Is it cool to abuse the English language ? Is it a result of a lousy education system ? Or are most users of Yahoo Answers just thick ? I think the latter....
2006-10-10 00:39:53 · 35 answers · asked by john r 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
I think it is because people rush. I have taken my time typing this question. I hope it passes your test. I have checked it for spelling too. Am i using correct punctuation? Everything in the right place? I don't want to upset anyone :o)
2006-10-10 00:43:25 · answer #1 · answered by Charlie Brigante 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Possibly because many of the people who ask questions here are using a language that's foreign to them.
How many languages do you speak and write and how fluently?
Anyone who can manage to communicate in another language from their birth language is far from stupid I would have thought? Brave is one word that comes to mind - especially when at beginner level in that language.
This is a forum for the communication of ideas and knowledge - not a grammar, spelling and punctuation forum.
Incidentally, being able to spell correctly is neither an indicator of intelligence nor of education - dyslexia is an impediment suffered by many people of well above average IQ and educational achievement, as this small excerpt from the referenced website shows:
"Famous Dyslexics Pages:. Page 1 Albert Einstein, Winston Churchill, Cher, George Burns, henry winkler, Whopi Goldberg, Walter Elias Disney, Alexander Graham ..."
Incidentally - may I point out the deficiency in your own Q/ - it is incorrect punctuation to put a comma before the word "and" as you have done.
2006-10-13 06:56:39 · answer #2 · answered by Sue 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's a sign that most users are young and suffering from an appallingly bad education system where nobody even cares about teaching spelling, grammar and punctuation and, indeed, many of the teachers don't know much about it themselves! So why, indeed, bother? We are approaching the point where we shall be able to tell people's approximate ages by the quality of their written English. It's sad.
Maybe it's part of an overall strategy. Age discrimination is prohibited, but you simply remove all correctly written letters of application from the pile when you choose people for interview! Smart thinking!
2006-10-12 03:17:57 · answer #3 · answered by Doethineb 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I do not think _all _ YA participants are thick, though some are clearly not competent in their use of the English language.
However, it is obvious that, for many YA users, English is not their first language. Hence an allowance should be made, particularly where the questioner is from an Asian or Arabic country. They not only have to learn our language in its 'verbal form', but also an entirely new script, since their written language has absolutely no connection with the Roman alphabet used in English.
However, I agree with you in one respect, namely that of poor grammar. I think texting, with its strange abbreviations, is becoming almost a standard form of Engish for some people. This is a great shame since English is such an expressive language; to bastardise it this way is a truly backward step.
2006-10-10 01:04:54 · answer #4 · answered by avian 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Well, there are a lot of people in the UK now who don't have English as their 1st language, so they can be excused. As for the rest, I don't think the education system in this country is so bad that these people really can't spell, so they must be thick! I would suggest that they use the Spell Checker but there isn't much point if they can't spell in the 1st place!
2006-10-10 11:18:21 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
you know, I often wonder this myself. My own sister has resorted to doing the whole <3 thing, I think it means Love, although I am not quite sure. She never used to say things like lost in da woodz or freezin my azz off. Half of the things they try to cut short like the(da) etc are almost exactly the same in length so it makes no sense what so ever !!! It can be really annoying, my sister is actually 3 years my senior and seems as though she has regressed to her teenage years. I think it looks as though the person has less than a second grade education. That's why "spell check" was invented so people who had trouble spelling wouldn't look so dumb. Guess dey got sic of usin it, takes all da fun outta writin n shyt...lol
2006-10-10 00:54:22 · answer #6 · answered by Michele A 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
There's no excuse for the bad spelling since there is a "Check Spelling" feature right there. As far as punctuation and bad grammar, it's probably a combination of rushing and ignorance. Not everyone is good at grammar and composition, no matter how much it may be given at school.
2006-10-10 00:44:08 · answer #7 · answered by Purdey EP 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why is yours so badly punctuated? You have not only put a comma before and, something which is unnecessary and incorrect, you've also put an unnecessary space in between each of your questions and the question mark.
If you're going to assert your intelligence over others, make sure you're the brightest star in the sky.
P.S. I used the spell check; no mispellings found.
2006-10-10 00:50:17 · answer #8 · answered by H 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Inadequate education. When I read some of the Q & A's on here, I worry that the abreviated text will eventually become the norm for the English language!
2006-10-10 00:50:11 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
It can be from a number of reasons. If you actually thought about it you can see that it is obviously:
- Rushing to get the question answered
- Typo
- American spelling
- Non-native English speaker
- Dyslexia
- Text (sms) form of writing
- How you were brought up to speak form of writing
- or just a Mistake
2006-10-10 00:56:14 · answer #10 · answered by buzybee 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋