In his TED Talk, John McWhorter claims that texting does not represent a decline in one’s writing skills and that it is not killing our language. This topic has been widely discussed not only amongst linguists but also amongst regular people that use texting as a means of communication. So, does texting really kill our language or does it actually give birth to a completely new one? Since the meaning of word is arbitrary, for people that do not text on a daily basis even a simple text might seem like a cryptic message and the meaning of many if not all might seem ambiguous. On the other hand, for young people texting is a perfectly normal way of communication. Therefore, one can only claim for certain that this debate is a matter of personal
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The fact is that communication evolves with the medium people use. Texts as such do not follow any structure, punctuation or grammar rules. If people do not actually take time to educate themselves, especially when it comes to academic writing, then many of them will not know how to write in different register; furthermore, many of them might not use the appropriate register also when speaking. Personally, I have seen many people that do not know how to send a formal e-mail when the situation demanded so. Instead they were actually texting. In his talk McWhorter said that people used to talk the way they wrote. Does that mean that we will talk the way we write or in this context the way we text? If that is to happen, it would inevitably lead to decline not only in one’s writing skills but also in one’s speaking skills.
Texting has become a whole new language, and just like every other language it evolves and changes every day. Since it has become an unavoidable means of immediate communication, we should adapt to it but also adapt it to our needs. I do believe that texting has some negative effects on the language, especially when referring to younger people. Nevertheless we should not reject it. It should be used along with the standard writing. One just has to know how to adapt the writing style to the
The fact is that communication evolves with the medium people use. Texts as such do not follow any structure, punctuation or grammar rules. If people do not actually take time to educate themselves, especially when it comes to academic writing, then many of them will not know how to write in different register; furthermore, many of them might not use the appropriate register also when speaking. Personally, I have seen many people that do not know how to send a formal e-mail when the situation demanded so. Instead they were actually texting. In his talk McWhorter said that people used to talk the way they wrote. Does that mean that we will talk the way we write or in this context the way we text? If that is to happen, it would inevitably lead to decline not only in one’s writing skills but also in one’s speaking skills.
Texting has become a whole new language, and just like every other language it evolves and changes every day. Since it has become an unavoidable means of immediate communication, we should adapt to it but also adapt it to our needs. I do believe that texting has some negative effects on the language, especially when referring to younger people. Nevertheless we should not reject it. It should be used along with the standard writing. One just has to know how to adapt the writing style to the