“It is impossible for an Englishman to open his mouth without making some other

Englishman despise him. “

The quote is by George Bernard Shaw, from his play Pygmalion that was firstly
presented in English on stage to the public in 1913. (Wikipedia 2022) At first glance this
quote may seem a little bit confusing to people who live outside the United Kingdom (and
their first language is not English) which makes us overthink its original meaning but in the
end its meaning is not as philosophical as it may seem. So, what is the true meaning of this
quote? And what can we find behind this quote if we dig a little deeper? First off, we should
look at the entire quote.:

The English have no respect for their language, and will not teach their children to
speak it. They cannot spell it because they have nothing to spell it with but an old
foreign alphabet of which only the consonants – and not all of them – have any agreed
speech value. Consequently no man can teach himself what it should sound like from
reading it; and it is impossible for an Englishman to open his mouth without making
some other Englishman despise him. (Shaw 2022)
So, from the context filled in we can see that this quote has truly turned out to be less
confusing and we can start to see where all of this may be going.

The term "Englishman" generally refers to the people who live in England, a country
part of the United Kingdom. All Englishmen communicate with one common
language, which is English. However, one Englishman may use a type of English
language that is different from the type of English language used by another
Englishman. The types or varieties of the English language differ by features of
grammar, vocabulary, and phonology and this is known as dialect.
(markedbyteachers.com n.d. 2022)
It is a known fact that languages all around the globe have their own accents and
slangs depending on which part of the country one is currently situated in or it may even
depend on the fact that one might be in a totally different country that uses the same language
every day. United Kingdom is notorious for its variety in slangs and accents from the
Received Pronunciation („RP“), which is being used by the upper class and recommended for
individuals who are just beginning to learn English, to the typical London and Southern
London accent that is usually affiliated with the United Kingdom’s rap and hip-hop scene and
it’s seen as the true British accent by the rest of the world.

The RP is being taught in schools especially the prestigious ones and therefore, if an
Englishman speaks without the use of RP accent, they may be considered as not being the part
of the upper class. This can often lead towards the judgement that may come from the other
Englishmen. Basically, any other accent that differs from RP was and to this day still is
considered by the upper-class Englishmen as a sign of a lack of education and prestige. That
being said in recent years the RP is being used less than ever before mainly because of the
young generations despising conformity and having the need of revolting against the
standards and authority which may be represented by schools. This behavior alone is a perfect
example of the ways the Englishmen can despise each other just by the fact that one of them
uses a different type of an accent than the other individual. Such judgement and unfair
treatment based on the way and individual speaks is called accentism. (accentism.org. 2022)

From a legal perspective, in the United Kingdom, accent discrimination in and of itself
is not a criminal offence. However, let’s say that someone has been mistreated at work
because of their race. This mistreatment could very well be a legal matter because race
(like sexual orientation and gender identity) is a protected attribute. One way that
someone might express their racial background is through their speech, and it is this
expression that might be at the centre of a legal dispute. Accentism affects people in a
range of contexts. For instance, speakers of certain accents are more likely to be
associated with criminal behaviours by juries. (Dr Kelly 2018)
If we go back to the beginning, we may think to ourselves: „So what was the deeper
meaning of the quote? What can be also hidden behind it?“ If we think about it enough then
this whole quote, when it’s taken out of context, can be used for the rest of the world as well,
whether we talk about politics, whether we talk about religion or even something as basic as
our favorite food. There will always be someone who will oppose our opinions and despise
everything about us and that’s exactly why it is impossible for an Englishman to open their
mouth without making some other Englishman despise them.
 Bibliography

1. Wikipedia contributors, "Pygmalion (play)," Wikipedia, The Free

Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Pygmalion_(play)&oldid=1069273260 (accessed February 14, 2022).
2. Shaw, G., 2022. The Project Gutenberg eBook of Pygmalion, by George Bernard
Shaw. [online] Gutenberg.org. Available at:
<https://www.gutenberg.org/files/3825/3825-h/3825-h.htm> [Accessed 14 February
2022].

3. “Discuss ‘It Is Impossible for an Englishman to Open His Mouth without Making
Some Other Englishman Despise Him." - University Linguistics, Classics and Related
Subjects - Marked by Teachers.com.” Marked by Teachers. Accessed February 15,
2022. https://www.markedbyteachers.com/university-degree/linguistics-classics-and-
related-subjects/discuss-it-is-impossible-for-an-englishman-to-open-his-mouth-
without-making-some-other-englishman-despise-him.html/.
4. “About.” The Accentism Project. Accessed February 15, 2022. https://accentism.org/.
5. Dr Kelly, Sarah. "What is accentism?" Future Learn, 13. Sep. 2018,
https://www.futurelearn.com/info/courses/accents-attitudes-and-identity-an-
introduction-to-sociolinguistics/0/steps/64580. Accessed 27. Jan. 2022.