American English Professor hates British English

[Mike Laserbeam]

I understand where he's coming from, although it is pretty annoying.
He teaches the language in the form correct for your country, it's pretty similar to when we're told how to correctly pronounce 'Z', 'Aluminium' or spell 'Colour' the right way. It's correct for the British, but not the Americans. I think it's fair enough that he would say that, it would hardly be ridiculous in the reverse situation.
Having said that, he sounds like a bloody wanker!

 

[phantasmalWordsmith]

I used to get a earful from my older sister for using americanisms, so now I get pissed off when other people use them

 

[Dags90]

[PS, throw some "zeees" in there - I hear you yanks like them, it's sure to cheer him up ]

We do enjoy our Z's. And if you're pronouncing that "zed" there is something horribly, horribly wrong with you. The one exception is Agent Zed, from the Men in Black universe.

I wonder how the subtracted U's and added Z's affect Scrabble score possibilities.

 

[Dags90]

Pretty sure the captcha system just made me double post.

 

[northeast rower]

Its called "English" for a reason. You're prof is one hell of a tosser.

Absolute fail. I would also point out "Its", though that is a common oversight on the internet.

OP: My advice: play to the professor. I'm sorry, but a passing grade is worth more than a mixture of what I guess could be called "grammars". Let me just mention that English in general is often regarded as "the retarded language"- as a Latin scholar I can say that I am a firm believer in this. Instead of having endings for different words in different declensions and genders, we have unnecessary words like "of" "for" "to" and "would", as well as "when" "since" and "although".

 

[Bubbay]

What a narrow minded ****. That's all I have to say on the matter really. While we're on the subject as well: it's 'aluminium'. Pronounce the second U.

Actually, the second 'U' is pronounced in American English. It's the second 'I' that isn't pronounced, mainly because in American English the word is 'aluminum.' Note the presence of only one 'I' in the word.

Incidentally, if you were in the US and used 'aluminium' in a paper, the prof would be correct to mark it as wrong, just as the prof in the UK would be correct in marking it wrong if you spell it 'aluminum.'

Think of it like having to show your work in a math class when you could have done it all in your head. They want you to demonstrate you know the correct way of doing it. Once you are out of the class, do it whatever way you want, whatever country you're in.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

He gave me a bit of a lecture on how quotations are used and how they relate to other punctuation. Apparently, Americans think it's right to always stick punctuation inside the quote, without exception. According to him, that's not always the case for British English.

He's wrong. English has differing rules dependent on whether it's academic, genre or literary fiction. However, he is the teacher. My best advice would be to get a Strunk and White and just follow that. It's only small.

Such as?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_and_British_English_differences

The basics is/are that American English works on the simpler/more readable grammar, while British English works on the specifics of the language roots.

Americans would use "period" while we use "full stop", fall/autumn, biscuit/cookie/crisp/chip. We use "near to" while Americans use "near". We play in a team, they play on a team. That sort of thing.

"We have really everything in common with America nowadays, except, of course, the language"

 

[Nomanslander]

Any other Escapists have experiences like this?

The most of the troubles I've had to deal with when it comes to language in general has been being a bilingual American.

You see, here in a American, no one likes it when you speak a second language, Spanish especially.

For instance, I'm an Armenian American and I remember back when I was going to high school I was grilled by a teacher for speaking Armenian with another student, and this was during break so it's not like I was interrupting her class...-_-

Her argument was that it wasn't fair that she couldn't understand us, and that our language had no use in America so it would've been better if we stopped speaking it completely (I'm being serious). Ever since then I've had a hated for the English language and everything it stands for in the world today.

So how does that sound?....lol

 

[viranimus]

Well its improper to use inconsistent language. American student, American Prof, American class, you generally shouldn't be adding U's to Color and the like, Its not really proper and its inconsistent with the verbal component, unless your like speaking in a Cockney accent or what have you. Sorry. Im siding with the professor.

One thing (and yes I can already sense how many people are going to tell me im wrong before I even get it out) that gets me is the British people clamoring.. Its English! WE INVENTED IT. Cause last I checked from history, Modern English evolved from Old English which was migrated to the British regions around 4th or 5th century by Germanic settlers. From there it evolved with Influences from the times that the Vikings damned near raped and pillaged everything in England, It evolved again during the Norman Conquest of England which infused French, and pushed it to the Middle English era, and shifted one more time to Modern english thanks to how much of the aristocracy died off in the Plague leaving the language to be "gutterized" by the poor peasant folk. So the real "invention" of modern English comes from the British getting their asses kicked by either people or pandemics. Wouldn't be something I would be all that quick to be proud of.

 

[Sonic Doctor]

I'm going with the professor on this one. It doesn't matter if he is teaching American English or English 101. If you are in America you write and are taught the American version of English.

To people that were asking whether the class was called American English or just an English class. That doesn't matter. Because over here there is no such class as American English. All the classes are just titled English: Composition 101 and 201, English Grammar (don't remember the numbers) From my time looking through class lists of two different universities here, there are no classes titled American English, because here we teach English as it has been formed and understood here.

So moral of the story, if you are going to school in America, write like an American.

Just accept it.

 

[Merkavar]

also im my oppinion language is a tool to convey ideas and communicate. if you write or say something the the other person understands completely the you have suceeded at language. so using colour or color does not matter cause you and the other person can both see that it is the word to convey the idea of what colour something is.

also languages are ment to evolve and adapt so if your writing something with the grammar of another conuntry all that means is that their language is more widely spread or something.

like here in australia alot of people have started saying zee instead of zed. it annoys me to no end when i here it from a non american but its because all everyone is brought up on sesame street etc and watch american tv. so the american words are creeping in,

 

[Caiti Voltaire]

Thankfully British English is pretty widely accepted in Canada. Probably more so than American English.

 

[Lem0nade Inlay]

I didn't know there was a difference in grammar, only spelling. Like color-colour, realize-realise etc

 

[The Heik]

I wish I were joking. I'm apparently beginning to blend some bits of American grammar with British grammar... and he hates it. I got a paper that I wrote back today with marks all over the damned thing with one large comment down at the bottom:

"We don't use British grammar here."

It's strange. You'd think that the English... know a thing or two about the English language.

Any other Escapists have experiences like this?

Nope. my English professor was a Brit, so I got it straight from the horse's mouth

Incidentally, you prof is an ass. British English is the original, so technically speaking American grammar is the incorrect version.

 

[sheah1]

Personally I think the fact that there is American English is just ridiculous (I know that seems douchey but it's the english language so people should really use the english language) so this just makes my blood boil to a god-awful point. This is literally like me being prejudiced to Irish people (as I've got a teensy bit of Irish in me), don't be a dick about your own ancestry dickface (the teacher, I mean).

 

[InnerRebellion]

I use British English as well, specifically with words like colour, favourite, and the like. My teachers have learned to put up with it.

 

[Some_weirdGuy]

you know what pisses me off? my internet has a spelling checker, its set to Australian English (which is basically english except for a few tiny differences... i think) yet it seems its full of the American english spelling instead of the british version (which is WHAT WE USE IN AUSTRALIA), and for some reason that pisses me off to no end.

 

[The Random One]

That's kind of silly, but I'm Brazilian and let me tell you something: if you mix up Portugal Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese in a single work, it's going to sound hella goofy, my chap.

 

[icame]

I'd suggest writing fully in 'British English.' If he still gets mad then he is a total dick.

 

[Aerowaves]

If I were marking an essay and there were American words/spellings/expressions, I'd just correct them. I wouldn't make a big deal of pointing it out unless it severely harms their exam chances in which case I'd talk to them about how it's in their best interests to write prop-*ahem* sorry- according to the standards expected by the British educational system and, indeed, culture. I certainly wouldn't go "WE DON'T SPEAK AMERICAN HERE *****".

In short, your teacher sounds like a douche.