atw: [OT] Writing for multiple Englishes: was writing for Aus audiences
- From: Gary Stevens <gstevens@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: " Austechwriter" <austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 14 Oct 2005 16:29:20 +1000
I'm sure the world is full of people of breath-taking ignorance, and
Australians are certainly capable of producing world-class idiots. Recall
that couple on the north coast flying a Nazi flag a few months ago who
claimed never to have heard of Hitler? And I heard Dr Karl mention on the
ABC that he has met numerous Aussies who did not know who Einstein was.
My own experiences have mainly been with quite highly educated Americans.
I spent a year teaching at a major US university, and kept being surprised
by the sort of questions I got from people with so many letters after
their names that they needed business cards the size of beach towels. One
I sometimes got was "Do Aussies celebrate Independence Day?" Or, recently,
I was asked to suggest a prize for an international essay competition
being run from the US. The organiser was in a bit of a flap, worrying how
to get prizes to overseas winners. I suggested an Amazon gift certificate,
as something trivially easy to get to to the recipient, and one usable
anywhere in the world (pretty much). My correspondent was a bit taken
aback: he had assumed that Amazon was a purely American affair.
Canadians, to the contrary, seem much more worldly-wise.
Garry
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