The English language is changing rapidly. During the last 15 years our focus has shifted from ‘traditional’ channels of communication (newspapers, books, television, radio) and we’ve found ourselves saturated by a whole array of new media (Twitter, Facebook, blogs, online magazines, podcasts). This shift has been something of a democratisation process. It’s no longer necessary to have a publishing contract or the ‘right connections’ for your words to become available to the world (or at least the world wide web).
As residents of capitalist societies, we are consumers being marketed to. Advertisers know that information has to be more concise, more eye catching and more appealing than their last efforts. There is always competition for our attention.
Added to this is the growing number of people speaking English as a second language. Linguist David Crystal estimates that non-native English speakers outnumber native speakers 3 to 1. They not only learn the language, but shape it, dictating norms for how sentences should be structured that we once viewed as mistakes. Of course, language is organic, it’s alive. Academic text books and dictionaries do not dictate how English is used, but evolve and are shaped in an attempt to chart current usage (at time of publication).
However, these changes come at a price. When the channels of communication are no longer dominated by artists and their skillful mastery of well crafted verse, but ordinary people and their un-edited, generic pronouns (“great”), we lose sight of the potential for language as art-form. When communication becomes more about efficiency than beauty, we find ourselves losing the playfulness and creativity of our words. Suppose we meet a person at a party with a finely honed tongue, we are dismissive, viewing them as “poncey” or a relic from a long forgotten world.
My own journey places me on some hazy borderland. As a first language English speaker, raised on the delights of English Literature, I Iearned to marvel at the well chosen word and the careful shading of a finely tuned metaphor. I get annoyed when reading Shakespeare parodies on Twitter. While watching the movie Shadowlands (the life story of writer C.S. Lewis) recently, I found myself nostalgic for a time I barely knew, a time when language was charming and elegant, when people made speeches, not sound-bites. On the other hand, as a world citizen (and resident of Sweden) I benefit daily from being able to speak English wherever I go and have learned the value of communication. I’m also aware of the enormous privilege of having a global pedestal from which to broadcast my ideas at a whim.
Is it possible for artful language to survive in a fast paced world of brevity?
Moleskine image by Amir K.
I think you are right in your viewpoint. The way in which we communicate is changing and so are the methods of data transmission. Longform to shortform, txt to video, data to voice.
All methods of communication are impacted by social, economical, political and technological change. They question is really is this change for better or worse.
Keep up the good work!
Tim Bosworth
Sometimes, it can be fun to throw in an ‘eloquent’ word or two in an otherwise casual conversation – particularly with strangers at a party or something; it’s fun to watch people’s brains tick over and make the decision about whether or not you’re a ‘ponce’, as you say, or just a bit of a weirdo!
Tim: do you think that the changes are for the better? Is the English language doomed to over simplification?
Reuben: Any examples? I know people’s register tends to increase when they are a) drunk and b) trying to impress. It can make for pretty fun eavesdropping…
This is a really interesting point and it doesn’t apply only to language, although this is what is at the fulcrum of this revolution. At what point will we be communicating with 😉 and LOL? At what point will be become redundant to learn facts of history when all data is at your fingertips (now, literally at your fingertips)?
All languages evolve however we are now stepping out of the boundaries of language ‘per se’ and entering the communication domain. What is going to be available to our children in 10 years’ time, when they want to call home and say they are going to be late? I suppose parents already do a lot of mind-reading so it should not be an issue…
Language will be become an art (it already is, I hear someone say…) and people will make real effort to speak rather than communicate to each other, in special gatherings. Imagine what all this is going to do for translation? Technology allows us to achieve more in a shorter space of time. However is it dehumanising us? (written by a non-native English speaker)
I found this article extremely interesting and share its views entirely. I am not a native English speaker, but I am sensitive to the problem described here, not only with regards to English language (which I teach), but also to Portuguese. Brazilian Portuguese is considerably different from European Portuguese, but the Portuguese people are outnumbered by far by Brazilians, who have gradually imposed their use of the language on us via the Internet.
I also find myself longing for the lost times when language was respected as art material and feel sad and disappointed to realise that my students (university level) show great difficulty in using a more formal or elaborate speech as opposed to colloquial, informal speech, which they know use on all occasions, regardless of the circumstances.
Recently, I reread “The Book of Evidence” by John Banville and marvelled, once more, at the beauty of the language. It is still there for us to appreciate, if only we look away from the global communication “verborrhea” and dive into verbal art, or “artful language” – which will continue to existi, as long as there are people who are still sensitive to quality in terms of language use, just like there are always people who choose not to buy the cheap, low quality made-in-China products.
I meant “which they now use on all occasions” and “which will continue to exist”, of course. Sorry!