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scottobear31st-Century English: Let's get this straight, although I speak English, I'm not its biggest fan. What we have here is a language that began as a bad habit shared by Norman soldiers and Saxon barmaids who discovered that if they shared that habit they could share other things. Then the island empire they populated went all imperial and the bad habit was exported to at least four other continents. Then their colonies compounded the problem by revolting and splintering the language, and then insisting on the right to absorb other cultures ad hoc and ad nauseum (but not ad-free, unless you subscribe.)
Give me your tired, your poorAnd then, as if that wasn't bad enough, one of the colonies began exporting soldiers and technology across the face of the planet so that this mutated, awkward tongue became the de facto standard for business.
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
And I will give them a horrible new language to speak,
Which they will then mutate even more. (emphasis added*)
Needless to say, when Earthmen went to space and joined Galactic civilization, the language of corruption, conquest, and compromise struck the rest of the galaxy like a plague. It was like influenza among the native americans, or that Apple virus uploaded by that one guy during the Independence Day movie. Our galactic neighbors never stood a chance.
The worst part... Earth never apologized, and the descendents of the ancient royal families of the former British Empire (now comprising less than a billionth of a percent of the galaxy's English-speakers) continued to insist that everyone else was talking funny.
*Emphasis is also indicative of abject corruption of the original poem.</table>
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No language is perfect
In fact, one could argue that the fact that English is such a mongrel language is one of the reasons why it has flourished. We freely invent words and borrow them while other languages lag behind. This flexibility makes our language beautiful. You surely can't read Shakespeare or Pope and tell me it's not gorgeous language.
In fact, your own story, which was well written, just proves this point even better. English is a grand language. Don't diss it. ;-)
Re: No language is perfect
Date: 2001-07-22 01:25 pm (UTC)Actually, I agree with may of your points there. you're the first anonymous post I've seen in a while, What brings you by?
I'm actually in favor of a language that can grow, and develop over a stagnant one, stuck in one concept or idiom... and ride the fence when it comes to niggling over proper usage and tradition.
Thanks for coming by, and commenting!
no subject
Re:
Date: 2001-07-22 01:28 pm (UTC)I should correct what I said earlier... I speak American. :)
American...
Date: 2001-07-22 01:37 pm (UTC)Any nation that came up with the marvellous phrases Holy hole in a donut Batman and Nanu Nanu is fine by me :)
Re: American...
Date: 2001-07-22 01:37 pm (UTC)Re: American...
Date: 2001-07-22 01:39 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2001-07-22 05:47 pm (UTC)Ever take a look at swahili? Now ~there's~ a logical language structure. Erm ... mostly.
Re:
Date: 2001-07-22 05:58 pm (UTC)Woo! Mjambo Bwana... anoter trade language gone strange. :)