Is Texting Killing the English Language?
I should preface this whole review by saying it appears that 2 other people posted about this article last week and I clearly didn't notice. Sorry for the repeat!
The article above is about how texting does (or does not) affect written language. In the article, the author talks about how texting is much more of a spoken language that happens to be written down as apposed to a written language itself.
I found that point quite interesting because I have always thought about texting as another form of written language, because it is quite literally, written down. The author goes on to explain that language has been spoken for upwards of 80,000 years, whereas written language only dates back 5,500 years. And the way we write is very different than the way we speak. Which I had never considered, but I do write in a more formal manner than I speak.
The author does say that he does not believe that texting is having a negative affect on young student's writing but I tend to disagree with that. I think that many people will see texting the same way I do, as a written language. And that will translate directly to their school work. Their writing will be more casual with the potential for more shorthand that is seen in texts and on the internet. I do not believe that all students will be affected by text shorthand, but some definitely will.
I would like to see more studies done on the subject. I don't know if it would even be possible, but I would like to see a formal study done on how the written language has changed and if there could be a possible link drawn between text shorthand and the written language we see now.
Being someone who prefers texts to calls (usually) I can say that the way people text changes my views on their intelligence. When I text, I tend to like to write in a degree just below proper English. I make sure to use capitalization where needed, proper spelling, punctuation and at least a hint of proper grammar. It will totally make or break a friendship with me if someone texts "lol,. ur so funy! u shuld try bing a comedin". (I can't express how much twitching and retyping went on in that sentence.)
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, I feel that texting is different than written language. Some people text completely different than how they would write in class or to their boss. Especially the younger generation, they have their own language to trick adults into thinking they are behaving. It is definitely another language.
ReplyDeleteI can say that I definitely agree with the fact that texting lingo is different that written lingo. It can affect the way that people might start writing. But I think it might affect more of the younger generation. Especially because they are texting more instead of writing.
ReplyDelete