November 27, 2007 at 5:17 pm
· Filed under Learning to Blog, Social Media
We’re all trying to be young. What else explains the obsession with casual clothing, fitness and cosmetic surgery. As Baby Boomers enter retirement and Gen Y dominate the workforce, most are seeking what Juan Ponce de Leon sought in Florida in 1513 - the Fountain of Youth.
Add to this love of youth (or denial of aging) the growing influence of social media and we’re witness to a growing informality of language.
I like the latest ad from Seek.com.au -
“Why do we need to know what’s in there, what’s up there or what’s out there?”
On a pair of Puma gym shorts I bought yesterday there are four symbols with short instructions below each:
Heart: Love Your NeighbourLeaf: Eat More GreensCar Driving into Water: Cheer Up It May Never HappenWater Drop: Wash This When Dirty
Social media allows us to get to know each-other better - in French we'd abandoning parlez-vous for "tutoyer". There are less barriers and that's starting to be reflected in casual banter.
We're younger. We're more connected. We're more social. So let's abandon the formalities, okay buddy?
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Australia has long since abandoned formalities, I think. I don’t believe this to be a new phenomenon, by which I mean, it was already well established thirty years ago… though I wholeheartedly agree that it is increasing, and I’m somewhat alarmed by that.
Australia particularly has long embraced ‘mateship’ and informal greetings employing the word, regardless of people’s familiarity with each other. My parents, who are european migrants, often found this quite difficult.
In addition, and unlike many other languages, English doesn’t come with respect built into basic communication. Formal (respectful?) forms of words like “you” and “them” don’t exist, so it requires additional effort and syllables to express the reverence found in abundance in other cultures.
It is no accident that the adage inextricably links familarity and contempt. While I can certainly appreciate the point that familiarity facilitates easier interaction, I’m left feeling that this easy interaction fosters laziness.
The easier it gets to interact with each other, the more likely we are to let convention or social rules fall by the wayside.
Whether this is a good thing or a bad thing is debatable, of course… but I can tell you that I’m not particularly fond of the thought that it’s becoming increasingly acceptable to send corporate memos like:
“Meeting @ 2:30, C U all then”
A culture fostering a little more formality would frown upon the bastardisation of language in that way, and when it’s allowed in a professional environment, then it has license to extend beyond the workplace, and onto client-facing material. The horror.
My other problem with a lack of formality is the slippery-slope argument. If informal communication allows shorthand, then why is the occasional spelling error such a big deal?
… And if the occasional spelling error gets by without a mention, then why make a fuss about spelling at all?
Ultimately you end up with illiterate people who are surprised and offended when you suggest they should pay more attention, or consult a dictionary. When mistakes like that occur with high frequency it’s easy to identify them as illiteracy, rather than typos.
… and how professional is that?
Of course in another 30 years, it is unlikely to matter because everyone will be doing it. What worries me is the 30 years after that, when everyone’s spelling the same words differently and communication falls prey to social informality altogether.
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Add to this love of youth (or denial of aging) the growing influence of social media and we’re witness to a growing informality of language.
