The Phonological Evolution of current spoken English: a case study

Abstract

The present project aimed at examining the innovative phonological features of current spoken English. In order to accomplish this intricate task, several theoretical sections were introduced as essential background information. These divisions were entitled under the headlines “Standard English”, “Received Pronunciation Accent” and its “main features”. Additionally, it was intended to make explicit the ongoing phonological tendencies. Therefore, a case study was conducted to provide a detailed explanation of the new trends, their users as well as people’s attitudes towards them. Once an exhaustive exploration of these aspects was completed, the last purpose of the final project was to discover whether several connections could be made between Estuary English and Received Pronunciation. Most importantly, it deepened on the issue of whether the stated contemporary phonological trends could be part of a new RP. As a support of this hypothesis, several phoneticians as well as linguists provided their own account on this topic. It seemed apparent that the selected topic is one of the concerns of many authors these days. They are concerned with Estuary English and Received Pronunciation since they came to be seen in opposition. However, they could alternatively be seen as a modern variety of RP.