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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ต.ค. 2024
- Artist Safwat Saleem grew up with a stutter -- but as an independent animator, he decided to do his own voiceovers to give life to his characters. When TH-cam commenters started mocking his Pakistani accent, it crushed him, and his voice began to leave his work. Hear how this TED Fellow reclaimed his voice and confidence in this charming, thoughtful talk.
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...those who mock accents, probably speak only one language and that too not so well.
Troll? Are you intentionally using poor grammar to prove a point i'm unaware of?
yes
You must be very special then.
+Naeem Khan finding something hilarious isn't the same as mocking it. It's the difference between "You have an accent. I find its use amusing in certain contexts and I don't mind it at all." and "omg you sound funny time for me to make jokes at your expense"
What would you like me to be? A woman or guy with low self-esteem? Maybe latter so you can suck on it to raise it up.
The biggest sign of low self esteem is putting others down. Confidence takes work, with it comes politeness. Nice talk :)
People who mock people with strange accents are everywhere, they're just typical narrow-minded people that don't know that everyone has a bit of wisdom to teach
Further, the people with accents often speak more than one language. Americans who mock them-most of them only English speakers-would do well to remember this.
Dear dislike brigade:
If you actually watch the video, you realise that he's not just complaining about his own woes, he's making a really important point about how "normality" is sidelining anybody who falls outside of what is considered to be "normal", even if statistically they are a large portion of the population.
You might not realise it, but that's important to you too, since statistically most of you watching fall outside what is "normal" in one way or another.
+
The insecurity that is associated with being abnormal is a evolutionary adaptation that helps us adapt or behavior in a manor that is conducive to group survival. Insecurity and criticism will always be present, no ted talk will change that. It's just an unfortunate aspect of humanity that we have to learn to cope with.
+
DaCamponTwee
Ironic, since this instict has threatened our species more than any other.
Insecurity may always exist, which is why challenging it is even more important.
I agree , Best comment for 2016 :D ♥
If native english makes fun of your accent,ask how many languages he/she speaks.
What if they speak 5 and all of them with better accents than you, dipshit?
@@PravinDahal What do you want to prove? In this video's comment section? OP just trying to speak up for the people who got humiliated by native English speakers.
@@Lavimoe I'm saying that people who make fun of accents are those whose native language is not English but they have better accents than of those who they criticize.
@@PravinDahal That's a really interesting point of view and I believe there are people like this out in the world. But unfortunately in my experience it's usually the native English speakers. Please understand that people's experience can vary from place to place.
If i'm australian what should i ask them?
I find accents very cool and I dont understand the point of people making fun of it.
because it's different and sounds weird. not to say people with accents are weird or stupid by any means, but thats probably why I and many other people find accents funny.
+VentMagic102 yeahh I too find some accents quite funny but make fun of it sometimes but when is it too much that people get all victimized?
I said this above.There's about an 85% that if you're an American, you only speak English. The people with the accents are most likely bilingual (or multilingual). Some jealousy, perhaps.
They do
Not all ppl find it cool or amazing ..
what he is trying to say is to have some empathy and face your fears.we all must accept others for what they are.
Only people who doesn't speak at least two languages won't understand the goal of this video. Thank you for this though, it reminds me my story in my first day in a french school with my african accent. I'm eased that other people are sharing my story and could make fun that 😊
"only people who doesn't speak" WRONG NICE TRY DUMB DUMB
This man is probably more intelligent than anybody making fun of his accent. Also, most probably funnier than the same people.
gosh I hope he doesn't read some of these comments
I'm liking the positive ones so they're pushed to the top.
Yeah, the positive stuff are pushed to the top. That's something new in TH-cam
They aren't, it just so happens the positive comments are getting more likes and replies, and therefore TH-cam determines them to be popular and puts them closer to the top of the comment section.
There are three comments in a row that are calling this guy a narcissist. But isn't narcissism an unrealistic positive view of one's self? There is nothing wrong with someone being happy about himself. He has overcome self doubt. I appreciate this talk very much.
i dont think his accents hard to follow, but youtube comments and children are vicious creatures
It's even clearer in his History of Video Games video. On top of that, the video had English subtitles. I think it was his voice which might've triggered some of the audience. Most TED lectures are narrated by professional narrators. His voice definitely stood out in a negative way.
people are so mean and although I can't apologize for them. bless you
I too, will try to speak up from now on. Thank you for the inspiration!
This is a very inspiring talk. As a teacher of English for Foreign Learners, I witness every day how being self-conscious of one's accent can impact one's ability to develop confidence and speaking skills. But I always try to talk to my students about this and show them how our accent is not a flaw. It's a part of our identity, part of our history. It tells a story about where we come from and what we have experienced in life. It obviously takes a long time to deconstruct this idea of "I have to sound like a native speaker, otherwise I'm not good at speaking English". But it's wonderful to see the gain in confidence when it happens. ♥
I feel like a lot of people in the comments don't have a close friend who is a second language speaker of their native language. I live with my brothers Japanese girlfriend who has lived here for years. She works every day to improve upon her pronunciation and spent the whole summer doing an English course. It can be so frustrating to ESL kids when people say they haven't been working hard enough to learn the language and then proceed to mock their accent. It's a normal and understandable thing when someone is self-conscious about their accent.No one likes to be made a joke of! But whatever, loved this Ted talk and the way he incorporated the animation into it. Hopefully the comments get more positive!
I stumbled on this oldvideo because today my father-in-law, for the millionth time, made fun of my accent. I was not that self-conscious of my accent since here in California a lot of people have accent. It is an immigrants' country and accent should be a normality, but he actually made me uncomfortable and self-conscious now. It is so relieving to read your comments and have the knowledge that people like you are out there showing compassion and understanding.
@@Narabobo I'm really sorry to hear that; more people, especially ones who have never even attempted to learn another language, need to be more understanding. The key thing to remember about people learning other languages is that they are attempting to communicate with a bigger range of people and cultures and broaden their understanding of the world, which is a very beautiful and very human thing. You should be proud of yourself for doing what you've done, so keep going and I really hope that your father-in-law can show you a bit more empathy someday. America has never, will never, and should never be a monolingual nation.
@@kiarraburd Thanks a lot, Kiarra!
I love that he was able to face his fears and overcome them.. now that takes courage.
Mr. Saleem, may I say this directly to you: this is one of the best TED Talks I've ever seen, and you very precisely stripped societal norms down to the core problem - norms themselves.
This talk is the very essence of TED, as TED is built upon basic interaction in a societal context, taken to new heights. The more people who hear you, the more people capable of furthering their heights, or redirecting them. Bravo!
I think his accent is cute
Me Tarzan.
You Jane!
+Reverend Eslam Religion makes you stupid
+Patternicity ummm... WHAT??? How did religion ended up with my comment?
+Patternicity oh... You're not referring to me. LOL. I'm sorry, didn't see that. Also, youtube is going crazy nowadays. Again, I'm sorry. My bad 😁
same
I love his accent, accents are so amazing to me.
I'm not a native speaker and could understand every word...
This is my new favorite TED Talk
Funny and interesting. And heart-breaking when you think how much people feel 'less than' because of the way they speak. But, honestly, accents (and speech impediments) are actually cool. I have a weird one -- mixed British and American with a bit of Thai thrown in :) Oh and Safwat, if you read this, two things a) always stay ABNORMAL. Normal is boring. It's just like everyone else. And why would you want to be like that :) Normal people rarely achieve anything remarkable. It's the 'abnormal' ones that shine. and b) Ignore people on the Internet. A huge percentage are twats who would never dare say to your face what they'll say hiding behind their fake names online.
So true, people learn normal things, same subjects, Same merit system!
And at the end society expects out of the box from them, which can happen only if they are not normal!
sorry you had to endure the abuse, and so glad you found your voice. most of us are so very self-conscious of how we perceive our own voices, and we do not realize until later in life, we are all equally ugly or equally beautiful. So bravo, sir !
Accents are awesome, They tell you a story about people, I used to have an accent when i first moved to Australia, and to be honest it did effect me, people did mock me. But now whenever I deliberately speak in an accent, people laugh because it's cool. It's too bad that the world isn't more accepting! AMAZING TED TALK!
Tbh, I know how this guy feels because I struggled and still struggle to some extent with the fear of revealing my flaws in speech (not to the extent of this guy though) but everyone has problems and we all have to overcome them.
Really enjoyed this talk! Sociolinguistics is an important topic often overlooked, keep speaking up!
this makes a huge amount of sense
Very well said. Very courageous. These "normal expectations" are closely tied with entitlement. And is made worse by the fact that social media platforms allow anyone to use cowardly anonymity to decry in an abusive manner, anything different from what its expected.
I found his voice quite soothing actually.
OMG !! I'm the same way, although he has got over it. Hope I would someday get over it too. I feel depressed when I can't even do the simple conversation. It's not just English, but the other 3 languages that I speak. I stutter in all of them.
Honestly, people mocking accents usually speak one language and don’t know how hard it is to get rid of your native accent.
I'm so grateful for your talk. As a child I found it so hard to communicate with other children and preferred to stay at home drawing.
You've given me courage to start expressing myself and communicating once again through drawing. I've waited a long time, a lifetime, and at seventy years old I shall start again. Thank you so much and by the way I love your voice it suits all the characters and you 😃
I just got mocked by a stranger while I was speaking to my friend in London. I was mad. How could this little comment leave such a bad taste? But it did. Now I’m over it after hearing this! Thanks Safwat! 🥰
it leaves a bad taste cause it's not something to make fun of so you are confused. like what is so funny, explain it to me
People in groups, particularly groups that feel superior, can be incredibly mean, and apathetic. Humans are a group animal--sometimes we're a herd, sometimes we're a pack. Our actions in groups tend to be dictated by the leaders--so be careful who you chose to follow as your leader. You may not want to be a leader yourself, but you DO have a choice over who your leader is. You CHOOSE to follow them. And if you don't like your leader, find a new group with a leader you do like, and who acts in a way you approve of, rather than in a way that you have to excuse. Normalizing mean/bigoted actions and talk subconsciously reprograms your brain to accept those actions and that talk.
So, next time someone decides to make fun of someone's accent, don't encourage them by laughing too. Realize that that person might subconciously feel threatened because an accent often means that you aren't speaking your native language...which means you speak more than 1 language, which means you are intelligent, which folks who are closed minded often had to stunt in themselves in order to fit in with the group they are a part of.
Growing up in the uk I have also faced many criticism due to the way I speak .. 😂 I couldn't pronounce some words right 😁 and then would be very embarrassed when laughed upon .. Alhumdullilah (due to the grace of Allah) I have a lovely British accent now as I have progressed with my English (still pronounce some words wrong😂) I sit at top English and French in my school even though English isn't my first language .. So I have a message for all of you lovely ppl out there ! Keep going ! Keep doing what you want ! Other ppl are just OTHER PPL they don't matter and it is hard to ignore ppl coz they are quite you know mean 😁 but hey better days will come ! And for those ppl who judge class, status and the person themselves on their accent or dialect well you my friend need to go back to school and learn some manners, the beauty of travel and tourism in which u discover amazing pp with amazing accents ❤️ and stop being ignorant fools !!!
One of the greatest TED talks I have seen. Used it for an advanced ESL class I teach. Could not have asked for a better video for the class. Thank you Safwat Saleem
Hey I'm not a native english speaker and I can understand every single word he speaks without any effort, so I guess maybe he is not the problem. Come on people!
I think his positive thinking is so good.
A beautiful and inspiring story.
He is a nice guy, he shouldn't explain what we should feel about his art though, if it's sad funny to one person it might be hilarious not sad to the next. Very talented guy, glad he's gaining confidence, he'll do good things.i
I'm proud of his confidence his voice is eloquent
Loved the talk and its delivery...definitely spreading the message.
He finessed a win right there. GREAT WORK.
You are a beautiful being, made from the universe. You are a star!
Thank you for this talk, it made my day. Ignorance can be quite hurtful, but challenging people's version of normal (especially narrow minded people) will always be a worthy pursuit!☺
Funny. I've learned in life that people aren't paying as much attention as we think they are giving. Most of it is from self consciousness in our own mind. I used to think everyone was scrutinizing me. When I realized that's not true, very freeing.
Thanks, it is helpful for me as a migrant❤
I love his accent ♥
That was amazingly brave of you.
Thank you for this speech and the positive comments here. I have an accent and have always been self-conscious of it. It does put a lot of weight in your mind which causes you to lose a lot of opportunities. I remember being asked non-stop, when did I arrive. Then met with shocks when people say, “but you have an accent”. I then replied, “you have an accent too?”. It quieted them.
This video and the comments here gave me a new perspective. I love the example of colours. I suppose the way our tone gets delivered only serve the ears, but the most important things are the knowledge and capabilities we have to change the world in a positive way.
The comments on this video prove the fact that internet is full of bullies, freaking cypher-bullies!!! It's a great video, he's a great guy and the content is rich, if you're willing to listen.
honestly, i hear myself like I'm about to cry. One of the reasons why I took Social Work. I may befriend everyone, but I can't talk in front of them altogether. We have this term "pabebe" that describes me. It a negative image, but I don't know how to be otherwise.
Thank yo for such inspiring speech. Especially for someone who struggles with having accent, every day)
also, this guy's art is incredible!!!! everyone should check it out
I have a lisp and was made fun of growing up. this spoke to me deeply. thank you.
This was inspiring. Loved this Ted talk
I can relate to the accent part, but I think he shouldn't have taken the negative comments so seriously because
1. His accent is excellent.
2. It's TH-cam, we have very intelligent people and people with 4 working brain cells all in one platform.
what a great guy
Thank god for closed captions.
his childhood reminds me of mine. im glad this video was made.
♡ im not trying to compare handicaps, but stutters, or simply instances of people not being able to express themselves without being laughed at make me really angry and upset
5:59
the audience so admire him 😻😻
Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. Great speech.
I didn't quite get that "they don't see X color if they can't make it" bit. Besides that, nice talk.
to make a colour with natural pigments. i didn't know this theory either :)
Same here, surely they could tell the difference between blue and red haha
What do you call "blue" if you don't have a word for it? It's an interesting topic, about how most of ancient literature had very limited colors... Of course, nobody can prove that the ancients didn't see blue, but it's puzzling how they only had a proper name for it later on. Before that, they used _other_ colors to describe blue things, like the _"wine red sea"_ in the example. And that's where all the confusion began. Why do they call the sky green? Why the sea red? Can they not see blue?
RadioLab did a episode on the idea. It's interesting. Check it out. www.radiolab.org/story/211213-sky-isnt-blue/
his accent is good enough more like adorable
Professional victim?? There's nothing wrong with your accent, buddy, and it sounds very relaxing to me.
I think he was delving into how his past stuttering problem-for which he _was_ victimized-fed into his reaction to his video's comments. I don't think he's playing victim. I think he's telling us how he overcame being a victim.
+Aaron Rosenberg exactly
JT Faisa yes relaxing
I'm bilingual (Thai and English) not quite master Chinese yet. I choose the most well perceive accent. I actively try to speak like that. I think it will make people think better of me.
My mom does this and I told her to stop because of SEVERAL reasons! And to that she said “we’re all people and we all make fun of each other so it doesn’t matter!” I WAS VERY UPSET!
I came here because of this happening a lot to me. I don't know what to do.
Me too
I hope it has gotten better for you
I like your voice dude :)
I love this guy.
i remember "flowers for Algernon"
Thank you for your courage and your words!
This man looks almost identical to Daniel O'Brien, from Cracked.com. Not an insult, Mr. Saleem, as he is one of my favorite actors/creative directors from Cracked's TH-cam channel. Keep on speaking up, you're doing great.
I love this tedtalk
Personally found this accent really attractive.. I don't understand the peanut butter thing? He is really well spoken :')!
He had a good accent
Why do People have an issue on being empathetic and just being nice?
yes!
the fact that this talk has such a small fraction of views compared to others truly aids the topic he's speaking about
That is interesting
So inspiring and beautiful. Absolutely baffled at some of these absolutely ignorant comments!
Very interesting
It's kinda said that there's an English subtitle available ;)
3 days ago someone told me that i have a french accent ...omg ...omg.. it was a great shock for me .. it is impposible .. well .. i am syrian :)
You sound perfectly normal to me!
I love him and way prefer a narrator with a cute accent than a posh English one or standard American, how boring!
or a standard English one for that matter
You have a beautiful soft voice. Don't give assholes the power by allowing them to mock you. Happy people don't do this btw.
It is that you are pointing out your accent and that you have a problem not to stutter. Since both subjects where not out of the ordenary for my perception. Maybe this is because i talk daily with multiple nationality's for my work. So for me you are normal. At least in my envoirment. My dad Stutter so its possible that i do not notice it due to the fact that for me its normal to hear people that stutter. Then again i could not activly detect any. Its sad that the the minority of people on the web troll. and that these troll's are the most vocal people available on the forums. Since if every viewer would place a comment they would not be the norm.
People saying he is being too sensetive: yes one one level he is over sensetive, in the same way a depressed person should just be happy.
Normally if someone has an Indian (or Pakistani i guess) accent i can only understand if played at normal 1x speed.
But with this talk of Safwat's i can listen at 1.5x speed no worries, he talks fine.
Love from Nepal.
really, a great motivation. thanks youtube! 😇
his accent is beautiful
I have never met an intelligent racist.
He isnt being racist?
+rudyforstuff
chas ames means the commenters, mate
Proving my point. Thanks.
Jamal Johnson
I don't think that was him. The entire comment system has bugs like that sometimes.
The one way tickets 😂legend
great job
I like this video a lot, Safwat makes a great point. All you haters will understand this one day when you are on the receiving end of discrimination. And he's funny!
I like his accent
WTF his accent is totally fine tho
Society is toxic nowadays. Even normal, healthy people are mocked.