BROADCAST ENGLISH

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 63, 16 March 1933, Page 19

BROADCAST ENGLISH

8.8.C.'S ATTITUDE

"A COMMON DENOMI-

NATOR"

Sir John Keith, Director-General of the 8.8.C., recently defined the attitude of the corporation to the pronunciation of. English (states the London "Daily, Telegraph"); When introducing Mr. A. LloydJames, -who gave a public lecture on "Speech in the Modern World" at University College, Sir John Eoith, who presided, said: "Tho 8.8.C. has never set out to produce a standard English pronunciation. It has only set out to endeavour to talk by the mouth of >its griilourieef that type of English which one might describe tas a common denominator, a type acceptable to all s6cial grades and all geographical classifications."

Earlier, in his speech Sir John said he had heai'd an observation that a speech should consist of three parts: "The relevant, the irrelevant, and the sob stuff.''

"I thought of that," he continued, "because in my view there are three distinct categories of individuals who are responsible for the appalling confusion in this matter of English speech: the educated, the uneducated, and the clergy.

("SPEECH CONSCIOUS."

"So far as broadcasting goes, it has made me what I never was before, and, I think, a great many other people, horribly and most inconveniently speech-ebnscious, and the line that tho broadcasting authority endeavours to take is as follows: The speech, of, the announcer should be such as will evoke no considerable measure of opposition in any part of the country. Now, that may be an impossible ideal, but, after all, most ideals are impossible of attainment.

"Nevertheless, here is the point: the individual does not normally, in my view, take- exception to a form of speech which is rather more educated than his own."

If it became still more "educated," exception would be takea to it. If Mr. Lloyd-James's own manner 'of speech were more "educated" (a word that mußt be taken as being in inverted commas) he would get away with it in the West-end, he would evoke the opposition' of the East-end, and he would become the laughingstock of the Scot.

"The affectations of the educated are as. reprehensible, and from the point of view of the unfortunate foreigner quite as regrettable, as the slovenliness, ot whatever term you may like to use, of the uneducated. "I sliall not talk about the- clergy, but you will know the type of English to which I refer, and probably you will agree with me. * , "This appalling confusion with.respect to pronunciation may be laid almost equally at the doors of the educated, the uneducated, and the clergy." Mr. Lloyd-James emphasised the in.freasing interdependence among the great nations upon one common language. l

English, in one form or another, was designed to play a great part in the future.

He quoted a message Geneva drawing attention to the* fact that a noteworthy feature of the remarkable duel between the Japanese and Chinese delegates in a League discussion of .tho report- pf /the Lytton Commission was tl»at' both spoke- in^English. message -.concluded with > the words":—"They are old-.friends,. and th.eir '-speeches, were studiously courteous and dignified.'l ,-, . ' .:.