Jamila Lyiscott (2014) and Angie Thomas (2017) on African American Accent

Language and Settings: Jamila Lyiscott and Angie Thomas on African American Accent

People speak different versions of the same language in a multicultural society such as the USA. For example, whites have an accent in speaking English which is distinct from the tone of African Americans when speaking the same language. Regrettably, most people have interpreted the accent of African Americans as inarticulate, while the whites’ intonation is regarded as eloquent and expressive. This biased interpretation is reprimanded in 3 ways to Speak English by Jamila Lyiscott and “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas.

A cultural upbringing has made Lyiscott embrace three versions of English: English she speaks with her friends, her parents, and when in the classroom. In her argument, the term “articulate” when seeking English is skewed. She adds that to the Britons, “articulate” Americans sound foolish. Her fundamental argument is that how a person speaks English, so long as they communicate, does not matter since accent has nothing to do with articulacy. People are not necessarily obligated to conform their language to their setting. In “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas, Starr is stuck between two worlds; her African American family background and the posh private high school dominated by whites. To appeal to the two settings, Starr decides to conform to each of the two environments by varying her English language when speaking.

Lyiscott and Starr emphasize that different people speak the same language differently, which is not a sign of inarticulacy. However, it is poignant that Starr decides to vary her accents to adapt to the home and school settings. Lyiscott refuses to let the setting dictate which flavor of language is articulate. I, therefore, find Lyiscott’s reasoning more compelling. If an American sounds “laughable” when speaking English to a Briton, then there is no point in arguing that a particular flavor of English is more articulate than the other. I do not plan to change my accent when speaking English just because I strolled into a white neighborhood or an African American environment.