| Our modern English language is a hodgepodge of | | | | grammar school. One way the teacher helped us |
| many languages. We borrow words from another | | | | pronounce words was to separate the syllables |
| language we say crêpe, à la carte, | | | | and use accent marks to show where the |
| résumé, or señor but when | | | | emphasis or strongest beat should be. Take a |
| writing these words, we stare at a blank screen | | | | look at the dictionary. |
| wondering how to create these characters | | | | You probably have one on your desk. In the |
| needed to cause our employment history to be | | | | pronunciation guide you will see some strange |
| pronounced résumé rather than | | | | characters called diacritical marks above or below |
| resume. | | | | a letter to modify the way a word is pronounced. |
| I remember learning to read and write while in | | | | |