Fluent Forever: How to Learn Any Language Fast and Never Forget It

by Gabriel Wyner

An accurate accent is powerful because it is the ultimate gesture of empathy. It connects you to another person’s culture in a way that words never can, because you have bent your body as well as your mind to match that person’s culture. Anyone can learn “bawn-JURE” in a few seconds. To learn how bonjour fits into your companion’s mouth and tongue; to learn how to manipulate the muscles, the folds, and even the texture of your throat and lips to match your companion’s—this is an unmistakable, undeniable, and irresistible gesture of care.

I’ve frequently heard that it’s impossible to perfect an accent after the age of twelve. But this can’t be true; actors and singers do it all the time, and we’re not any smarter or better than the rest of humanity. We just care about pronunciation—we have to; no one will pay us for bad German—so we take the time to do it right: we start early, and we gain an awareness of what’s going on in our mouths when we speak. Half of a good accent is simply a matter of timing.