New English - By Jacqueline Gartmann

Description
This is an abstract of a talk given by Jacqueline Gartmann at the ASTTI (Association Suisse des Traducteurs, Terminologues et Interprètes) regional meetings in Zurich and Bern. From the text:

Language, and not only spoken language, is an essential element in our relationships; first impressions are significantly influenced by language and our rapport with others is subject to the emotive connotations of the particular language and way it is used. People are labeled according to the way they speak. English reflects regional and educational differences so clearly that in the past public figures tended to adopt an anodyne and anonymous “BBC English”. Today accent and idiomatic diction are recognised as part of the personality, but acceptance in public speaking has come very slowly. George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, the basis for the musical My Fair Lady, and Paul Scot's Jewel in the Crown both deal with this aspect of English.