Txting Is Killing Language In 'TED Talk'

In John McWhorter’s TED Talk “Txting is killing language. JK!!!” he asserts that despite what many believe, texting is not, in fact, killing the written language. McWhorter concludes that texting is akin to the written version of casual speech. That rather than replacing formal writing it’s like new dialect, simply diversifying the complexity of language. Throughout the entirety of McWhorter’s speech he employs the pathos of humor, replacing the common feeling of disdain most feel when facing topics like the linguistic repercussions of colloquial speech and writing. Early on in his speech, McWhorter references a passage from Edward Gibbon’s “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,” which he responds to saying, “that’s beautiful, but let’s face it, nobody talks that way. Or at least, they shouldn’t if they’re interested in reproducing. That’s not the way any human being speaks casually.” In this way, McWhorter is able to make his point effectively but by using humor his is able to avoid alienating the people who might have otherwise indignantly disagreed. Later on, McWhorter uses humor to refute one of the possible counterarguments against his speech:
So we …show more content…
This indication was beneficial to establishing his ethos as a credible resource with respect to linguistics. McWhorter’s expertise became evident through the clarity of his speech and the understanding he demonstrated regarding this material. He built common ground by discussing commonly held beliefs and by making it clear that he was not devaluing formal writing. Rather than arguing the unimportance of protecting formal writing, he argued that it was separate from and unaffected by the new dialect used in texting, that though they are related the two entities ought to be viewed as separate and