在中國，普通話作為官方語言的地位日益鞏固。然而在英國，為什么大多數的英國人不遵循標準的發(fā)音["standard pronunciation" or RP(received pronunciation)]，卻喜歡操著一口地方口音呢?難道英國人不認為RP English是"perfect English"嗎?可我們中國人學英語伊始接觸的卻都是RP English呀。學好英語的一個重要標準就是發(fā)音準確、純正，不能南腔北調的。難道這種觀念過時了嗎?
對此，BBC的一位發(fā)言人是這么解釋的：
RP is an expression which is used in the media and it's the kind of English that used to be spoken on television or radio. In fact RP English is not standard English in the sense that it's not what most people speak. It's very rare that you'll find someone who really speaks RP English, probably the queen is one of the few people who speak that way.
請注意，上面這段話中提到RP used to be spoken on television or radio，"used to be"意味著曾經如此，而現在已經不同了。也就是說，從使用人數這個意義上來說，RP不是標準英語。因為它不能反映絕大多數人的講話語音。
那么，RP是從何而來的?標準英語語音來源于英國等級制度，上層社會一律要服從標準口音模式，這也就是英國女王為什么要是RP口音的原因了。
In Britain there are lots of different accents and dialects. Generally speaking you can tell a lot about a person's social, educational and geographical background from the way he or she speaks. 英國社會有許多種口音。一般來說，口音能反映一個人的社會、教育背景和出生地，你也可以通過英國人講話的口音來判斷其所代表的社會等級。
In the past the most prestigious accent was what we call RP but this is no longer as fashionable as it once was. 過去曾被公認的高貴語音(即標準語音)，隨著社會的發(fā)展，已經不再時髦。如今在英國的電視和廣播里面，大家可以聽到各種各樣的口音。媒體也流行起地方口音了。There's less pressure now to conform. 外界壓力減小，人們再也不需要循規(guī)蹈矩地、拿腔拿調地去模仿標準口音了。
人們不再追求往昔的上流口音，這種變化的原因又是什么呢?
One of the characteristics of British society is that people are often very proud of the class that they are from, if they are working class they are proud of being working class; if they are middle class they are quite proud of being middle class; and if they are upper class they are proud of being upper class. They don't necessarily want to belong to a different class; not everybody wants to be upper class, in fact some people think that upper class people are a little bit silly. This is something that we sometimes called inverse snobbery. 英國社會不再那么強調字正腔圓的純正語音。每個階層都為自己的口音感到自豪，而中下階層也對上層社會的口音表現得不屑一顧。
Even for job interviews, pronunciation is no longer the key to success. Alison Burger is working for a recruitment consultancy and she said as long as you are articulate and eloquent and have the skills, then you get the job. 應聘咨詢公司的職位，只要發(fā)音清楚，吐字清楚，能言善辯，就可以贏得工作。
所以，英國現在最流行的口音就是： Don't copy other people's accents, but sometimes adjust your own accent according to different situations.以自己的口音為榮，同時又能根據場合調整口音。
調查顯示，只有百分之三的英國人講話是標準語音!這么說，我們學英語的人也用不著在語音上下太大的功夫了?Althought you don't have to speak RP, you do need to speak clearly and effectively. 我們至少要做到articulate and eloquent，口齒清楚并且能言善辯。
英國普通話已經不再流行，何時我們電臺和廣播里的口音也能百家爭鳴呢?
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