents from other areas of the world to create more interesting dialects."
Lots of places have a north.
Mark Anthony Collins
Do we even need to be asking such an obvious question? British is the foreign language that Americans are most likely to understand...
Engaging Care Mechanism ...3 ...2 ...1 ...0
System fault. Care Mechanism disengaged.
I do not care.
One does not merely walk into Parliament.
However, one can try to merely tunnel under Parliament with a good bit of gunpowder...
You wouldn't use terms such as "poofter" and "rodgering" unless you were a closest Brit. Admitting it would be the first step towards healing.
Imagine The Lord of the Rings where all the Hobbits had Brooklyn accents.
Other enough to be unusual but still understandable but evoking an entirely different genre (mafia crime drama).
Any why are Dwarves always Scottish?
Have you ever *heard* a Scottish person talk? C'mon.
Karen Gillan = sexiest dwarf ever!
...Mid-West accent...
Wait, we have an accent?
I mean, there are jokes about California "valley girls" and Brooklyn accents, but those are stereotypes and most people from the coasts don't actually talk like that. So... if the universal average of the English language is the "Mid-West" accent... wouldn't that mean we don't have an accent?
Because there's no better fantasy shared by the common public than to escape to than one of rainy weather, bland food, a stifling bureaucracy, and one of the largest surveillance networks concieved of.
It's obviously a made-up world, with their shillings and their stones - one where cars wear boots... I mean, that's just pure insanity.
Ouch, that's pretty harsh on them thar Texans.
"Fantasy" themes are generally based on mythical creatures and legends that stem from the UK. Hell even today you can't scan through 8hrs of BBC without finding something that is based on Robin Hood, Arthur/Merlin, Druids, or Sherlock Holmes so apparently the UK associates the UK with these themes as well. They even continue to add to it, the latest popular addition being Harry Potter. Again tying sorcery with the UK.
Yes, and what does the US have to offer in the way of rich cultural brogue?
Jersey Shore.
No wonder people look elsewhere to try and put an emphasis on rich culture in fantasy. Needless to say, you're not going to get the same look at feel with a fat orange midget running around Hogwarts looking for the tanning salon.
Strider sidles into the Prancing Pony, spurs jingling.
STRIDER:
Howdy, y'all!
BUTTERBUR:
Whatcha drankin', pardner?
WALSTIB!
"It would be odd to think of a fantasy world having a New Jersey accent" There's already a fantasy world based on that but its not one most people would want to visit or live in...Its called "Jersey Shore".
It was now!
I think that's because an Irish accent is the only one that Colin Farrell can do. So they had all the other actors match him so that he didn't seem out of place.
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