Second Language Learners’ Ownership of English in the USA: The Influence of Accents

Abstract

This article presents how accent and ownership is perceived among L2 learners. In order to accomplish the task this study attempts to answer the question: In what way does the perception of ESL students’ accent influence their sense of ownership of English? It begins with the background by looking at accent, ownership, ESL and then it illustrates the “structuralist” and “post-structuralist” approaches. Finally, this article recommends adopting “poststructuralist approach” by English teachers.