UK Teacher Translates Slang Into Victorian English, Goes Viral

Imagine telling your boss you're burnt out, but making it sound like poetry from a Jane Austen novel. That's exactly what English teacher Abram Elenin is teaching the internet to do, and millions can't get enough.

Elenin runs Berber English, where he helps professionals master British English as a linguistics expert and accent coach. But his viral Instagram series does something unexpected: it transforms casual modern phrases into increasingly formal versions, ending with hilariously elaborate Victorian English.

In one popular video, "I'm burnt out" becomes "I'm entirely depleted" in formal speak. Then it escalates to "I have been worked to the very marrow" in gentlemanly English. But Victorian English takes the grand prize: "Where to begin, for my faculties have been exhausted by perpetual toil, and incessant application has so stripped me of vitality that I am scarcely able to summon the strength requisite for the smallest effort."

Another translation turns "I'm poor" into a masterpiece of melodrama: "It is with no small measure of affliction that I acknowledge my fortunes to be sadly diminished, my purse exhausted, and my station reduced to one of grievous penury, such that I find myself abandoned to the stern tutelage of want, the harshest master to which mankind is ever subject." Fans say it sounds exactly like something Moira Rose from Schitt's Creek would say.

His videos have reached millions worldwide, sparking fresh appreciation for how our ancestors communicated. Back in the Victorian era (roughly 1820 to 1914), written letters were one of the only ways to communicate across distances, so people chose every word with extreme care.

Why This Inspires

The response has been overwhelming. Commenters are attempting their own Victorian translations, with one noting that "'My faculties have been exhausted by perpetual toil' goes hard." Students joke about using Victorian English in their essays, while others simply enjoy listening to Elenin's eloquent delivery.

This ornate style of writing faded as literacy rates climbed and communication became more casual, especially after telephones arrived in the early 1900s. But there's a bright twist: letter writing is making a comeback as people grow tired of impersonal digital messages.

Elenin's work reminds us that language doesn't have to be boring or stripped down to be effective. Sometimes adding a little flourish, a touch of beauty, or even some playful exaggeration can make communication more memorable and fun.

The pen and paper are experiencing a revival, which means now might be the perfect time to embrace your inner Victorian and make even the mundane sound magnificent.