Fraser Speaking In Inuktitut

[ktinxx]

Did anyone get that "easier to read" refers to Diefenbaker LIP-READING?!? He is deaf, remember? So the choice of language has nothing to do with the complexity of the language. Inuktitut, says BF, is just easier to lip-read for the hearing-impaired.

And don't forget, the scene is packed with humor. It makes fun of virtually every one of its elements. A masterful showcase for the tons of layers the DS writers were capable of inventing and the spot-on delivery of those actors. I miss it dearly.

[numb3r5ev3n]

"Complex" doesn't automatically mean "superior," English is a composite of several older languages and uses a ton of loanwords. Many people who speak it as a second language remark about how convoluted it is and how hard it was to learn because it's a difficult and perplexing mishmash, not because other languages are "simplistic." Geez.

[RideForever139]

No, I don't think this is racist and insulting. Do those of you who are calling this "racist and insulting" actually WATCH this show? Fraser saying "easier for Dief to understand" is like saying Inuktitut is more elegant and descriptive. Since the English language would be less effective here, it means the English would be the inferior language to use here.

[Linguiphile]

I'm certainly no anti-Western Politically correct goofball leftist, but, I know enough about Inuktitut and Yup'ik to know that the Eskimo languages are in fact far more complex than English, often capable of more subtle shades of meaning.

Edward Sapir, a famous American Anthropologist and Linguist once wrote that if the intricate philosophies of Europe were written in an Eskimo language rather than in English or German, the meaning would often have been clearer.

[GeorginaMMiller]

I actually thought it was a parody because it is so obviously racist.

[minibeach]

I see what you're saying but I'd say it's pretty hard to conclude that one language is more complex than another without first considering the L1 of the person saying it. But forget all that. Here we're talking about a dog. I highly doubt the show took the time and budget money to research lexical access in dogs, do a comparative study between English and Inuktitut with dog participants and then conclude Inuktitut is more dog friendly.

[Virginityrocks]

@minibeach I speak Inuktitut as a second language (at least that's what my passport says), and Inuktitut is actually a very primitive language. You have to remember that before the white man came along the Inuit were a nomadic people, still crawling out of the stone age. Art and written language are almost impossible to have in a nomadic lifestyle because of how much time they spend trying to find food to survive and constantly moving with their food sources, like caribou.

[minibeach]

"it's a slightly less complex language". "it's easier for him to read". That is racist, insulting and completely untrue. He's saying inuktitut is simple enough for an animal to understand and English, the white man's language, is more complex. WTF.

[reddstar69]

@minibeach racist eh. Not really. Im a linguist and ive found that there are alot of languages out there that are alot more complex and more simplified than English. Being more complex doesn't necessarily mean better, it just means you can go more in-depth in the language through more processes of conjugations. But yes, from my understanding, English is more complex than Inuktitut.

[tessquestie]

@minibeach errrr, no. I second redstar69.

[Jukesette]

Stan is just... he's just adorable in that Mountie uniform!

[ThunderShock2005]

cooooool.

[Leveena222]

hehe thats cute....kinda funny ..can tell hes white the way he speaks it