The Influence of Dialects...

As many already know my life consists of constantly moving around from one culture and country to another. Going back and forth from the U.A.E. and Canada language for me consisted of constantly having to accommodate to the native tongue of the majority around me. Currently, I live in the U.A.E. and spend most of my time primarily speaking english. Considering the fact that I attend an international school in the U.A.E., the dialect of english that I speak with the classmates and friends is repeatedly modified as I am having to converse with dialects from all around the world. Unconsciously, I have picked up different pronunciations of certain words. This wasn't noticeable to me when I was in the U.A.E., but only became evident as I travelled back to Canada this summer. From the moment I started speaking with my friends and family in Canada, they immediately noticed a shift in the way I was speaking and told me that I wasn't speaking “proper” english anymore. It really made me think the extent in which people are quick to judge wether it is standard english or not. To my friends back in Abu Dhabi the english I spoke was considered above average as to many, english was not their first language. Having this experience really made me feel disconnected with my identity, the reason being when I spoke arabic with my family they would then tell me I have an english accent. I felt as though in both cultures and languages I didn't identify with their criteria of perfect speech.