![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
closetofheroes.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
indeedsir_backupHallo all,
Well, this list isn't complete or perfect, but I have, over the past six months or so, been putting together this table of words and phrases that might be considered 'Americanisms' or 'Modernisms' with a possible 1920s-30s era British English equivalent. I thought it might prove useful to Jooster writers who are concerned with being regionally accurate.
I couldn't fit the table into this post, so here's a link to my lj journal.
Please bear in mind:
- I have not taken the many regional dialects of Britain into account. Since Bertie and Jeeves both reside in London, (Jeeves is from Brixton, London, originally) and both seem to have been brought up, or to at least have learned, to speak the standard, rather posh, what we sometimes call 'BBC' English that is stripped of all regional dialect, I have stuck with what I know of that. I should say that where I grew up (west Kent), some people speak with a strong south-london accent (which is a bit like a cockney accent) while others spoke the standardised English I have described, though probably with a far less posh pronunciation than Bertie. (Bertie's very posh version of the English accent is very rare, now, though it can still be found - Jonathan Cecil reading PG Wodehouse, or the lovely diction of the noted atheist Richard Dawkins.)
- I'm not an expert on Britain in the 1920s-30s, though I've read literature from the period. Most of this list is Americanisms translated to Britishisms, but I've tried where possible to keep it in the context of that period.
- I am probably, in fact certainly, not a completely reliable source. I don't have nearly as posh a background as Bertie, never lived in his era, and don't know much about they many various ways British people speak outside of my particular area in Kent. I am basing this purely on my own experience of the differences between British and American English, and on all the Wodehouse and similar-era reading I have done. I'm English, but have lived in the US since I was about 25. My sig. other is American. So, I am familiar with a lot of Americanisms but it it has to be said, I have probably forgotten a few Englishisms along the way.
- It's also worth bearing in mind that Bertie did like to use some Americanisms himself. The best example I can think of is when he said 'I don't dig you, Jeeves', meaning that he didn't understand. So, when he's chatting to some pal in a relaxed manner, or to Jeeves, it may well be ok to throw in a more modern American term, provided that it existed then, and provided that it is a new word that might be considered hip to use. For example, Bertie wouldn't say 'closet' instead of 'wardrobe' to be cool, since 'closet' is an old English word that continued to be used in the US but died out in the UK. But he will use more modern American slang terms from time to time, saying 'O.K.' instead of 'right-ho', 'atta-boy' instead of 'that's the boy'. When referring to the long arm of the law, he sometimes says 'FBI' instead of 'CID' which would be the closest equivalent. He will also use colloquial slang usually associated with the lower classes from time to time, such as 'Lord-love-a-duck' or 'Gor-blimey'.
I've listed these terms alphabetically, but if there's another term directly related to the same subject, I've put that underneath.
Sorry for the long explanation and disclaimer! I hope some of you will find this a helpful resource - please comment, especially if you think I'm wrong about something or have something else to add in that I've forgotten. I will be editing this list if I'm proved to be incorrect on any point, and adding to it if something comes up that I forgot about.
Well, this list isn't complete or perfect, but I have, over the past six months or so, been putting together this table of words and phrases that might be considered 'Americanisms' or 'Modernisms' with a possible 1920s-30s era British English equivalent. I thought it might prove useful to Jooster writers who are concerned with being regionally accurate.
I couldn't fit the table into this post, so here's a link to my lj journal.
Please bear in mind:
- I have not taken the many regional dialects of Britain into account. Since Bertie and Jeeves both reside in London, (Jeeves is from Brixton, London, originally) and both seem to have been brought up, or to at least have learned, to speak the standard, rather posh, what we sometimes call 'BBC' English that is stripped of all regional dialect, I have stuck with what I know of that. I should say that where I grew up (west Kent), some people speak with a strong south-london accent (which is a bit like a cockney accent) while others spoke the standardised English I have described, though probably with a far less posh pronunciation than Bertie. (Bertie's very posh version of the English accent is very rare, now, though it can still be found - Jonathan Cecil reading PG Wodehouse, or the lovely diction of the noted atheist Richard Dawkins.)
- I'm not an expert on Britain in the 1920s-30s, though I've read literature from the period. Most of this list is Americanisms translated to Britishisms, but I've tried where possible to keep it in the context of that period.
- I am probably, in fact certainly, not a completely reliable source. I don't have nearly as posh a background as Bertie, never lived in his era, and don't know much about they many various ways British people speak outside of my particular area in Kent. I am basing this purely on my own experience of the differences between British and American English, and on all the Wodehouse and similar-era reading I have done. I'm English, but have lived in the US since I was about 25. My sig. other is American. So, I am familiar with a lot of Americanisms but it it has to be said, I have probably forgotten a few Englishisms along the way.
- It's also worth bearing in mind that Bertie did like to use some Americanisms himself. The best example I can think of is when he said 'I don't dig you, Jeeves', meaning that he didn't understand. So, when he's chatting to some pal in a relaxed manner, or to Jeeves, it may well be ok to throw in a more modern American term, provided that it existed then, and provided that it is a new word that might be considered hip to use. For example, Bertie wouldn't say 'closet' instead of 'wardrobe' to be cool, since 'closet' is an old English word that continued to be used in the US but died out in the UK. But he will use more modern American slang terms from time to time, saying 'O.K.' instead of 'right-ho', 'atta-boy' instead of 'that's the boy'. When referring to the long arm of the law, he sometimes says 'FBI' instead of 'CID' which would be the closest equivalent. He will also use colloquial slang usually associated with the lower classes from time to time, such as 'Lord-love-a-duck' or 'Gor-blimey'.
I've listed these terms alphabetically, but if there's another term directly related to the same subject, I've put that underneath.
Sorry for the long explanation and disclaimer! I hope some of you will find this a helpful resource - please comment, especially if you think I'm wrong about something or have something else to add in that I've forgotten. I will be editing this list if I'm proved to be incorrect on any point, and adding to it if something comes up that I forgot about.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2009-10-01 11:54 pm (UTC)(PS- Totally unrelated but Richard Dawkings= <3 <3 <3)
no subject
Date: 2009-10-02 02:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-10-04 08:22 am (UTC)