SLANG 3 The Effect of slang on the English language The records show slang was first used around the 16th Century, but this is not certain, as it more of a spoken language and so it could have been much earlier. At this time people created new words as the English vocabulary was a lot smaller than it is today and so people felt the need to invent new words to express themselves. Nowadays slang is used much more frequently, with the influence of technology having a great effect on the use of slang. Some people think it has a positive effect on the English language, while others think it is having a negative effect. In this paper the author will look at the history of slang, how the use of slang has changed through time and look at the effect it has had on the English language. The Origins of Slang The first recordings of the use of slang were by some of the famous playwrights, including William Shakespeare, Thomas Middleton and Thomas Dekker, around the 16th Century. The English language had around 50-6000 words, compared to nowadays where there are around 1,000,000 words, so writers didn’t have as much vocabulary to use as they do today. These writers wanted to express themselves more and so during this time a number of new words were created and added to the English language. Shakespeare created around 1700 words in his works. An example of a slang word he created is “Fustilarian”, which was an insult meaning a “smelly old woman”. Another example of
As discussed in the article by Clive Thompson, many people use different ways of speaking. Based on text conversations, social media posts, and comments language has made a drastic change. TBH grammar has made like a huge change on society. Lookin at billboards and social media, people post is a totally diff manner than speaking. Lol I remember the last conversation I had with my aunt that lives in Charleston, SC.
Texting is ubiquitous in modern Western society. It's a convenient way to communicate basic ideas quickly without having to commit to a phone conversation or the long wait for a letter. All of this is done through cellular phones on the go and many teenagers have subscribed to this method of communication as their primary one. When texting, it is customary to abbreviate certain words in order to save time. These abbreviations can be considered a language that evolves out of texting, and that language can be referred to as textspeak.
Basketball fans come from all walks of life flocking to their television sets as the game flashes on the screen. They ignore real life for those two hours to bask in the glory of their favorite players. LeBron James being the basketball superstar he is knows his audience and uses that to his advantage while writing his article for sports illustrated. LeBron used syntax and diction specific to his fan base to capture attention and create a believable piece of writing. James’ ego shines through his enticing words in the conclusion of his writing.
This offensive slang shows the discriminatory beliefs of society and how young people can be easily corrupted to support these beliefs.
“Slangin’ Rocks” Objective Summary “Slangin’ Rocks” by Robin D.G. Kelley, is an opinion essay about the treatment of “people of color” by United States law enforcement, in a historical and modern sense. The purpose of the essay is to persuade the reader to agree with the belief of the author, that U.S law enforcement treats “people of color” unfairly, and that the system itself needs to be changed. The essay begins with the author describing his own experience with law enforcement, which provides him with credibility on the topic and provides insight into why the essay was written (Kelley 21-23). The author’s personal story provides the reader with a specific example of how “people of color” are treated unfairly by law enforcement, and that
Society is constantly progressing to improvement, and language can reflect that drastically (Bulletin). To conclude, slang from the 1920s has impacted language used in the current era. While times and motivations have changed, the vibrant meaning of slang words and the reasons behind their use stays the same. Social liberation, freedom, relaxation, music, and political activism will always spawn interesting words in every generation, and common place terms will gain new meaning in the world of tomorrow.
Convicts would have their own slang language which was referred to as the “flash” language to undermine their authorities as a way of communicating towards each other without anybody else having knowledge of what they were saying. In source 1, the word “scamp” meaning a man who commits robbery on the highway, is an example of a slang word they used making it hard to be detected and understood by others. This suggests that convicts didn’t want their authorities to understand some things they said. Through time, adaptations have been made to the convict slang language developing into some words we use
I enjoy using the occasional curse word when I speak, and I tend to use them frequently when I speak of something that I am passionate about, argue for something, or try to ease frustration. Some may think that swearing is a new, crude, and unintelligent aspect of today’s society. However, the truth behind swearing may come to a surprise. Natalie Angier’s “Almost Before We Spoke, We Swore” reveals some of the science, history and psychology behind why humans swear and where swearing came from.
As a result language has changed over the years, there is a whole range of different words. Even modern slang
Outsourced is made a movie in 2006, a romantic comedy film. The movie was written by George Wing and John Jeffcoat. It was directed by John Jeffcoat. The movie tells about the changing life of an American man Todd Anderson after he traveled to India. We can see that the importance of slangs in communication in the movie.
The Modern English language has a rich history, it develops and changes like many other world languages. The English language has mainly been influenced by Latin, Germanic and French over a period of two thousand years. The English Lexicon includes words from over 120 countries, however Latin, Germanic and Latin account approximately less than 30% each. The English language is second to none in the variety and amount of lexical words. The most penetrating influence on English in history is French during the Middle English period after the Norman conquests.
In the twenty-first century, the plays of William Shakespeare may at first appear dated and irrelevant: they use archaic language, are set in the age of Kings and Queens, and the Kingdom of England. However, it would be plainly mistaken to construe that Shakespeare’s works do not still remain integral to a twenty-first century society. Shakespeare’s plays gave the words and expressions one uses every day, revolutionized the art of theater as it was known, and forewarned about issues that would unknowingly still apply centuries later. Therefore, Shakespeare has had a profound effect on our lives by enriching our language and culture, as well as providing ideas that would still apply five centuries later, and it would thus behoove us to learn from his works and life.
Very few of words are surviving now a day. Example: Mann (man), Wif (woman), Hus (house), mete (meat), waell (wall) etc. These words actually give a true evidence of Old English surviving in Modern world.
There are many words that are unaccepted by the society in general and the outside of the group. The word ‘jargon’ comes from an old French word meaning ‘the twittering and chattering of birds’. It came into English in the fourteenth century, when its meaning extended to include ‘meaningless talk’ or ‘gibberish’. The Longman Dictionary of Business English defines jargon as