Quote:
Originally Posted by CaliforniaGirl
I attended the Universite de Dijon as an exchange student after having studied French for 4 years. In a European History lecture class, the professor called on me, and I answered his question. He then said (in French, obviously), "You must be from the United States." I replied oui, then he said (in English) "You must be from the SOUTHERN United States." I was mortified. I never realized that I spoke French with a southern accent. Traumatized for life, still won't speak French to this day.  |
Don't let it bother you. The main thing is to communicate. Show me a French person speaking English, and I'll show you a person speaking English with a French accent. When we were in Lausanne learning French before spending 20 years in French speaking Africa, the French lady teaching that section told the class (of about 7 nationalities) "You Germans, you can learn French, you Brits, you can learn it pretty well, you Americans, it will be hard." Then she looked at my wife (who is from the South) and said, "...and for you Americans with that strong Dipthong, you will Never speak correct French !" Don't get me wrong, we loved her (Claude is her name) but just because you aren't born into French doesn't mean you can't communicate it it.
‘Faut tout simplement communiquer. C’est une bonne chose. Quand j’arrive a TV pour y habiter l'annee prochaine, je serais très content de faire part de ce group… Mais vous allez me pardonner pour mon accent Africaine....