Wizarding English: was Re: [HPforGrownups] Re: If Muggles are unaware of Wizards

[Steve <bboy_mn@yahoo.com>]

No: HPFGUIDX 49693

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Irene Mikhlin"
<irene_mikhlin at b...> wrote:

> > bboy_mn said:
> > Compare how Harry and Ron talk relative to the way Daniel and
> > Rupert talk, and I think you will see that Harry and Ron speak 
> > a very basic standard quality English. It's not colored by modern 
> > phrases, or ethnic brogue. Harry and Ron don't describe anything 
> > and everthing they see as being either 'cool' or 'wicked'.

> Irene responded:
> 
> The point is - Harry and Ron speak the same, despite their very
> different upbringing. Ron only has wizarding books and wizarding 
> radio and yet his vocabulary and speech patterns are the same as 
> Harry's.
> 
> Irene

Close but not quite. Ron knows all kinds of wizard slang like 'squib'
that Harry doesn't. Harry on the other hand lived a very isolated
life. True, he was in a muggle school with lots of muggle kids, but
thanks to Dudley, I think Harry did everything possible to spend all
his time alone, because alone was the only safe place to be. So he
wouldn't pick up on a lot of the generational language that all his
peer would.

Both Harry and Ron speak 'Good Boy' English. These are decent civil
well mannered 'Good Boys', there not Cockney Boys or football
hooligans, and that is reflected in their proper and respectful
speech. Stan Shumpike on the other hand, while he may be a good boy,
he is not a "Good Boy", not a refined and proper young English
gentleman (through no fault of his own).

All the fine young students at Hogwarts seem to be well mannered 'Good
Boys' and 'Good Girls'. They speak in common refined 'Good' English as
opposed to heavy generational slang. Even Daniel and Rupert, although
Daniel more so, speak 'Good Boy' English. Now Tome Felton, on the
other hand, while he may be a good boy and even a "Good Boy", has an
accent so thick when he is not using his stage voice that I can barely
understand him.

Just a few more thoughts.

bboy_mn