Dialects 

“a regional variety of language distinguished by features of vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation from other regional varieties and constituting together with them a single language”

There are up to 25 different dialects within the U.S., with many of them dying or are dead.2 Dialects are often used to discriminate against people seen as low class or uneducated, exacerbating this problem. In order to accurately portray the identities of Americans, preservation of their dialects is essential.  

My project explores five specific dialects due to their unique American geography. These dialects are often given media exposure that reduces them to a “funny” way of speaking. I am preserving what we have left of the US’s current dialects through text, sound, and facial expressions. Manifestations of a person's culture and values are present in their dialects, the pursuit of dialect preservation is in turn the preservation of American history.  

Most dialect coaches use a combination of sensory elements to teach actors how to get the pronunciation of the accent right, and I use these techniques as well in my exhibition. Additionally, to learn the complete dialect there needs to be interaction with how people from those areas talk with one another, as there are specific words, grammar, and facial expressions to each dialect.3 Design representation of words is malleable and can communicate more than just the connotation of a word and that is what this installation seeks to express. Imagery, sound, and movement together can preserve the complex nature of dialects. Without these dialects, we will look to see a loss of our American identity. The vast variation of dialects in America shows their nuanced differences and this should be celebrated through preservation.