I'm just going to come right out and say that I'm a proper grammar enthusiast. I know when to use "you're" and "your" and also the differences between "there," "their" and "they're." I avoid abbreviating like the plague, especially in texting or chatspeak; seriously, if it's a three letter word, take the extra two seconds to spell it out.
Speaking of texting and chatspeak, today's writing class prompt revolved around texting and the impact on language (by the way that's another thing I hate..."impact" is not a verb, it is solely a noun, even if the online dictionary says otherwise). Teens in particular are changing the way humans interact with each other. With innovations such as online networking and texting, there's no apparent need for developed social skills. There's decreased demand for knowing how to fill in awkward silences or politely ending a conversation. Pretty soon we're just going to be right next to each other talking to each other on a holographic screen in a big fat floating chair, just like in WALL-E.
I can understand the need to abbreviate some words. At least with my own texting plan, I have a 160 character limit, therefore I have to get my point across in as few words as possible. It becomes an issue though when that type of shorthand starts leaking into formal papers. Imagine Einstein presenting his theory of relativity with text speak. It would be a laughingstock to science. Try picturing Demosthenes tweeting his speeches online instead of practicing his orations with pebbles in his mouth over the sound of crashing waves. Horrific, isn't it.
I honestly hope it's just a phase in the evolution of language. I mean look how far we've come since scratching out rough outlines with berry juice on cave walls. With luck, we'll reverse the rapid shrinking of our brains and figure out that copying the dictionary might actually make us a bit more literate...or I guess that was just Malcolm X's stint.
On a side note, the comment section is now open for input. I finally figured out why my sparse audience wasn't able to say anything at all...bah, stupid Blogger and your asinine restrictions on embedding comments.
Speaking of texting and chatspeak, today's writing class prompt revolved around texting and the impact on language (by the way that's another thing I hate..."impact" is not a verb, it is solely a noun, even if the online dictionary says otherwise). Teens in particular are changing the way humans interact with each other. With innovations such as online networking and texting, there's no apparent need for developed social skills. There's decreased demand for knowing how to fill in awkward silences or politely ending a conversation. Pretty soon we're just going to be right next to each other talking to each other on a holographic screen in a big fat floating chair, just like in WALL-E.
I can understand the need to abbreviate some words. At least with my own texting plan, I have a 160 character limit, therefore I have to get my point across in as few words as possible. It becomes an issue though when that type of shorthand starts leaking into formal papers. Imagine Einstein presenting his theory of relativity with text speak. It would be a laughingstock to science. Try picturing Demosthenes tweeting his speeches online instead of practicing his orations with pebbles in his mouth over the sound of crashing waves. Horrific, isn't it.
Demosthenes' mock tweet. It physically pained me to write it out...
I honestly hope it's just a phase in the evolution of language. I mean look how far we've come since scratching out rough outlines with berry juice on cave walls. With luck, we'll reverse the rapid shrinking of our brains and figure out that copying the dictionary might actually make us a bit more literate...or I guess that was just Malcolm X's stint.
On a side note, the comment section is now open for input. I finally figured out why my sparse audience wasn't able to say anything at all...bah, stupid Blogger and your asinine restrictions on embedding comments.
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