and she needn’t be. I kind of assumed that’s the guy’s job.
I used to be very judgmental when it came to beauty pageant contestants, especially those who aspired to represent the best Singapore can offer in terms of brains and beauty.
I’m probably still more snide than sympathetic when it comes to alleged bloopers by these contestants but I do know I’m a recovering snob.
I can recognize when my perspective about the hegemony of the English language & the stereotypical-yet-probably-not-very-far-from-the-truth-cultures that are generally associated with those who have a good command of the language changed:
1. I entered NS and had to serve alongside ‘Hokkien bings’.
2. I got attached.
It is still a little painful to watch the interview of Ris Low but the comments by izreloaded are harsh.
Beauty pageants seem to be about showcasing a finished product. But that’s not what life is like. None of us are ever the finished article. I actually find it commendable that Ris Low has no delusions about where she stands now and seems like the sort who is willing to work to make something work. Maybe beauty pageants shouldn’t just be able the now, but about the before and the after.
It is probably too long a story to tell today about why those above events changed my perspectives about culture and language in Singapore, so I’ll just leave you with the now infamous video:
Some further thoughts:
Why, oh why, do people immediately assume that someone who they deemed isn’t worthy of something must have slept his or her way to the top to get that something.
Is that what these critics do?
But now, I ask myself the standards and criteria I use to determine what is right. And I realise how my prejudices, both personal as well as informed by socialisation, play a huge role in how I think.
In case you need to be reminded, Malay is our national language and English is our official language. I wonder when the assumption that the ladies representing Singapore in these beauty pageants had to speak English got started.
The Singapore Daily » Blog Archive » Daily SG: 3 Sep 2009 | 03-Sep-09 at 11:24 am | Permalink
[...] Discourse – Ian On The Red Dot: Miss Singapore World 2009 Ris Low Isn’t A Cunning Linguist – The Secret Political Blog: Analysis of the Utusan Melayu Attack on Lee Kuan Yew – StaticVariable: [...]
The Singapore Daily » Blog Archive » Weekly Roundup: Week 36 | 05-Sep-09 at 11:09 am | Permalink
[...] panic” over news leak – Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: Running the country – Ian On The Red Dot: Miss Singapore World 2009 Ris Low Isn’t A Cunning Linguist – The Secret Political Blog: Analysis of the Utusan Melayu Attack on Lee Kuan Yew – StaticVariable: [...]
Terry | 08-Sep-09 at 3:53 pm | Permalink
one word …. fookin’ embarassing! hahaha ….
Sad | 14-Sep-09 at 11:05 pm | Permalink
I still believe that my daughter who is 6yrs can speak very fluenlty and many times better than Ris Low. Ris Low’s essence of english really sucks and she has been choosen to represent Singapore? What a pathetic situation that the judges has left us with. Very Shameful to singapore.
Josh | 15-Sep-09 at 11:34 am | Permalink
To all those who think Ris Low is embarrasing, please check the mirror and look at yourself first. How good is your own English? Do you speak the Queen’s English?
Ref: the posting by “Sad,” who said her daughter’s English is better. Well, “Sad” used “choosen” which is wrong. And “essence of English?” That is utter rubbish; bad usage, really.
I am not against good English, and in fact, I top the class easily in English.
What I want people to know, is that they may not be that much better, if at all, than Ris Low. So, please, take that speck out of your eye, before you criticize others.
Musings » Blog Archive » I Speake English! | 15-Sep-09 at 12:32 pm | Permalink
[...] people are making a mountain out of a molehill. Either way, plenty of blog posts everywhere, like here, or here, or here, and even spoofed here; and online threads like this [...]
Anna | 15-Sep-09 at 2:15 pm | Permalink
Actually I thought she looks very sweet. And if she really speaks that badly, how come the interviewer and the rest of us can understand her?
Give her a break… I think she’s probably miserable enough that people are gossiping and laughing at her…not to mention, threaten to strip her of her crown…
SebyHong | 17-Sep-09 at 1:53 pm | Permalink
Josh is missing the point.
Most Singaporean don’t speak Queen’s English, that is so true, but Miss Ris Low isn’t most Singaporean. She is Miss Singapore! I am not suggesting that Miss Singapore must speak Queen’s English but She can’t even hold a decent conversation.
I have nothing against Miss Ris Low. She presented herself to the panel of jugdes and was crowned Miss Singapore. So, the responsibility is with the panel of jugdes.
Get Real | 17-Sep-09 at 1:56 pm | Permalink
Don’t worry guys, I’m sure a translator will be provided at South Africa
just asking | 21-Sep-09 at 2:36 pm | Permalink
So according to you since Malay is our national language, we shouldn’t expect her to speak proper English, then should we ask her to speak proper Malay?
And besides it isn’t her pronunciation and inunciation that is the crux now. It is how she displays herself in public. This is just a local interview and she carries herself as a bimbo (I’m sorry for saying that), imagine what she would be like overseas?
Maybe it is true we are too harsh with our words and views about her but this is reality. If she wants to become someone famous, there are bound to be critics everywhere.
iantimothy | 21-Sep-09 at 9:52 pm | Permalink
Good catch about whether she should be speaking proper Malay. I guess I’m just saying that in Singapore, we too quickly make the assumption that our beauty contestants should speak English when they represent us. Why not a dialect? Why not Chinese? Why not Malay. When did English become the de facto language considering its the official language not the national language. If anything, maybe Malay should be the language all our contestants should speak if they want to represent Singapore.
Just saying…
sighing in singapore | 25-Sep-09 at 3:15 pm | Permalink
Honestly, since she comes from a predominantly Chinese speaking background, then she should ask to speak in Chinese instead of making such a mess of the English Language. No, most of us do not speak Queen’s English, but as a representative of Singapore, she ought to be able to communicate in her chosen language clearly, in such a way that she will be understood by her fellow Miss World participants… and unfortunately, her chosen language is English… which she speaks so badly it’s pathetic.
In any case, given the credit card fraud thing, she’ll likely be disqualified, since the terms and conditions for application ask that applicants cannot have been charged or convicted in any court of law in any country. If she had paid heed to that in the first place and not applied, she would not have brought this upon herself.
Magdelene Lee | 27-Sep-09 at 5:01 pm | Permalink
Ris Low made the comment that what she did (the credit card fraud) was done ‘in a moment of folly’ – I find her excuse rather lame. If it had been one single act I might have given her the benefit of the doubt but to have committed the same deed with several cards and another 60 other charges to be considered ?
The fact | 27-Sep-09 at 7:03 pm | Permalink
Wondering if the judges were having ear and mind block during the interview with her. Anyway I am not surprise with this kinda accent as majority of china people are here making their way in and disrupting the right accent of english here in Singapore. They are there even serving the public even tho they don’t speak english at all. I guess we have to start learning the sign langguage to face the future.
Zen Sensei | 28-Sep-09 at 3:41 am | Permalink
I think people will only ever understand how unflattering they sound on video or audio-recording when they attempt to record themselves.
I experienced it myself while recording a response video to the Ris Low event on YouTube. The first take was embarrassing. The second take, an improvement. Finally, it took me more than 13 takes to get it ‘right’.
I didn’t even have to record my face on video and it was a challenge. So I for one support the girl for pursuing her dreams, despite everything. It takes guts to believe in yourself and put yourself in the public eye.
Btw, here’s the response video I made:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAJMb3yBK8o
Shriyalatha | 29-Sep-09 at 1:35 pm | Permalink
She is disgusting…That is all i have to say!!
Magdelene Lee | 29-Sep-09 at 8:43 pm | Permalink
To have Ris Low represent Singapore at a world event would make a mockery of our country’s women – is there no better representative than to send a cheat and a liar to an international event? I shudder to think how she would respond if she were to be asked about the fraud charge. Up till now, in response to the press, she does not come across as truly repentant or apologetic about the whole matter. She may cite her youth as an excuse for the stealth and forgery of the credit cards but isn’t she old enough now to know that it’s wrong to lie – as in not telling the organizer about the criminal charge. Not reading the conditions in the entry is no excuse either. Let her keep her prizes but please, don’t let her represent Singapore!
Steven | 30-Oct-09 at 1:49 pm | Permalink
OMG she is such a disgrace to Singaporeans…. My goodness what a great “Fashionista” Leopard Prints Double DUH!!!! and leoppard prints with ZEBRA!!! What a good good combination. Check out the 1 and only Walking Christmas Tree… BOOMZ… is an awful word to use.. Sounds cheap…. Can’t stand people using her language…