Ham On Wry

Paul Molyneux's easy going humor stuff.

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Current speech trend

Is it just me, just my area, or more widespread that current speech has added yet another regression?

What I'm referring to is the habit of our young people to promounce multi-syllable words with the consonants on the wrong syllable. e.g. :

Kitt/en instead of Kit/ten

Sat/in instead of Sa/tin

and many many others.

Is syllabification no longer being taught? Do we just not care? Whatcha think?

Paul

posted by Paul Molyneux @ 11:27 PM  

7 Comments:

  • At 12:36 AM, Anonymous Peter B. Steiger said…

    I don't understand the question. When you write:
    Kitt/en instead of Kit/ten

    It looks to me like you're "hearing" a syllable break between the two Ts vs. after them both together. Are you talking about stressing the second, rather than the first, syllable (e.g., "kit-TEN" vs. "KIT-ten")? If so, I have not heard that in Texas or Wyoming. What I do hear more often is a complete drop of the middle consonants, which are replaced by a glottal stop that just sounds painful: "ki'en" {shudder}

     

  • At 8:39 AM, Blogger Paul Molyneux said…

    I understand your confusion. I did a poor job of posting it.

    I am most concerned with where the vowels are pronounced.

    The rule, when I was in school, was that single consonants went with the syllable after them; double consonants were split, one with each syllable.

    The teens around Ohio are breaking that rule in great numbers and sometimes compound it with the glottal stop too.

    I do a lot of work with Ohio 4-H clubs and in the showmanship interviews, I nearly go crazy.

     

  • At 9:13 AM, Anonymous Sharon Wren said…

    Paul, you sound surprised that teens aren't doing things the way they're supposed to. They all rebel in different ways. Some shave their heads, pierce various parts of their bodies and listen to Insane Clown Posse. Maybe this is how the brainy kids rebel. "If I get a mohawk, I won't get into Harvard, but I can't handle the parental oppression. I know! I'll pronounce things wrong! Yeah, I'm a real wild one, wild one."

     

  • At 9:30 AM, Blogger Paul Molyneux said…

    Thanks for the comment.

    I'm not surprised at ANYTHING teens do, just surprised that it carries over into their more formal activities. These kids are usually rather "establishment" when it comes to their competitions.


    After several conversations with English teachers who hindered my daughters' progress, I find the fault usually starts there - they want to musch more to be liked than to teach.

    Lots of this junk is working its way into the mainstream e.g. "Only one of the students is behind in their homework."

    Paul

     

  • At 10:35 PM, Blogger gloria said…

    YEESS!!! I hear this all the time and it drives me crazy. I thought I was the only one who had a problem with this. Thanks Paul, I don't feel like such a nitpicker now.

    I use to think that I picked up on stuff like that because I was out of my element, having moved to a northern rural area from a southern city. You know, just listening for errors. I've always had an ear for odd speech patterns or interesting accents. This one though, just sounds like the the speaker is maybe a little slow, even when I know that is not the case, as you say. My own children, I hate to admit, have slipped into it and all three of them tested mensa level on their IQ tests. (not bragging, ok a little). I shudder every time I hear them say did-ent or mitt-en. So, yes, I've heard this and it bothers me. Just call me a nitpicker.

    Have you heard this one over there in Ohio? In response to a statement like "I went to the movie, the speaker will say "so didn't I" instead of "so did I". What the heck is that? I know I never heard that down south. We have enough of our own vocab faux pas (faux pi?) but this one is just weird. Variation: "so don't she" instead of "she does, too" or "so does she."

    gloria

     

  • At 11:05 PM, Blogger Paul Molyneux said…

    Thank you. It's nice to know that, if I an crazy, I have company.

    I haven't noticed you reply oddities. I probably haven't because I am still seething over Buckeyes being the kings of ending sentences with prepositions...especially "at."

    Paul

     

  • At 10:21 AM, Blogger MeMeMe said…

    I don't know grammer and stuff like that. BUT, I don't talk like that.
    Maybe it's not so much rebellion, but
    maybe laziness.

     

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