Slangs in the English Language Essay

“Who’s to say which changes are natural and good and which are corruptions? And when Bryan Garner or E. Ward Gilman do in fact presume to say, why should we believe them? These sorts of questions are not new, but they do now have a certain urgency. America is in the midst of a protracted Crisis of Authority in matters of language. In brief, the same sorts of political upheavals that produced

“Authority and American Usage,” an interesting essay written by the brilliant and quick-witted David Foster Wallace, presents an argument on different ways of understanding the ever-changing American usage in the English language. Keeping up with the English language in America is like chasing your new, untrained puppy down the street. Tiring and basically impossible to get a hold of. Over the past centuries, the English language has evolved so much, that if you took a person from the 13th century and threw them in the middle of New York City in 2013, it would be as if two different languages were being spoken.

As society begins to change so do other aspects that are within that particular society. Within the articles “Why Good English is Good for You” by John Simon, “Do You Speak American” by Robert MacNeil, and “Lost in America” by Douglas McGrey, each author gives their own insight as to how social changes have impacted the language within America, as well as the implications of those changes. While they each argue different views on how those implications have benefitted or hindered the language, they all agree on the fact that the language is ever-changing.

He quotes John Simon, a major prescriptivist, stating that “No Damsel was ever in such distress, no drayhorse more flogged, no defenseless child more drunkenly abused than the English language today”(Simon, 307). He also shows the other view of this issue that says that English as a language should evolve along with the rest of the world that has been “Swept by a tide of informality”(MacNeil, 311). With the evolution of technology and language instalments on software and computers, English changing so much among races and regions could become a major issue for this generation. Simon states that English should be treated as the original language and should not be simplified. He refers to common day slang by stating that “Just because you can figure out what the person is trying to say, doesn’t mean you should”(Simon, 333). MacNeil highlights the positives and negatives of the evolving English language along with reasons why people speak the way they do. He seems to have a neutral stance on the issue while Simon bluntly argues the fact that proper English is the English that is mean to be spoken. However, both mention the fact that education has a major influence on how this language is

Using dialect in society is natural and people can often not control how they sound. When that same person writes however they are expected to drop their dialect and only use proper english. Vershawn Ashanti Young discusses this topic in his article “Should Writer’s Use They Own English?”. Young has several good points including that their accent comes through their writing and that “code meshing” can be effective in a person's’ writing. On the contrary, I agree more with the fact that we need a “universal” way of speaking in America, because of the fact that it is harder to learn several “languages” as a child and it would be almost impossible for people from other countries to learn all the slang if we don't have one set way of speaking.

Author George Orwell, in his text, Politics and the English Language, describes how in reality, language is man-made: a tool that we can shape for ourselves. He states, “Underneath this lies the half-conscious belief that language is a natural growth and not an instrument which we shape for our own purposes.” He then depicts how we can dispose unnecessary words that aren't needed anymore. “If one can get rid of these bad habits, one can think more clearly, and to think clearly is a necessary first step towards political regeneration.” Language is like a being of its own, always changing and adding new words and slang. In this day and age, we do not speak in Shakespearean verse, for language has changed and moved on from that century. We now regard it as a dated way of speaking, though in that time period, we certainly did not know that. If language is always changing, then we should change the team name to something else, especially since it is outdated and

The English language is particularly complex in almost all aspects. Many of the words in the English language have different meanings for the same word. This is not unlike the definition of the different levels of usage. McCrimmon defines the three levels, formal, moderate, and colloquial, by their sentence structure, diction, and tone (McCrimmon 193). ¹ Using McCrimmon’s definitions, authors can determine what type of writing is applicable to each of the three levels. For the formal writings, an adequate example of where readers can find it is in a professional journal, and an appropriate place to find an example of the moderate level is in a weekly news magazine. Also, the best place to look for an example of the colloquial level is in certain sections of the newspaper. All of the levels of usage apply to these different types of writings and assist in defining what each level involves.

George Orwell’s essay, Politics and the English Language, first published in 1946, talks about some “bad habits”, which have driven the English language in the wrong direction, that is, away from communicating ideas. In his essay he quotes five passages, each from a different author, which embody the faults he is talking about. He lists dying metaphors, operators, pretentious diction, and meaningless words as things to look out for in your own writing and the writing of others (593-595). He talks about political uses of the English language. Our language has become ugly and the ugliness impedes upon communication. Ugly uses of language have been reinforced and passed down in the population “even among people who should and do know

Politics is the never ending power struggle Americans know all too well. It’s a childish game full of lies, deceit, and beating around the bush where those involved find themselves having to simultaneously put on a smile for the camera. In the writing, Politics and the English Language, the author, George Orwell, discusses why he believes politics in fact are destroying the English language. Throughout the reading, the author makes many great points; however, his tone is interpreted as extreme, and at times, he comes off as radical when defending his claim.

Simon states “some people are pleased to call linguistic evolution was almost always a matter of ignorance prevailing over knowledge” (209). This statement shows the opposing view of the liberal -linguist. On the other hand, the other group of people the opposition of the liberal-linguist mentioned by Simon believe that “there is such thing as Standard English” (208). This makes the works of this article balanced and truthful. As a conservative, Simon wants individuals to preserve the English language and not just go with any fad that may come upon us. Henceforth, Simon wants us to teach ourselves and he stresses training yourself. Though Simon presents favoritism toward what he describes as the minority or the conservatives. “we are here… to arrest unnecessary change” (209). He accurately reveals the two viewpoints regarding good English usage.

In his paper, “Should Writer’s Use They Own English?” Vershawn Young, author of Your Average Nigga: Performing Race, Literacy, and Masculinity, argues that writers should not have to conform to one style of writing, Standard English, but that writers should be able to use colloquialism and native dialect in academic writings. It is becoming increasingly common to see speakers, professors and even government officials use slang terms and informal sayings, but Young argues that all people, even students, should be able to “mix the dialect they learn at home with whateva other dialect or language they learn afterwards”(111). I agree with Young's argument because I believe times are changing, and everyone should be able to mix dialects without facing prejudice regardless of social stature.

Using the English language effectively can be difficult at times. You must consider many factors: who your audience is, what kind of tone you wish to convey, the message you are attempting to get across, and any kind of lasting effect wished upon a reader’s mind. After reading through two essays, Orwell’s “Politics and the English Language” and Brockenbrough’s “Does IM Make U Dum?” each reveals different mindsets about the advancement and usage of the English language. On one hand, Orwell seems to advocate the simplification of speech and writing. Rather than seemingly sagacious phrases, useless terms, and

The English language, although used by almost all across the United Kingdom, has been mutated and altered in so many ways that sometimes we cannot even understand it ourselves.

While reading chapter six from Beyond Grammar Language, Power, and the Classroom, written by Mary R. Harmon and Marilyn J. Wilson, I began to realize how much we become caught up in the rules of the so-called Standard American English. It is sad because people are being judged on their dialect, which is a representation of who people are and where they are from. I have found myself correcting people that have a different dialect, or correcting people that say words that I have been told were not proper language, such as the word ain’t. Standard American English is something that is embedded in our brains at a young age and as we go through school; language is something teachers are constantly correcting children on. Reading about dialect has

Language is important because it's one of the main ways to communicate and interact with other people around us. It keeps us in contact with other people. English language is an example for the importance of a language because it is the international language and has become the most important language to people in many parts of the world. It is most widely used in communicating around the world, Also it is spoken as the first language in many countries. English is playing a major role in many sections like education, medicine, engineering and business. There are many reasons that makes English is the most important language in the world.