Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/17/84; site mhuxr.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mfs
From: mfs@mhuxr.UUCP (SIMON)
Newsgroups: net.flame,net.nlang
Subject: Re: "Parisian French," other French and accents
Message-ID: <280@mhuxr.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 27-Mar-85 12:37:56 EST
Article-I.D.: mhuxr.280
Posted: Wed Mar 27 12:37:56 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 28-Mar-85 02:33:24 EST
References: <1024@decwrl.UUCP> <8317@watarts.UUCP> <1835@sdcrdcf.UUCP> <554@cornell.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill
Lines: 12
Xref: watmath net.flame:8986 net.nlang:2790

> A bit naive (to say the least) to state that Parisian (Belgian, Canadian)
> etc... French is spoken with an accent, as if there was an accentless brand
> of French (or English or any other language).  One should speak of accent
> *differences* (and maybe preferences, or orientations?).  Same applies to
> dialects (there is no single standard French; there are many French dialects).
> 
There is a "standard French". It is ddefined by the Academie Francaise,
whose job it is to define the official French language. Almost no one except the
academicians speaks official French, least of all the Parisians. You are
right about a multiplicity of accents, though.

Marcel Simon