When did the English language die?

Question

I have seen so many people put there instead of their, I can't even laugh at it any more! I don't mind when people use abbreviations, but when they don't even know the difference between were and was? I know it's the internet, but that isn't the point. What's happened?

Answer 1

It's not just here! I hear people say I seen ___ on a daily basis. Sadly, these are professional contacts. I've also heard the word "height" mispronounced as hith (which is now acceptable according to Webster's). People commonly end a sentence with a preposition. Again, it is acceptable now. So just wait, before long "there" will mean belonging to them; "to" will mean also; "your" will mean you are; and I seen will replace I saw. It's a travesty! (or is that tragedy?)

Answer 2

It occurs when young people, before their education is completed, sign on to forums, such as this one and pretend to knowledge that is not yet theirs.

It is the nature of anonymous arenae that no one can know the true identitiy or character of the participant. One can only "read" the clues.

In the "real" world, however these frauds would be considered "non starters, " as their juvenile identities would keep them out of the work force or the halls of acadamia. If, by that time, an adult did not have the proper grammatical skills and proficiant vocabulary, he would be doomed to failure, or, at least, to the care and feeding of his mop and broom.

The language is not "dead," my dear. It is merely yet dormant in most of the Yahoo Answers community.

I feel compelled to add that I agree that English is a developing idiom. (thank you, "M," for your gentle reminder) Any living language will change with usage. That is the reason Greek and Latin terms are still used in medicine and law. Ancient Greek and Latin are considered "dead" languages, so that when used in modern context, the meanings of those terms are never confused.

If these "bad" English terms are accepted, will it be such a tragedy? Anyone who has ever struggled through Chaucer, in his orignal. old English style, or even the more recent Shakespeare, will agree that change is not necessarily a bad thing.

Answer 3

I think people have always had the "their"/"there" problem. I think that you've just noticed it because you get exposure to more people's writing on the Internet. Before you didn't see the writing of so many people because the Internet didn't exist.

And the "were"/"was" distinction is a dialectal difference. Again, perhaps you just weren't exposed to so many dialects of English until you used the Internet more.

Answer 4

Hello!!! Wake up!!! English is not dead. It is a living, breathing language. You want to complain about spelling you silly girl? Chat with Chaucer, who spelled some words as many as 15 different ways, sometimes spelling them differently in the same sentence.

Answer 5

What's happened? Not much probably, just that far more people of much lower educational level have access to tools such as the internet.

Rest assured, spelling 50 years ago wasn't wonderful either.

Answer 6

This just proves that English is not dead. It's very much a living language because it is constantly changing. Sadly, after a prolonged period of accepted usage of something like "there" for "their" it will become "official".

Answer 7

sometimes we type fast, sometimes English is not our first language, and sometimes we forgot the rules of English class. The world is not over.

Answer 8

I think it started about 1960, actually, when "liberal educationists" decided that fun was more important than education. We've been going downhill ever since.

Answer 9

20 years ago.

Answer 10

have to agree!!!!