“2b or Not 2b?”
Not only did texting become a whole new way of communicating, it started a trend in how things could be communicated. In David Crystal’s article, “2b or Not 2b?” he discusses how some people have taken abbreviations to the extreme when texting, but that it is not necessarily a new idea or one that is particularly bad for the English language. Texting is a recent phenomenon that exploded due to its incredible convenience. Abbreviating words is not something that began with texting. People have been shortening words for a very long time. Texting can be a fun way to write a message and can shorten the length of what you need or want to say. Even though texting provides for a shortened way to communicate, some choose to text the old fashion way by writing complete sentences. Crystal delivers a compelling argument that texting both helps society communicate their ideas efficiently while not eroding the ability to use the English language by relaying historical evidence along with presenting research …show more content…
For those who believe that literacy is harmed by texting, surveys show that only a small percentage, between 6 and 20%, of texters actually use distinctive language out of the trillion or so texts that are sent annually (337-338). Some texters may enjoy using distinctive words in their communications, but they know that they need to be understood. Institutions will send out text messages using proper grammar to ensure the receivers of the messages know what is being said. As messages become longer and users become older, the use of standard language increases even though texting is still perceived by many to be communication by abbreviation (337). There are still those that will not shorten words or phrases because they do not want to break the rules of using proper
Not only did texting become a whole new way of communicating, it started a trend in how things could be communicated. In David Crystal’s article, “2b or Not 2b?” he discusses how some people have taken abbreviations to the extreme when texting, but that it is not necessarily a new idea or one that is particularly bad for the English language. Texting is a recent phenomenon that exploded due to its incredible convenience. Abbreviating words is not something that began with texting. People have been shortening words for a very long time. Texting can be a fun way to write a message and can shorten the length of what you need or want to say. Even though texting provides for a shortened way to communicate, some choose to text the old fashion way by writing complete sentences. Crystal delivers a compelling argument that texting both helps society communicate their ideas efficiently while not eroding the ability to use the English language by relaying historical evidence along with presenting research …show more content…
For those who believe that literacy is harmed by texting, surveys show that only a small percentage, between 6 and 20%, of texters actually use distinctive language out of the trillion or so texts that are sent annually (337-338). Some texters may enjoy using distinctive words in their communications, but they know that they need to be understood. Institutions will send out text messages using proper grammar to ensure the receivers of the messages know what is being said. As messages become longer and users become older, the use of standard language increases even though texting is still perceived by many to be communication by abbreviation (337). There are still those that will not shorten words or phrases because they do not want to break the rules of using proper