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American accents are fun |
This little verse was inspired by a gentleman from Looz-ee-anna who commented to me "Ah cain't unnerstan a woo-ard thay-et laydee sayuz." I thought that was pretty funny - she had a standard Australian accent. He had a Louisiana bayou accent so thick you could cut it with a knife. It's all in the point of view! |
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The UK's got accents galore. |
Not kidding either; every time I hear a new accent, I become the world's best listener. If you're from the UK, and want a crying shoulder, you've got one — as long as you promise not to do your whinging in boring BBC English. I'll even listen to RP accents (with a wince or two).... |
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The Aussies just make me so dizzy. |
As I might have mentioned before, I'm a bit enamoured of the Australian accent. A male with the accent has probably got a date, even if he's otherwise a total rotter. No, I'm not silly enough to fall in love with a man for his accent, but I might buy a beer or two to keep him talking! |
Explanations
Limericks
- A limerick must have five lines.
- Lines one, two and five must rhyme with each other
- Lines three and four must rhyme with each other
- Lines one, two and five must have the rhythm: (da) da DUM da da DUM da da
DUM (da) - Lines three and four have the rhythm: (da) da DUM da da DUM (da)
What I like about limericks is that they have rules:
The beats in parentheses are optional. For example (with strong beats in bold):
Yes, a limerick really should rhyme
If it doesn't, that's truly a crime.
It needs a beat too,
But between me and you,
I sometimes forget to keep time!
In strict format, one should try to keep the number of syllables the same, but it's not really necessary for limericks done just for fun. You'll notice in the above example that the lines are 9, 9, 5, 6, and 8 syllables (respectively), but it still scans. Most people try to do limericks by syllables, but it's the
beat that counts. Usually you should try to use a strong word for the DUM beat if it's a single syllable, or the use syllable that is normally accented if the word has more than one syllable. You can also sometimes get away (or try) with accenting a syllable that would emphasise the word if you were speaking it. So try writing a few, they are lots of fun!
If you want that in technical language, a limerick is an aabba rhyme scheme. Either an anapest (da da DUM) or iamb (da DUM) is acceptable for the beginning of each line, the rest of the feet are anapest. A extra trailing weak beat is optional on each line. Lines one, two, and five have three feet; lines three and four have two feet. No, really, I do not write poetry. I do write Limericks because I like them. (I've got a bit tired of arguing that Limericks are poetry, even if they are a low form!)
Accents
You say toe-may-toe, I say toe-mah-toe; you say a-gehn, I say a-gain. Everyone's got an accent, but very few admit it. I've got several, depending on who I've been talking to lately. English accents tend to throw me into a BBC 'middle of the ocean accent', and US southern will only cause me to drawl a bit and say y'all instead of you guys. I do pick up Scots accents, Australian, and Jamaican if I'm around those. I also pick up Canadian and most non-southern US accents (except for Boston -- grew up with that one, and I'm immune).
The only accent I don't hear as an accent is New Jersey; that is the one I revert to in times of stress, or times of one too many stouts (or whatever). Normally, though, I even notice that one -- by noticing that I'm not hearing an accent.
But Why?
So there you have it -- my little trilogy on accents in Limerick form is an expression of a great fondness for both. Hope you enjoyed them!

Just testing.
Comment by Kathy K — 30 Jul, 2002 @ 20:59
Hello
Comment by Caitlin Polidori — 20 Dec, 2002 @ 14:05