Ok...i know were an American colony..im cool with that...but surely it isnt just me who is sick to the back teeth of either the constant pseudo trendy americanisms such as 'math' in our schools, but also the adoption by all and sundry to overuse, and thus render meaningless and impotent so much of our wonderful lexicon... Im particularly referring to the abuse of superlatives, which i blame both on the PC culture that long ago infected our country, and the tawdry, mind numbing 'entertainment' and 'talent' shows that prevent people from thinking for themselves... Here are a few that have become totally and utterly meaningless to the point when there should now be an adendum in the Dictionary.. Iconic.... Unique (ive lost count of the amount of times ive heard, "they were both very unique" etc etc Awesome... Celebrity No one these days can lose or fail at ANYTHING..they are 'working towards'.....and i blame this, and the x factor type culture for this unfortunate evolution of our once great language. feel free to add to this iconic, unique and awesome list..
I agree entirely. The English language is being destroyed by adoption of Americanisms and by years of lazy teaching methods. The idea that "it doesn't matter what they write as long as you can understand what they mean..." is utter rubbish. The lack of attention to detail in the use of English is truly disgraceful. If anything can be misinterpreted then it probably will be, which is why accuracy is important. My personal “pet hates” are the use of “your” instead of “you’re” and the almost universal adoption of “myself” instead of “me”. Children are no longer taught the basics of the language and therefore have no concept of why what they are saying is wrong. They are also brought up in a culture that really does not care about grammatical accuracy; a culture in which “text speak” and “street” is seen as cool and being able to express yourself clearly and lucidly is most definitely un-cool. Pedants of the world unite! Reclaim your language from lazy illiterates…
A language that doesnt change or adapt is a dead language. Or one whereby expression is limited. There is a reason why the english language has provided some of the most incisive and insightful works in the arts. It changes and adapts. To limit it or to fight that change is frankly an indication that this fact is not fully understood.
being totally dyslexic, i am just happy when i can spell my own name. (spell check best invention ever)
I knew that the first comment after mine would be about language "evolving". Change is not necessarily a problem. However, to take your point, expression IS limited by inexact use of grammar and an inability to clearly illustrate ones thoughts. The current trend is not evolution or change for the better, it is destruction of the grammatical principles upon which clear expression is based. It is not progress, it is not improvement; and to ALLOW that sort of change is a clear indication that the basic principles of a beautiful language are not fully understood.
That is your interpretation of it JR. I see no real 'rape' of our language other than that used by kids. They are learning and experimenting and consequently they may try things that perhaps you would not. We did the same when we were young. Besides its a different world, where communication has changed beyond our imaginations at the time. Some adaptation and restructuring will take place, be replaced and no doubt return to how it should be. Had you anticipated 'evolving', then why did you not cover it? The language will still be around once we've gone and those who have adapted it today to meet their needs; will take ownership of it and shall too, no doubt, complain about how others use it. It is the lot of us old farts to moan about the young and how there were trees all round here once. Besides, allowing youngsters 'free expression' is to allow this to happen. Fuck off do I want the same level of strict adherence to dead rules as my old Latin teacher. Bollocks to that. The English language is the greatest thing we ever gave to the world. Let them run with it. See where it takes us.
Thank you JR for pulling Bootsam up by his boot straps... In email and txt spk i will forgive a total lack of punctuation..as long as there are full stops....but that isnt my complaint, neither is incorrect spelling..i can live with it....typos....fact of life online... All languages are constantly evolving, constantly changing..thats a fact...I think im correct in saying that it was only a short time before Queen Victoria that we (British) began using progressive tenses...this probably caused an uproar in academic circles at the time..(ie 'where/whither goest thou'? to be replaced by 'where are you going'? etc etc)... I dont have a problem with that...what i have a problem with is the abuse and misuse of certain words, so as to render them meaningless...how can something be very unique, quite unique and so? how can they be unique? why is every thing, from the greatest work of literature to Kylie Minogues hotpants be described as iconic? On my local news they mentioned an 'iconic landmark'....it was an illuminated sign on the side of a now disused Shipstones Brewery...hardly 'iconic'...Big Ben is iconic, The Statue of Liberty is iconic..they are icons with symbollic status and meaning...they are iconic..not a fkn sign on a small town brewery...An icon stands for something AND is unique. All languages are evolving and all have a beauty of their own...Other than my mother tongue, i find the romance languages the most beautiful....but can we please stop this descent into meaninglessness and irrelevance?? In 20 years the definitions will be totally different and unique will be nothing of the sort.
your missing the point Bootsy me old chum...age and generation have got nothing to do with it...im not even talking about slang...i love slang and coloquiel language...look at rhyming slang, which has gone international of sorts...although its original use has changed entirely...same as polari, another sub cultural language which has now entered much of the mainstream... My issue is with the deliberate mis interpretation of words for dramatic effect..usually it starts in the media, then becomes adopted by everyone else....not a problem when its relevant, but its the over use of superlatives that is my greatest bug bear...the very fact that they are superlatives means that, by definition, that are a rarely used commodity..that is my real issue...
I can't understand my kids some days I have had to write a note to ask the teacher to write in full English as I don't know what the abbreviated words are My kids have an irritating habit of saying OMG and LOL
I'm not missing the point funky. I understand the point fully. I blame jeremy clarkeson. Fuck off is it epic. I am merely being contrary to entertain myself whilst I while away the remaining part of the day. To agree with people is to close the debate. To be contrary is to open it and expand its awesomeness to epic proportions. To be honest I don't even know how I stand on a number of issues; as advocacy for the devil amuses me so.
I take your point Viv...a bit off topic....thats in the 'evolving language that i dont like' category...but i think its 'fashion language'...kids displaying how up to the second they are... you will be able to take great satisfaction in embarrassing them with in a few years with it..rather like the Keith Richards of this world who are stuck in a similar dated way of speaking....'yeah those cats were cool man'.... but AT LEAST when he says something was iconic he knows what it means.
How is it a fail when it took another couple of posts out of you. Had you ignored it entirely then I agree, it was a fail. But you didnt, so it wasnt. :tongue:
Hey... YOLO... naaaarrworraaameeeen? But seriously, the "dead rules" are not dead at all, they provide the structure to allow clear communication. Without them the spoken or written word is open to misinterpretation. Of course the language evolves and changes but as I said the current missuse of the language is not evolution, it is an abandonment of its very structure. The English language has always evolved, otherwise we would all be speaking in a Shakepearean style, but that very evolution involved changing one set of rules for a slightly different set, not totally abandoning all rules. Schools do not teach the basics of the language any more - they don't actually appear to teach the basics of any subject - and without the basics one can never truly understand anything.
