Date:  Mon, 14 Mar 1994 10:02:35 -0600

From:  Natalie Maynor <maynor[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]RA.MSSTATE.EDU>

Subject: Re: Conscious Learning of Accent



While working in upstate NY one summer when I was in college, I changed

my pronunciation of the name Karen from [ke...] to [kE...] because I was

getting tired of the laughter from the teenagers in the water-skiing

class every time I spoke to Karen. Interestingly, that change has stuck

with me for Karen, Mary, dairy, etc. except that I found myself saying

[ker[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]n] again not long ago when talking to my mother about a former

neighbor of that name -- somebody I had always called [ker[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]n] since I

had known her before my shift to [kEr[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]n].

  --Natalie (maynor[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]ra.msstate.edu)