Ingratitude, thy name is AI

[Willowmound]

Is it actually Italian? I thought it was just Latin with an Italian accent.

I'd rather have that than Latin with an American accent.

So which accent would players like the Caesar to have? A classical accent? Well, what did that sound like, then?

 

[sandy_tait]

I'd rather have that than Latin with an American accent.

So which accent would players like the Caesar to have? A classical accent? Well, what did that sound like, then?

Oh definitely true - Italian Latin is massively better than just having someone say the lines with a modern American or British accent. At least Italian's the closest modern-day accent. Would, however, be nice if they could have done a little more research. Granted, Latin is probably a fairly tricky one to pin down but it's not impossible and there are thousands of experts out there who make a living out of teaching the language.

But anyway, Caesar's accent isn't one that bothers me overly - like Alexander, it's humorous rather than annoying. Getting the more recent leaders' accents wrong, however, is just plain laziness. Napoleon with a French accent? Come off it.

Related to that, my wife's just told me that Elizabeth is also linguistically wrong, in that she speaks modern English with a plummy accent. The language of Liz's day was definitely recognisable as English and is classified as Modern English but there's a fairly substantial difference in style of speech and the vocab used. Heck, just read Shakespeare - sure, you can understand 95% of it and the bits you can't understand you can probably figure out from context but it's very recognisably different from 20th/21st Century English.

I dunno. For me it's not that they get some of the accents/dialects wrong for the leaders, it's that they get some of them wrong. Were they all just slapdash and had everyone speaking in the modern day language of their country then that'd be fine. Or if they were all speaking in plain old English (or the language appropriate to their retail location), that'd also be fine. What irks me, pedant that I am, is that they have most of the Ancient and Classical leaders speaking the language of their time, or at least a very close approximation, but the more recent leaders speak the same language as people of their nations do now. Seems odd to go to the effort of ensuring reasonable accuracy for the Ancient/Classical leaders (even if a couple of the accents are a bit hokey), but then give everyone after 1500AD an accent and dialect that wouldn't seem too out of place today. Maybe it's just me but I'd rather they either did the job properly and got it right or just didn't do regional/historical speech at all. Just like I prefer my food to be either hot or cold, not tepid and lukewarm.

On a side note, it occurs to me that we've meandered rather sharply away from the foibles of the child-like AI and onto a linguistic pseudo-debate >.>

 

[spoooq]

Elizabethan is a lost accent. Best I could get out of a google is conjecture that it sounded vaguely like a modern American accent. Of course, the words she speaks could easily be in her proper style, as there are lots of texts and transcriptions of speeches, even directly from QEI herself.

"My loving people, we have been persuaded by some that we are careful of our safety, to take heed how we commit ourselves to armed multitudes for fear of treachery; but, I do assure you, I do not desire to live to distrust my faithful and loving people.

Let tyrants fear, I have always so behaved myself, that under God I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts and goodwill of my subjects; and, therefore, I am come amongst you as you see at this time, not for my recreation and disport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of battle, to live or die amongst you all - to lay down for my God, and for my kingdoms, and for my people, my honour and my blood even in the dust.

I know I have the body of a weak, feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king - and of a king of England too, and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realm; to which, rather than any dishonour should grow by me, I myself will take up arms - I myself will be your general, judge, and rewarder of every one of your virtues in the field.

I know already, for your forwardness, you have deserved rewards and crowns, and, we do assure you, on the word of a prince, they shall be duly paid you. For the meantime, my Lieutenant-General Leicester shall be in my stead, than whom never prince commanded a more noble or worthy subject; not doubting but by your obedience to my General, by your concord in the camp, and your valour in the field, we shall shortly have a famous victory over these enemies of my God, of my kingdom and of my people."

Class. She deserves to be in the roster of famous leaders, even without counting all the other things that happened during her reign.