People have reached out to tell me that they appreciate that I can express myself (usually) without getting emotional, for making clear sense, and for opening their eyes.
It is of course nice to know that I have made slight if even somewhat negligible changes in the way people view certain things.
But to my friends who compliment my language and say that they themselves cannot express their thoughts in "the way I can", I say do it anyway.
Because the fact of the matter is that I speak in fragments, I have comma splices all over the place, I misuse words, I stutter, my voice cracks, and utterly I am human. But the very cool thing about language, especially a language like English which constantly borrows from other languages and evolves pretty much daily if not more frequently, is that it is not the execution but the content that matters.
I would hate for anyone to think that I am an exemplary writer or speaker. Because the fact of the matter is that I can talk like this. Or I can talk like this:
Language changes. Language doesnt matter; grammar doesnt matter; ur words matter; wht u r trying to say matters. My accent dsnt take away from wht i am sayin. If u can back up wht u r sayin with facts w/ heart w. passion w. knowledge it dznt matter how u type or how u speak
speak in run on sents, let ppl know where u come from with ur language. that is ok. dont let ppl tell u tht u r "uneducated" bc "You cannot convey your thoughts with eloquence and proper diction as a learned man would."
F U C K that!
I LOVE language! I love English. I love the language my parents speak, Konkoni, I love the broken English my parents sometimes use because they were born and raised in another country!! And guess what?! If you are a first generation child and you learned English from your parents or from your aunts and uncles or other people who were foreign born who try to grasp the complex intricacies of English and sometimes you conjugate a verb wrong, DON'T be defeated by it!
And if someone says that they cannot understand you. Speak slower. Ask them what they do not understand. That is okay! Sometimes I speak to third or fourth-generation Americans who think their language is so advanced but guess what? Their language is so exclusive, so erudite, that most people don't know what the heck they are trying to say!
That is NOT the point of language. Plain and simple the point of language is to communicate. If you cannot communicate with me because you are using archaic words to sound fancy and educated, you are really doing the opposite! I am not impressed by your extensive vocabulary unless you can explain what the word means to me if I ask. And a lot of people can't! Do you see what I did before? I used the word "erudite." Outside the context of some news articles and books and I suppose "intellectuals" (aka people who have the privilege to access higher education) who really uses the word erudite?
Remember those "stupid" English homework assignments you used to get that made you write your vocabulary words in "context sentences"? They are actually not so stupid. When you use certain words, it is important to use them in context because language is not about you or your ego or you showing off your amazing linguistic abilities. It is about your audience. Language is always about your audience. People need to understand what the heck you are trying to say!
And most importantly, if some ignoramus tells you that "This is America! Learn the language properly." I want you to viciously cackle in their face for at least 30 seconds. Then I want you to google "official language of the U.S." or show them this:
If those people, however, once again maintain their hard-headedness, then I want you to tell them this:
"English is the language of England. Why should I maintain a language that oppressed not only the people of this country hundreds of years ago, but many other countries including countries in Asia, Africa, & South America (i.e. pretty much every conceivable place they could get their grubby, imperialist, racist hands on)? Why should I carry on the tradition of maintaining their language when the whole point of them implementing it was to make the country they were occupying more like them?" Tell them that you are not in the business of carrying on imperialist tradition and if they are, they need to stop celebrating the 4th of July and if they so wish they can identify as a supporter of the continuation of imperialism and oppression.**
Look, I'll say it again. I love language. I know this post will aggravate many a language enthusiast. They will say "We need to preserve English as it is because it is an art form! There are rules to language and you can only break those rules when you know what they are and the proper way to break them otherwise you defeat the point of many writing techniques." And to them I say, "Ok.......But art changes. And the way I speak and write is art. And to say that my misuse of certain words or use of slang is to say that when Shakespeare invented the word 'bedroom' he was really defecating on language."
So, I guess what I am trying to say is that if you want to write, write! If people insult you for the way that you speak, then there are only a few reasons for it and in summation it is probably one or more of these:
- I don't understand the way you speak, and am too afraid to ask you to clarify because I don't want to look dated
- I only speak in airy, contentless words that make me sound smart, but in reality I am almost never saying anything of value
- I am insecure that language will continue to evolve in forms that I cannot learn from college/mainstream books & I'm too arrogant to talk to people from different socio-economic statuses, learn about the sources of the way you speak, and therefore can only understand people who are as arrogant as me
- GADLHDF A U HAVE A N ACCENT???¿¿ I HAVE NVR LEFT MI HOMETOWN OR INTERACTED WITH PPL LIKE U BEFORE I AM SCARED FOREIGNER PLS LEARN THE LANGUAGE!!!¡¡¡¡¡
So speak and write on my friends! If you know what you are talking about and you have a point then you should have no real trouble communicating that message.
**Disclaimer: If you say that to someone "important" like your boss or on an interview at a job, I cannot guarantee that it will go well, but I will totally give you a high five, tell you that you're awesome at least 12 times a year, and will take you out for lunch.
Okay I had wrote a post and all and attempted to publish but it spontaneously erased 😠. Maybe for the appeasement of everyone else it is better this way. I have to say I was astonished if not impressed by your brilliance in context to your writing. And you nailed so many aspects of what haunts people's everyday lives in terms of being judged by others- aka the biggest culprit to why the phobia of public speaking exists. The bit about English being able to adopt other languages and cultures was pure genius and highlights the fluidity of the language itself- lest I now forget to note the fact that you were bending the language like a true water bender. Ugh, in love with so many of the overarching points to this blog. I hope to see more of what you say and how you say it because I was hooked!
ReplyDeleteP.s. despite feeling primarily slighted ;p I have to say you couldn't have done a better, a more "exemplary," job of categorizing and summarizing why people harpoon other's speech because the way, manner and description of how they speak doesn't necessarily jibe with them was outstanding. Not to tout you too greatly but you killed it and left the rest of us- those verbiose junkies- clambering over one another to get out of the roasting light you've shone onto us because even we couldn't confound the clear-cut view of the insecurity-ridden blanket we shield ourselves with. But admitting it is somewhat penance in its own right, right? Alas, you have touched base and brought light to the beauty of a process taken not seriously enough and often too critically and made it approachable. Write write and write my friend- I think you might be onto something great!
Tommy! I'll say it again, you are too kind! I totally did not mean to slight you at all! Haha. It's awesome you're learning the lesser used words of English. That is the beauty of language! That each one holds words, phrases, idioms, that reveal so much more about its origins and reflects the culture of the people, I don't want to erase the more archaic words, just broaden the definition of "English". But thank you for reading and leaving such a kind and elaborate comment. Replies like these validate that I'm not just screaming into the void of the Internet! :)
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