> > English is my second language, though I've been using it as my primary
> > language since I was 6. Because I learned it as my second language, I've
> > developed into one who's somewhat stilted in his usage of the language, and
> > also one who's very much aware of the application of grammar, syntax, and
> > orthography. I am, therefore, thoroughly convinced that American English,
> > if it follows the current trend, will degenerate into a sequence of
> > monosyllabic grunts and whines by the time another couple or three
> > generations have passed. Just look at the more recent additions to the
> > Webster International Lexicon of the English language: words like "duuhh"
> Like totally Duh. Whatever!
> To be totally consistant with the bad language trend of this country.
> Depressing, is it not?
Somewhat - and to increase your depression, it's the same over here.
To 'create' a somewhat simplified and specialized slang is still a
basic element and a right of the youth - it's done in every generation.
Just, nowadays these words are no longer 'your' language but adopted
by public media - pop culture business - creating two trends: a) using
this words in publications and even news 'shows' degrades the language,
and b) the next generation has to find new words to be different. And
that's where the real degrading starts by creating a faster and faster
cycle of new hot words. I assume everybody remembers when he/she was
about 13 to 18 and created/discovered their private language with lots
of special (and bad) words (and later on learned to drop this behaviour
again) - just, at least in my case, I realized (again later) a lot of
these 'new' stuff was the same youth language my father did know and
even my grand father. What a difference it is now, where realy new
slang comes up every few years (I did follow this thru my girls, now
24 and 20). I put this unhealthy cycle (partly) on the modern pop
media - if they 'steal' the 'secret' youth language by publishing
and using it without any restriction they dig a hole without an end.
Anyway - It's a bit like all the Basic dialects during the 80s,
when every computer has to use some stuff different, even when
bothe used a MS product.
Gruss
H.
--
VCF Europa am 29./30. April 2000 in Muenchen
http://www.vintage.org/vcfe
http://www.homecomputer.de/vcfe
Received on Thu Mar 09 2000 - 09:12:35 GMT