Might the universal translator turn French into English with British accent?
I have never had any problem with how Picard talks.
I have never had any problem with how Picard talks.
Why didn't they just make Picard British when they cast Patrick?
- Thread starter ED-209
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Well, they knew her screen roles. She was in "Earthquake", "Coma" and "Dead Ringers".
Oui.
UK and Europe are only separated by the English channel. And no one had thought of Brexit at the time. I would think accents would become increasingly homogeneous by the 24th century.
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Eh pretty sure Brexit gets undone by World War III and the rise of the European Hegemony in the 22nd century
Of course. But, it's still important to have the actor audition in the actual part. Would Michael Dorn have been as good as ship's counselor, for instance? Or would Brent Spiner have worked as captain?
When some actors get to a certain caliber and fame, they no longer have to audition for roles. They’re offered and courted instead.
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They did that with Ms. Bujold, as I understand... didn't go so well. Kate Mulgrew might have had to get it the old fashioned way, but once she had it, she knocked it out of the park.
Regardless of whether Picard should have been English, I think the choice to let him just speak what he speaks best was far superior to letting him emulate a fake French accent, after all, the fact that he's from France is not that important to the larger story.
And yes, I could buy that just being the Universal Translator, rendering a French RP equivalent into RP English. Or him just being able to speak English indistinguishably from a native.
And yes, I could buy that just being the Universal Translator, rendering a French RP equivalent into RP English. Or him just being able to speak English indistinguishably from a native.
Roddenberry reportedly did not want a British captain. He was still set on an American captain for TNG. I think a French background was a compromise because:
- dialects and accents change and evolve all the time, so a British sounding French person in the 24th century made sense
- France’s ties with America’s history (assisting them in wars with the British and sending the Statue of Liberty)
All that being said, that Picard’s accent was synonymous with the Eastern Coalition to Lily in FC definitely raises more questions.
- dialects and accents change and evolve all the time, so a British sounding French person in the 24th century made sense
- France’s ties with America’s history (assisting them in wars with the British and sending the Statue of Liberty)
All that being said, that Picard’s accent was synonymous with the Eastern Coalition to Lily in FC definitely raises more questions.
I think accent isn't a problem, at least not for me.
I think I can pull an American accent well enough to blend in with the locals, if the locals speak with an accent that is usually on TV.
It's kinda unnecessary really. As others pointed out for one thing, it doesn't make him a stereotypical French. Also S1 does have a lot of strange moments that's rarely brought up again like Picard's patriotism. I'm glad that aspect of his character got faded into the background.
After WWIII, they simply reacquired the territories lost in the Hundred Years War, giving rise to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and France.Well... the only obvious explanation.... in the Star Trek universe, Britain conquered France; its just another British territory....
But why would GR have had less of a problem with a French than with a British captain? Did he bear some grudge with the British, or were there other, less personal reasons involved?
If you watch "Versailles" on Netflix, which is the story of Louis XIV, you'd be right. Set in 17th century France, everyone speaks with the 'received pronunciation' English accent. Even going so far as having the 'lower class' people doing cockney.
To be fair, we (and McFadden) only found out she came from Planet Scotch 7 years into the show.
Kinda like I've always assumed Michael Dorn must have been surprised to learn 4 years in he'd been playing a Russian Klingon all along.
Picard and his full on Britishness (which is just as stereotypical as anything with Chekov or Scotty) is one of those things we just accept because it's been that way for years and Stewart is still great.
I suspect a lot of casual viewers who enjoy an episode when it's on but don't watch religiously have no idea he's French unless they caught one of the handful it's more than a throwaway mention.
What is interesting is that the early episodes treat Picard as super patriotic and defensive of Frenchness, something (along with other French characters having French accents) got quietly dropped because it was incongruous.
Did any French actors actually read for it? Only seen American names in connection with it, making me wonder if no accent was a choice made before Stewart was even considered.
What do the French actually think of Picard? I assume the dub takes care of the accent, but do they like the character or find him a bit embarrassing?
I have often wondered that myself but came up with nothing. My head canon is that Picard was French in blood but him and his family just lived in England so long he learned the language and developed a British accent. I know many people from France however are bilingual.
I have to point out that in the Star Trek universe French is a dead language, Picard talking in french to is dog is akin to an old captain fancying to learn and use Latin with their pet today.
As for the original question…no idea! My bet is that once gene Roddenberry, who initially didn’t like Stewart, was set on a french captain he didn’t want to change a thing to accomodate the actor.
As for the original question…no idea! My bet is that once gene Roddenberry, who initially didn’t like Stewart, was set on a french captain he didn’t want to change a thing to accomodate the actor.
I believe Star Treks shows have been ' translated' already, for our convenience.
That is, it is highly unlikely that the 22nd century English of Archer, or the 23rd century English of Kirk, or the 24th century English of Janeway and Sisko would be exactly the same as our contemporary version. Languages change, after all. Their versions would, at the very least, be discernably different from our English, even if only in some changes in pronunciation or vocabulary, or some turns of phrases we don't recognise. Yet we hear no such thing, not even as far down the line as the 32nd century. So, there's reason to believe that what we hear is not their original language, but a rendition in our contemporary English.
Starting from that point, it's no stretch for me whatsoever to believe that Picard is 'actually' speaking French with his relatives, even if we hear those scenes rendered in English.
Also, Data doesn't say the French language is dead, but obscure - which might mean many things. It might even mean 'there are still entire nations on earth speaking French, but Federation-wide it is the language of a small minority'.
That is, it is highly unlikely that the 22nd century English of Archer, or the 23rd century English of Kirk, or the 24th century English of Janeway and Sisko would be exactly the same as our contemporary version. Languages change, after all. Their versions would, at the very least, be discernably different from our English, even if only in some changes in pronunciation or vocabulary, or some turns of phrases we don't recognise. Yet we hear no such thing, not even as far down the line as the 32nd century. So, there's reason to believe that what we hear is not their original language, but a rendition in our contemporary English.
Starting from that point, it's no stretch for me whatsoever to believe that Picard is 'actually' speaking French with his relatives, even if we hear those scenes rendered in English.
Also, Data doesn't say the French language is dead, but obscure - which might mean many things. It might even mean 'there are still entire nations on earth speaking French, but Federation-wide it is the language of a small minority'.
I always knew Picard was French even when watching a couple of episodes as a kid, because in the German dub they at least pronounced his name in the proper, French name instead of "John Look Pickert" like they do in the original. To me the pronunciation of his name makes all the difference, even if it is just a little detail.
Again...how difficult owuld it have been to just pronounce the name right? You don't have to master the French language to pronounce one single name correctly.
And here we could actually ask the question on why they bothered to make the captain French if they were just going to have his name pronounced in the American/English way?
Here is a good demonstration on how Jean-Luc Picard would be pronounced (just replace the "God" in Godard with "Pic" for Picard and it works)
One Belgian actor, Patrick Bauchau, the rest were American. Again, I'm glad they didn't just give the role to whatever Francophone actor they could find. Give the role to the best actor, no matter where they are from and SCREW the accent.
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I don't mean to erase everything people have just said but I always thought that may be a joke about France at the time. I mean... Data all unusual acting and looking and he refers to himself as a Frenchman like a Beldar from Coneheads? I think it got a bit much.
Do you have a photo of him from the time?
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