Language + Technology Flashcards
(24 cards)
Why do we use ‘Textisms’?
- Using linguistic features like clipping, contractions + elliptical sentences may help communicate more quickly
- Colloquialisms + informal choices may help you appear friendly/create positive face
- Using dialect/non-standard forms may help express identity
John McWhorter
- Fingered Speech: writing in the manner that you talk.
- i.e. informal, chatty, conversational
Jean Aitcheson
• Damp spoon syndrome: being lazy
• Infectious disease: phrases becoming trendy
• Crumbling castle: the English language is deteriorating
David Crystal
Theory 1:
• Texting is done by adults too
• Abbreviations have been around for a long time; they are not just made up by kids
• An omission of letters when spelling must mean that a kid knows how to spell the word correctly since they must know the letter is there to miss it out in the first place
• Reading things on a phone is still literacy practice
• Kids know when to use formal language
Theory 2: (2008)
The effect of restrictions on texting
• Restrictions on text characters resulted in certain features in online text:
o Abbreviations and initialisms (G2CU, lmk, YOLO)
o Symbolisms (&, @2)
o Punctuation marks used as emojis such as :), :/
o Vowel omission when clipping (wht, pls)
o Variant orthography: spellings that are non-standard and phonetic (cuz)
Theory 3: (2006)
• Many technological communications are asynchronous:
users may not respond to each other immediately
• Emails share features of spoken language yet it is usually used in formal settings
J.L Austen
Speech Act Theory
• Locutionary act: literal meaning
• Illocutionary act: implied meaning
• Perlocutionary act: perceived meaning
Schlegoff (1986)
Identified the pattern of telephone conversations when opening and closing the conversation
• Summons/answer
• Identification
• Greetings sequence initiating communication
• ‘How are you’ phatic talk
• Pre-closing and closing words to the effect of ‘that’s enough now’, phatic talk, discourse markers
Sacks, Schlegoff + Jefferson (1974)
Turn-taking in a telephone conversation is triggered through the use of:
* Intonation
* Questions
* Hesitations
* Interruptions
* Overlapping
* Discourse markers
* Backchannelling
Marshall McLuhan (1962)
Typographic man
• Our identity and beliefs are shaped by the media that we use
• Digital texts are viewed by many which can affect personal and social change on a larger scale
Simon Garfield (2010)
• Typography plays a huge part in conveying meaning, different fonts can suggest different messages
Susan Herring (1996)
• There are gender specific differences in the use of language in synchronous + asynchronous chatrooms
• Men post longer messages, assert strong feelings (occasionally flaming: making an offensive and insulting post), ask fewer questions and make fewer apologies
• Women use more emojis
Define Prescriptivism
Prescriptivism: term used for approaches to language that set out rules for what is regarded as ‘good’ or ‘correct’ usage.
* One established set of rules
* One language, recognised worldwide
* Rule-breaking= mistake
Explain the advantages of Prescriptivism.
- Allows us to understand one another easily
- No issues regarding the meaning of words: as there’s one established set of rules.
- Preservation of language: prescriptive rules help preserve the traditional forms of language + prevent it from evolving too quickly.
- Professional + formal contexts: in formal writing + professional contexts, adhering to standard language rules can convey professionalism + credibility.
Explain the disadvantages of Prescriptivism.
- Limited development of language: prescriptive approaches can be resistant to natural language evolution + may dismiss new words, phrases, + usages that emerge over time.
- Practical limitations: implementation difficulty: strict prescriptive rules can be difficult to implement + enforce, leading to inconsistencies + confusion.
Define Descriptivism.
Descriptivism: evidence-based approach to language that describes, in an objective manner, how language is being used.
* Content is more important than form.
* Language belongs to the people (people create language + it is in their hands to change language)
* Rule-breaking= progress
Professor Wood
Positive Effects Of Technology:
* Texting may improve children’s spelling + grammar- encourages phonetic experimentation + understanding.
* Using textisms (e.g. ‘gr8’ + ‘1daful’) require children to sound out spellings.
* Children are now more likely to read on digital devices- surely more reading of any kind is a good thing.
* Reading text messages is equal to consistent daily practice at reading + decoding- makes you better at reading in general.
* Researchers found no connection between grammatical errors or omissions made in text messages (e.g. ‘wanna’ + ‘gr8’) + children’s understanding of grammar + spelling.
Dystopian View
- Argues that modern tech (e.g. texting, social media, + AI) is damaging language by making it less structured, less rich, + less meaningful.
- Perspective often linked to prescriptivist attitudes that believe language should follow traditional rules + resist change.
Naomi Baron (2008)
Technology + Language Evolution
* Studies how written communication online resembles spoken discourse.
* Suggested that technology encourages informal language + reduced attention to grammar.
* Found that young people ‘code-switch’ between formal + informal styles, depending on platform.
Danah Boyd (2014)
Digital Identity + Online Language
* Found that young people adapt their language depending on their audience.
* Example: formal language in school emails, informal language in DMs.
* Argued that context collapse (when multiple audiences merge online) forces people to carefully curate their online language.
Elizabeth Eisenstein
- Personal + social change are afforded possibilities by technology.
Hamilton + Barton
- Refer to blogs + other forms of everyday writing as ‘vernacular literacy practices.’
- Their informal register facilitates the mimicking of colloquial language.
Carrington
Linguistic compression in SMS.
* People tend to use vowel deletion, phonetic spelling, initialism, + letter + number homophones in SMS.
Tim Shortis
- Notes that text messaging is often explicitly related to face-to-face conversation, commenting on past interactions or anticipating future ones.
- He develops this with the idea that while fast, interaction is “not in real time”, which leaves time for participants “to construct a considered
response” between “communication turns”
.
Norman Fairclough
- Computers imitate human interaction (e.g. ‘are you sure?’).
- He also highlights that computers allow you to ‘take turns’, mimicking human interaction (e.g. using a drop down menu for your turn)
Christopher Werry
- In internet chat people use more letters than necessary to imitate speech or semantic nuance (e.g. “nooooooo”).
- He also suggests that text + email are like talk as people take turns + it’s informal.
