What can I do about my accent?
This is the main reason I don't participate in the Skype chats.
I’m at the point now where I speak and read Spanish in public. Now, my southern United States accent is embarrassing me so much I’m beginning to avoid speaking at all. I had a prayer in Spanish and English last Sunday, and the preacher could not avoid saying (he had an interpreter, by the way) that we had heard “Spanish spoken with a Georgia accent”. In fact, most of the criticism is coming from the English speaking people, not the Spanish speakers.
The Hispanic members say they can understand me very well. My pronunciation is clear, my cadence is slower than most, but my voice is strong.
If you’ve ever heard George W. Bush try to speak Spanish, you have the idea.
I can’t stand to hear myself recorded and played back. This is very discouraging. I've looked through some previous threads on this subject, but does anyone have a recommendation?
Edit starts here ------
I can't tell you how encouraging this thread has been for me. Hiladora, I believe you spoke directly to the root of my problem. Others have endorsed your opinion, too. I will not be so concerned about how English speakers regard my accent while speaking Spanish, and I will try to attend a beginner Skype chat when I am able.
Hiladora, I want to add that I believe you have a wonderful writing style. I'm glad you are a member here. I look forward to seeing more of your posts.
Thanks, everyone!
14 Answers
If Spanish speakers can understand you well, ignore the English speakers who are giving you a bad time. I don't know if you are living outside of Georgia right now, but some people are simply a bit prejudiced against people with Southern accents. This is their problem, not yours, and you shouldn't let it get to you if you can help it. The preacher probably thought he was being funny or cute, but if he was using an interpreter, he doesn't have much expertise in Spanish and thus isn't in a position to judge you.
Do not let people's rude comments stop you from practicing your Spanish by speaking in public and on Skype. Those are important parts of improving. I wish I could give you good advice about how to stand up to the people mocking your accent, but I've never been good at that sort of thing, so hopefully others can chime in and give you some tips. For now, just try not to let it get you down. There's nothing wrong with having an accent (in your first language or second), and you don't need to let it stop you from speaking when you want to speak.
Good luck!
I add my vote to those who have said "so what?".
I'd loooooove to be able to produce a nice Royal British accent, imitate an Indian accent (which I find delightful), reproduce the delicious New Zealander cadences, speak like a Jamaican, or duplicate the musicality of the Black speech of Harlem or Black Louisiana.... But I just can't. My best attempts are pitiful, and in the best of cases, although my spoken English is quite good, there's always a Hispanic accent there in the background. But it's ok, people understand me, and I can get what I need done.
Oh my goodness I love southern accents!
I don't think anyone should ever try to destroy their accent, it's important to pronounce words right and use intonation sensitively at certain times (like when asking for a favour!) but if you completely destroy your accent you often adopt a personality that isn't yours.
I once sat next to a very soft spoken and educated sounding Czech girl on a plane who had learned perfect English from Dublin Northsiders, (Watch the film "Adam and Paul" for an example of the accent) This is a wonderful accent but it's very very tough and if she had been born an English speaker I feel she would have naturally toned it down without even realizing it.
Then there's been the opposite happen* with people who in their own language are very excitable and warm and friendly and they learned perfect Queen's English so when they swap languages their speech suddenly makes them seem very cold and formal.
No one should be ashamed of where they're from, it's part of who you are, and for that reason I think accents come with a lot of baggage that you can't sense if you're not a native speaker.
It's possible to speak a language perfectly and still retain a bit of your own language. You need to make it your own 
*I think that was a bit of Hiberno-English Grammar for you there, sorry, in standard English it should be "Then the opposite has happened"
Hiladora said:
If Spanish speakers can understand you well, ignore the English speakers who are giving you a bad time.
I agree completely. As long as you are understood, what's the big deal about sounding unique?
Why not come join the beginner Skype chats and we'll tell you if you are off base in your pronunciation or just a Spanish-speaking southern gentleman.
P.s. I LOVE that you are volunteering and learning Spanish so that you can help others. God, the Universe, or whatever Higher Power you believe in will help you along your path to fluency because you have such good intentions.
. Now, my southern United States accent is embarrassing me so much I’m beginning to avoid speaking at all.
Well, I am calling Ken to this thread!
Everybody knows by now I am hopelessly in love with him...due to his accent
Apart from being such a nice guy of course
He is from Alabama....and nobody can possibly speak slower, jeje, we love him on our chats and he was also the typical guy who said, oh no, I feel embarrassed. Now he is a regular, just like Ron, now that is one good accent too
Hi Dogwood,
I can share with you what helped me, but you have to be brave for this one .
Find some songs that are pronounciated very clearly and look up their lyrics. Read them out loud for yourself a couple of times and get to know the music very well. Then finally, S I N G A L O N G ! Really! Find the right cadence of the music and follow the singers interpretation and timing. It takes a while but it worked wonders for me.
Now, since I'm a huge fan of latin music, I don't stick to Spanish singers. Bachata music is very slow and their lyrics are mostly about love so they're not too hard to understand. There are also slow salsa songs.
Here are some examples:
Joe Veras - La travesia Video Joe Veras - La travesia Lyrics
Alex Bueno - Adios Video Alex Bueno - Adios Lyrics
Gloria Estefan - Ayer Video Gloria Estefan - Ayer Lyrics
You can learn lyrics by heart and sing along in the car, in the shower, on your bike... you might have talents you never knew you had .
Hope this tip wil give you a different way to practise, and also a good laugh!
Have a good day and I would love to hear if this works for you.
Saludos, Chica
Hey, Dogwood, you are a special person. I guess I am too, but I didn't know it until I started going to the chats. It's not like you have a choice in the matter. It took you a good long time to develope that rich southern accent and you should embrace it. Come on out to the Skype chat and you, Ken and me can have some grits and chat it up.
I love your accent, Dogwood. You have a great sounding voice, a beautiful baritone. I'm sorry I missed hearing you speaking Spanish this time, but now that you are participating in the chats, I am sure you will improve. However, most of us speak Spanish with some kind of accent and the native speakers actual enjoy some of the accents. So let's just speak it anyway accent or not. See you on Skype and at the chats!
It has been almost a week since I posted this thread. I would like to provide a follow-up in an effort to encourage other members having a similar problem.
After reviewing the responses on this thread and attending a chat session last night, I believe I can view this situation from a different perspective.
First, I looked at the people who mocked and ridiculed me. They were all English-only speakers. People fluent in Spanish sometimes laugh at my accent, but it is not ridicule. They often provide helpful criticism, which I appreciate. Those who ridicule provide no helpful function. Their intent is unclear, but if it does not encourage or train, ignore it. After further analysis, it appears that the cause of this behavior extends far beyond my accent and limitations with the language. Other factors are at work here that have nothing to do with my accent, but everything to do with my desire to learn Spanish and work in the community.
Second, after attending a chat session last night I realized an accent is a normal human attribute, developed based on social environment. Everyone there had an accent. No one mocked or ridiculed me because no one sounded alike. I had a problem pronouncing the ending vowels in some preterite conjugations (comí, to be specific), but a native speaker quickly corrected me and we moved on. That is exactly what I need.
My point is this. Do not allow another person's comments, attitude, or ridicule discourage, dissuade or otherwise impede you from learning the language. Keep your focus on the objective.
Dogwood my very good friend, have you ever heard me speaking ?
I sound like a dog dragging it's rear portions over a gravel driveway,
You just listen to the comments I get from the English members (god love em)
And even some of the U S members think that I make up half the words I
speak , compared to my raucous grating accent you sound like a gentle flowing
stream . Come to the chat again , listen to me, have a laugh and pretend you are
Antonio Banderas.
OK, your profile says you now live in Chattanooga, TN. What business does ANYone in Chattanooga have complaining about somebody's southern accent? THAT, my friend, is the pot calling the kettle black!
The good thing is that Spanish is a foreign language to all English speakers. No matter if we are from London, England or London, Kentucky- we all have to learn a Spanish accent from scratch, so who really cares what accent you are starting with? That shouldn't affect your Spanish accent one iota!
And dogwood, just to make you feel better- we had a Skype chat about 2 weeks ago for learners of English. We celebrated the fact that we had English speakers from 4 continents. The guys from Bammer...ooops..I mean Alabama..... ..and South Florida were the most popular people on the call, because everyone loved their southern US accents.
So by all means, join us on one of the calls. You have absolutely nothing to fear.
Chica has brought up a very interesting point. I can't fit my comments into the comment section, so I'm going to add this here.
We have congregational singing at church, acapella. I lead the singing in Spanish on Wednesdays and the first Sunday of the month. My accent is minimal when I'm singing. I don't understand that, but it reminds me of some techniques used in the movie "The King's Speech".
I believe chica may have a very interesting solution.
This is a pretty funny thread.
**My pronunciation is clear, my cadence is slower than most, but my voice is strong.
If you’ve ever heard George W. Bush try to speak Spanish, you have the idea.
I can’t stand to hear myself recorded and played back. **
That sounds like me except I don't have a particularly strong voice. I used to think I got it from growing up in Tennessee but I have a brother who sounds a lot like me and he has never lived in Tennessee. Maybe he got it from me.
I wouldn't worry too much about the accent - if Ron and I can survive a chat you can too. These folks are the nicest you will ever run across. Ron must be from southern Illinois. jeje
There are lots of good and encouraging thoughts already on this thread that say more than I could; I like the idea about the music - I'll have to try that one.
You will enjoy the chat.
I decided I'd better not say that. 
