Language Chat

sorry

2006-04-18T08:02:00.000-07:00

i hate to say it buti cant raelly take a good stand somewhere on this issue. i dont think we should be pro one language and boo the ohters. at the same time i can hoestly see how english does dominate in lots of different aspects but this odes not make it better or the best. i really dont have enough care to argue one point i can appreciate the view points and see where each comes form buti dont have enough care to really stand somewhere. i guessthis issue doesnt seem like a big deal or i am havign troublew on this one to care at all about english being a standard language. sorry to say but who cares?
again sorry if this bothers anyone that i could care so little.
sorry!!!

Should people learn English?

2006-04-18T01:38:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how we in the United States are adjusting to peoples need of different language, having interpreters, voting ballots, flyers, etc. In Utah I'm seeing the Hispanic community evolving dramatically. I don't think that English language won't disappear any time soon, but if it does it will probably be Spanish. In my opinion I think that people who wants to live in the United States should learn how to speak English. My mom and dad did so I think if non-speaking English people should try to learn the language, especially if they want to live here. This will benefit both sides.

The more the better!!!!

2006-04-18T01:19:00.000-07:00

I enjoyed the readings and the different viewpoints shared on different cultures learning our language. I think that those who emigrate from another country to the U.S. should strive to learn English, not because English is better or we want to wipe out someones culture, but because to survive in the workforce or in other words to work your way up the ladder you need to be able to communicate in english. If you can speak english and you still want to retain or teach your children your native language, more power to you. Knowing more than one language can be very beneficial also in our lives. Friendships can easily be made and bridges built which would not have happened if it were not for knowing a different language. The more the merrier as long as you can speak English.

English is the standard language

2006-04-17T22:13:00.000-07:00

I agree with the pbs article and that the children of the future should know a second language but they should use english in their everyday lifes. I never expected to have to know spanish to get a job and i wish i could go back in time and have my parents teach it to me when i was younger. i don't think it is right that us americans have to learn another language to get a job when in america we speak english! i always thought that knowing a foriegn language was just something fun to do and use it when you travel. i never thought i would have to know just one foreign language (spanish) to survive in todays world. we live in america. if these people who speak spanish and can't learn or understand english can't live here without us americans making exceptions for them when it comes to the english language then maybe they should go back to mexico or wherever they came from. i don't expect to go to a foreign country and have them make exceptions for me because i don't speak there language so why should we have to for them. i would much rather be taking a more fun and exciting foreign language class but i have to take spanish because i can't get a job anywhere if i don't know it. i don't think i should have to accomidate them just because there probably illegal aliens. both of my grandparents came here from Germany and they both had to learn english. nobody had German written laws or people who spoke their language at the stores or any other places. its not fair that spanish speaking people get speacial accomidations and the rest of the foreign speaking world doesn't. they should just learn the damn english language or get out!

Air: The official breathing standard

2006-04-17T21:30:00.001-07:00

I found the readings/listenings and our ongoing conversation/debate about standardizing english very interesting. Going back to the political cartoon on 480, i really liked the cartoon about the 3 politicians and about designating the sun as the official life-giving source of heat and light. It almost seems that silly to declare a national language. Like Ron said, most, if not all, of us would agree that a common language in a country is the best. But does that require legislation? I am a firm believer that anyone should learn english. It is the international language. But i would not force that on anyone. Likewise, i think that native english speakers should learn some other foreign language. I feel that a culture should hold on to their native tongue, it truely is a source of identity. But in order to be functional, in america for instance, english needs to be learned. As was said early on in the class, there is rarely a clear-cut, black and white answer. The answer lies in the gray, in the area where black and white (not races) have found a compromise. english needs to be spoken in america, but diversity and tolerance absolutely need to thrive. That is what are nation was founded upon! People came from all over to find a land of tolerance, freedom, and peace. What changed? They still seek those things.

English Today

2006-04-17T21:30:00.000-07:00

I think that this topic goes along greatly with the discussion of how "true literacy is declining in America" that we're now reading useless magazines instead of picking up the classics.. Ever since the pilgrims came to America the "older" generations probably felt that English was declining and something needed to be done. Obviously at this point in American history it has gotten even worse - if worse is even the correct word. With the inpouring of immigrants, many of whom are probably of an older age, it has become more difficult to be able to communicate with everyone because at any given time someone could only be able to speak Vietnamese, Mongolian or Spanish (etc..) Like what I said in class, because I do mostly outbound calls for my job I speak with a variety of people, many of whom can't speak enough English for me to find out where a particular person is at or when they will be home. It is quite frustrating for me and I can understand that for them it must be as well. Unforunately there is little being done to clear up this dilemma and instead we are forced to not communicate with one another. Who really knows the best way to fix all of this? Probably no one, but hopefully people are seeing more that this is a broken system that needs some mending - soon!

Timely Emergency Assistance

2006-04-17T21:25:00.000-07:00

Years ago I worked for a large 911 Dispatch Center as a 911 call-taker. It was a quite, late night when I received a call I will never forget. The call was from a gentleman who was foreign and contacting me from a cell phone. Unlike what the television show CSI would like you to believe, it is not possible for 911 Call Centers to “triangulate” an exact location on a cell phone. A person calling on a cell phone must be able to give the location they are at, unlike a home phone number that will automatically display on a 911 call-taker’s computer screen. Normally we had a translator service we would go through for people calling in a foreign language and these types of calls generally went smoothly, however, the service could not help us unless we could tell them what language we needed translated. This gentleman was speaking a language I had never heard before in my life and he did not know a single word of English. I tried asking in every way possible what language he spoke and he kept trying to tell me what was wrong in a language I did not understand. His voice became more panicky and strained the longer we took, fighting for communication. I sought help through the other call-takers and supervisors but to no avail. The urgency in his voice was heartbreaking the few minutes before he hung up the phone in utter frustration. I never knew what happened to him, what his emergency was and if he was alright. Honestly, I don't care if there is, or isn't, a law making English the official language. People are going to speak whatever language they want, which I believe is fine and can not damage our country. I worry about immigrants that have come to this country illegally, however, and not required to learn English as soon as possible, as they would if they had come legally (Yes, I know that there is a huge majority of illegal immigrants that learn English of their own accord and in a timely manner. This is not the case 100% of the time, leaving many people without timely emergency assistance). It is essential that immigrants learn the language of the country they are coming to, at least enough to receive fast basic help from 911, police and hospitals. It may save their life some day. How I wish this gentleman just understood one phrase: “What language do you speak?”

A unified country?

2006-04-17T21:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, so having English as an official language wouldn't be a bad idea. In a way I agree with the usenglish website. I can see the consequenses and the advantages of that. There is no way that the gov. can force people to speak english in there own homes, that is their own choice, but for a more "unified" country having English as the official language in the "buisness" world could promote a lote of stuff, but I don't know what.
On the other hand the pbs piece hand a good point that being bilingual/mulitlungual is going to give kids especially a greater chance at life. I work at a grocery store and I get to meet a lot a spanish speaking customers that only know how to say,"I'm sorry I don't speak english." and I don't know their situation, I don't know if they are in the process of learning and could be embarassed to speak. I know that when I was trying to learn French I didn't dare go up to the people I knew spoke french and speak to them, I didn't know enough. My point could be if I had one that bilingualism it great, and so is one official language.

Is English in danger

2006-04-17T20:49:00.000-07:00

I am open to the idea of making English the offical language of America. However I think if we do we will be making our country undiverse. I mean many Americans have the idea that all people should speak English. But its a double standard for Americans. When Americans go to a different country they don't learn the language, they expect the people to speak english. The diversity of languages that are spoken in American make America. I don't believe English is in any danger of becoming a dead language any time soon. I think our reading made a valid point, that countries that have an offical language that language has become extinct. Granted most of the examples were way back in history. But I will give a more recent example. The national language of Peru is kechua, which is the language of the incan indians, right now their is only about maybe 2-4%of the population that speak that language. it is slowly dying out. So I think english will become indangered if we make it the offical language.

Standard English?

2006-04-17T20:42:00.000-07:00

As I read through the other posts I find that I'm not the only one that found the piece on PBS no be repetitive and unnecessary. It states that being bilingual is beneficial... Did anyone really not know that until they read this? The one thing I agree with is that we as a country should have a standard language. The purpose of having English as a standard language for America is not to eliminate diversity but to create a standard for communication. If you are going to start a life in America feel free to be bilingual or even trilingual, but just make sure that one of the languages is English.

Aaron's Soapbox

2006-04-17T20:27:00.000-07:00

Jay said it best... definitely some uncomfortable air in the classroom last time we met. My apologies, I will not be discussing the readings... I think that last Thursday was all the material that I need for this Blog. Although the amount of class participation was at (what seemed to me) to be an all-time high which was awesome, it pains me to see the amount of misunderstanding that exists just beneath the veneer of a class that felt so welcoming as it is based on learning acceptance. It may be naive or at least negligently optimistic of me, but I think that the younger generations are coming a lot further than their predecessors. I look at Adam... a middle aged military/family man with great and obvious Republican ties and I see the epitome of the baby boomer. I see the similarities between he and my father, a "died in the wool Republican" that embody the frontmen of their generation. I can't help but notice the hateful and unaccepting nature that goes along with it. Republicans, as we all know, don't support gay rights--something I place on a par with support of slavery 150 years previously. I felt like a modern die abolitionist when I grasped my ballot in '04; proud as hell to know that I understood and fought for the culture of homosexuals. A year later, after I graduated from my high school, two girls were voted for prom queen and queen. For those that don't know... thats a majority of votes from the entire school that got them there. And I looked back to the previous November and realized whose votes my votes were fighting against: an ancient, and with any luck, a soon to be dead race of unaccepting and blind humans. People that have never met a gay person, voted straight down the ballot, and didn't even think about any type of person outside of themselves and their closest, were my counter-voters. I sat in class on Thursday, fuming, not just for the words that some people were saying, but the thousands of people just like them who voted for the same thing, who had the same reservations (if not blatant and explicit hate) towards minorities. "Some have come to call me a racist" I call you a thing of the past. Because as we can see, even in your precious Republican state grows a torrent of something more formidable than one racist; a one day accepting majority. I don't know if this diversity class is going to teach a racist to not be a racist, but I know that if didn't help anyone see the light of acceptance or at least the knowledge of difference, I hope it reaffirms the beliefs in those who truly understand the importance of diversity. After all, diversity isn't something that exists because people accept it, it's not something that can be required to be taught... it's already here. It is just the embrace of those different cultures that is still to come... and may it come swiftly as it is far overdue.

English as the standard language.

2006-04-17T20:08:00.000-07:00

I found the first website interesting, and the article on PBS totally irrelevant. Not that it was irrelevant to our class, but the author is fighting for a cause that I don't think there is a battle over. He points out that bilingualism is beneficial...well, duh, honestly who doesn't know that? I think the real issue is whether English should be an official language. It's obvious that a person can be highly more successful speaking the language of the country. I could never imagine moving to another country with no intent to learn that language. Immigrants should be expected to learn the language of any country they live in. By creating an official language, we're not saying to ban or even discourage bilingualism.

2006-04-17T18:47:00.000-07:00

I like the idea of being united and all speeking english; but as the one article said the third generation will speek english. And they said that it's harder for an adult to learn a new language than it is for a child. I don't know if that's a bad thing but there are definantly advantages to being bilingual. My brother knows spanish, and he will go to spanish stores and buy calling cards for less than you can at other store.

It's our own problem

2006-04-17T17:36:00.000-07:00

Well everyone has their own opinions on weather or not everyone should be required to learn English if living here in the U.S. Jay made a very good point when he showed the $ difference in an English proficient person vs. an foreign speaker her in the U.S. I found it interesting that the people who founded the Use English .org group was an immigrant himself. I believe that the U.S. is bringing on this problem on our own. It is not an immigration problem. We are providing these immigrant with jobs as well as translators. Who wouldn't want to be accommodated like that in a place where you can make more money. I do believe just as Betty Bimer stated that English is not going to go anywhere. It is going to continue to be the universal language. The only problem that I see is that we are providing incentives for these natives to come here and take care of the dirty, cheep labor that we ourselves are to lazy and prideful to do. It has changed the social status of a Blue Collared worker. We are complaining yet we use foreigners to make us rich and keep our hands out of the dirt.

Swimming in a language

2006-04-17T16:03:00.000-07:00

In class we talked about standard english being the official langauge of The United States. We also talked about the fact that Spanish is the most widely spoken "minority language" (for a lack of better words). I had the opportunity to learn spanish in the country of Chile. I learned many of the rules for spanish and heard the language everyday, I was surrounded by spanish speakers and rarely had the occasion to speak english, this being the case I picked up on the spanish language very rapidly. I find it difficult to understand that there are so many people who live here (U.S.) and do not know how to speak the english language. I can understand that there are spanish comminities and that spanish speakers have a greater opportunity to speak their natal language than I had in Chile, but I think that there must be a need to learn english to communicate with the larger communtiy around them and also be able to better their situation.

E. Pluribus Unum

2006-04-17T15:16:00.000-07:00

I don’t think we are in danger of losing the English language any time soon, nor do I think that it is under “attack”, and I do believe that different cultures and languages add to the “melting pot” that brings all of these diverse backgrounds and beliefs together as one. But these ideas point toward something much more important. Something I felt like Cosby might have touched on. It is something that has been bothering me for some time now. That is the question of whether or not the many is still for the one.
It seems to me that it is more like the many is for several ‘ones’. Miller came close to this in “English is broken here” but he was saying more that the “many” may overcome the “one”. My perspective is a little different than this. The ones being the ethnical, cultural, and racial divisions that in the past have lent strength to our diversity, supplementing the one, while retaining their own individuality and finding new pride in the fact that not only are they a Hispanic (or African, or Asian, or whatever…) native, but they are also, and hopefully most importantly, a citizen of The United States of America. This perspective is being diluted due to focus on race, wasted tax dollars, threats on efficiency of Homeland Security, INS failures due to whatever, nationalization procedures, and many more things that to me are just distracting us from the real problem. Are we proud of our American culture? And if so where do we draw the line on the influence that other cultures have on it? In other words what makes us American and what can we do to ensure that it remains unchanged as more and more diversity affects it? It’s going to become increasingly difficult to be “United as one…” if we cannot answer these questions.
I think it is amazing that we almost need an immigrant to come into the US to tell us that our way of doing things is worth preserving. Let’s not forget they left their country for a reason and according to Pei-Fen Hsieh it was the same reason that makes this country great. This excerpt is from an interview done earlier this year before the congressional involvement in immigration.
From http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3796410.html
Pei-Fen Hsieh spent five years, thousands of dollars and countless hours making sense of complex immigration paperwork before she became a U.S. citizen last year. "Even with all this hassle, isn't that why we're here — because there's a system here and laws, and that's what's making this country great?"
Another from the Chairman of U.S. English at http://www.usenglish.org/
"Let me be clear: Encouraging immigrants to learn English is not about bigotry or exclusion. On the contrary, teaching newcomers English is one of the strongest acts of inclusion our government can provide. The whole notion of a melting pot culture is threatened if immigrants are not encouraged to adopt the common language of this country.
We should consider whether or not immigrants should learn English because it can determine if they are ever assimilated. (I realize that word carries with it a negative connotation but try to understand that the reason they came here was in fact to partake in the American dream, not to set up a Mexican (or African, or Asian, or whatever…) kind of ‘sub-government’ within the US.)) In other words they disliked their country for some reason and wanted to become an American. Assimilation, in this case, can just as easily be replaced with “becomes an American”. If we consider it from this perspective then it makes things like tax dollars spent on ballots with foreign languages an obvious waste of time and money (though this would be a good business for a private company it would not be something the “United as one” should promote or subsidize).
I don’t know where the lines should be drawn but a distinction must be made. I don’t think making the English language the Official language of the US will fix our problems and I don’t think it is the right approach to take on this issue. We must decide who we are as Americans and therefore where our loyalties lie lest the melting pot get a little too hot and boil over into a kind of cultural segregation and division that will be so enmeshed into the American way of life that it will run from the streets of Urban America all the way up to the Executive government. There are already examples of it. Black people want a black president elected not because he is a good American who can lead this country to a promising future, but because he is a black man and could accomplish great things for the African-American community (or woman for women, or Asian for Asian and so on…). An African-American once told me that he disliked being called "African-American" for two reasons. One, he knows what his ethnicity is, he "is proud of it and doesn’t need me or the goverment to remind him of it", and two because he is “an American”.

English Threats.....

2006-04-17T15:12:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't even begin to say how tense I felt during the last class discussion. Now that it's finished I don't want to drudge through those waters, only to draw attention to one statistic in the readings that illustrates the vital necessity that a person speak English here in The United States if they hope to achieve any reasonable level of success in this country. $42,000 versus $17,000. There is no reasonable person who would choose the latter. There are people who have no choice but the worse, but given the opportunity any person would strive for the nearly 3x greater potential, and if they haven't any hopes of achieving that success, then certainly they hope to extend that opportunity to their children. I certainly understand and perhaps even support the useenglish website. The argument is compelling, but I hope our minds can be put at ease by the Bimer article as well. I used to work with an Armenian woman. She sent her children to a private Armenian school in hopes of maintaining the language and a cultural connection to a dying nationality. The funny thing is that her children preffered English 75% of the time, even though they(the parents) spoke Armenian at home, and both sets of grandparents would be considered "not very well" English speakers, so they spoke nothing but Armenian. If nothing else, perhaps this debate will fuel a greater appreciation for bilingual and multilingual educations.

2006-04-10T23:55:00.000-07:00

Black English is a language. I didn't realized that until our discussions and readings in class. Trying to learn Black English is hard. How Ron was trying to make the class translate the paragraph into Black English. But which way is right in translating the paragraph into Black English?
In listening to Cosby discussion about black English. I think that Cosby is a very educated person who believes that the Black English isn't a language. But is Cosby right or wrong? It really depends on the person's perspective. I think that Cosby is right in some ways, but wrong too. How Cosby made a statement saying that the black community is dropping out of high school, pregnancy rate, etc. This is with all nationality I think. I think Cosby want to let his community out there know that Black people came a long way to be here, and they should appreciate that.

If Black English Isn't a Language, then Tell Me What It Is.

2006-04-10T22:55:00.000-07:00

James Baldwin Sounds bitter. He said,” The brutal truth is that the bulk of the white people in America never had any interest in educating black people." I however would not go so far as to call it a new language; I would avoid that because of what will result. If it is called a language the culture is less apt to change for the reason that they don't want to loss their culture. The American Indians specifically the Navajo almost lost their language; they didn’t teach their children how to speak Navajo and the language was almost lost. If the blacks are to ever become interested in improving their present state they must learn to read and write the language on the society in which they live and would become employed. The truth I learned from listening to the educated black man and Bill Cosby and the readings is that the blacks as a whole are not well educated. Nor do they have an interest in becoming literate enough to improve their standing. They do need to get out of the rut that their belief of being black puts them in. In others words what it means to be black in their mind has got to change. I believe there are plenty of examples of this in the world history. One such example is our present issue of the borders between Mexico and the US. This issue has some parallels; the Mexicans that come to get work and care nothing more than to make some money. They don’t want to do it right and legal and become an American and show their love of this country. On the contrary they fly their flag above ours and our American flag upside down. This for me a very patriot person is a slap in my face and makes me take a position that I might not have taken if I were to witness a people that wants to become an American because they love America. The illegal aliens hurt America by their stubbornness to do it their way not the right way the legal way. They increase our medical costs and bankrupt hospitals in California. They are not turned away for no insurance, thus they cost us more money than they are worth.

Where is Cosby's head, and just how far up?

2006-04-10T22:48:00.000-07:00

I listened to Cosby' s segment first before listening to Dyson's, which I hope that you all did as well because it gave better insight into the world of black english from the contemporary black perspective. It seems that when Cosby had said his infamous blurbs on ebonics, he didn't have the full awareness of the culture surrounding it. It seemed like the same stuff you hear middle class white people say about altered forms of spoken language. You could tell from Dyson's speech that he wasn't raised anywhere near white suburbia, and his comfortability in when not only speaking on the topic, but on the air that he seemed to be much more aware of the issue of ebonics than Cosby's constant stammering "uhhs" and seemingly pointless meanderings. When he responded to the Doctor of Linguistics I don't think he came anywhere near addressing her topic. It really seems like Cosby heard some kids talk on the corner and was in a pissy mood and made a public statement. People with PhDs specializing in both Language and Africana studies (both being the collective roots of the issue of ebonics) seem to support the issue greatly, one of which being white. Maybe Cosby should step out of the box, take a language class ;) or god forbid, an African-American Studies course.

Black English - The Great Controversy

2006-04-10T22:31:00.000-07:00

It's difficult for me to respond to such heated debates because in many ways I feel torn in both directions. In many ways I feel like Bill Cosby makes a great point. Look at his own life for example, he has been quite successful and has assimilated in to "white society" by speaking "proper English". Then he sees younger generations in the slums who speak Ebonics and has put a negative connotation to it. In many ways I think that by learning "proper English" Africans would have a better chance in being successful in America but at the same time Ebonics is something that helps define their culture and I don't think it should be squandered. It should be embraced, and we've seen that many white people have been doing so. I believe that Ebonics is here to stay and instead of tearing it down we should give it a more positive connotation so that perhaps instead of making Africans who embrace this part of their culture assimilate, they can use it to their benefit and have a more positive experience using it.

misconceptions

2006-04-10T21:44:00.000-07:00

One thing that has been very interesting for me is to really learn about black english. In the past i thought that black english is just poor english that is just full of slang. It was interesting to learn that it has rules and grammer just like any other legitimate language. I also am more tolerant of the language after learning that it has a heritage, namely the slave/african heritage. That is something that is important to some in the black community, and therefore they should be able to keep it for the sake of heritage and identity. However, i feel that traditional english still needs to be taught/used in order to help the community interact better in this country, but in the international areana as well. This is the same of any other country in the world. English is taught from a young age in many countries such as Russia, Germany, and it's even starting in china. This is because traditional english is now the international language.

black english

2006-04-10T21:30:00.000-07:00

ok I believe black english is another language on its own, as we discussed in class that many people use this language to communicate. As we talk about this in class it has brought back a memory.... All you all know I am brown, many people think I would talk "different" ( more like a black person). For a high school project I had to call and interview some person. I called and set up a time to interview this person. When I arrived to the place the person was kind of shocked that I was brown. They told me flat out that they thought I was white because on the phone I sounded like a white person. They were fine in letting me finish my interview. I have never had anyone tell me that I sound like a white person before. But because I am raised in a white family I sound like a "white" person.
I think black language would really cool to learn but like every other language it would be hard to learn. I am sure it would have many rules on learning it.

Black English

2006-04-10T21:19:00.000-07:00

I think black english is really interesting becuase I didn't even know this language exsisted. I do think it's a language because a whole community who speaks this language. Granted, I don't really understand what they are saying somethings! I think it was really interesting what Bill Cosby said being that he is educated and in a sense he is saying that in a way black people are getting "special treatment."I find it interesting because he is better off than some of the people who speak black english so it might not be so easy for them to speak "proper english." When people live a certain way and speak like the others around them it hard to make that adjustment. At the same time I understand where he is coming from because I'm sure he had to learn the proper way to speak english.

Black English

2006-04-10T20:36:00.000-07:00

The use of black english is not very prominant here in Utah. I have not had the chance to hear black english throughout my lifetime. I do think that black english is very much so a language. There are many differences between black english and standard english. I am not one that is very qualified to make any big claims but I think that in many ways black english fills in some of the holes in standard english.

lets just do what we can

2006-04-10T20:12:00.000-07:00

in the readings about black english i have decided that for the many reasons other slang or branched off languages such as black english exist is not something i really worry about or think is a problem. people will do what makes them feel comfortable and happy. feeling like you belong to a group of people or to an identity generally is what people seek after. feeling that they belong or are part of a greater cause gives people meaning and a sense of accomplishment. if people can identify together and feel good in identifying together through their own language then why not let them? the point of language is to be able to communicatte and understand each other on a higher level. if the language that a particular community creates is not educated and or an effective means of communication then i dont think its a good idea but if lets say black english allows those particular people to communicate on a higher level and bring together a people then why is that wrong? however not being to familiar with black english i am not passing judgement on whether or not it is a positive thing or a negative thing i just dont we should let things get too far out os perspective.

Black English

2006-04-10T19:48:00.000-07:00

As we have been reading about Black English and the reasons why it is a language, I have come to the conclusion that it is a language. I believe that Black English is something many people fear, Why? I don't know. It could be due to the fact that when a black person speaks many people are unable to understand them, which makes many of us feel uncomfortable because we automaticlly think they are talking about us and are going to hurt us. Another possible conculsion is that controlling their language is another way in which socity or the world can inslave them. Controling a persons language gives a person great power, it gives them domination. I believe Black English should be taught in schools to those who speak it, thus improving their academic performance.

black english

2006-04-10T19:45:00.000-07:00

I don't think that it's shameful to speack ebonics, if you care just enough to learn that to talk to spacific people, more power to you, but if you are more motivated to go places, you got to be able to comunicate effectivly with who ever you need to, whether it's english or some other language. Remember talking about deaf children needing a language, and when they didn't receive one they were considered dumb. If they learned english or sign first, learning the other one is easier. Same concept, if blacks learn ebonics, and then standard english but still speack ebonics, what's the harm in that?

Ebonics

2006-04-10T19:14:00.000-07:00

To think about the speech being used by black people is very interesting. I am fluent in ASL and I understand when I am told that different languages follow different rules. From this class I am able to see the different types of rules that follow with the different languages being used.

To see the different types of slang being used in the different languages and the different types of words used in the different context is a great observation to me. All the readings show how the languages are unique from each other as is the cultures. It has been a real eye opener to me.

Ebonics

2006-04-10T18:42:00.000-07:00

It was interesting for me to read so much information about Ebonics. I completely believe that Ebonics is a valid language. My only concern is that children, whatever their race, gender or class, should be given every tool for them to be able to succeed as they grow into adulthood. Teach them Standard English as this will help them in many aspects of their life. It would be a tragedy, however, to use Standard English as a way to strip these children of their culture and identity. Use their culture to help them learn new things. This debate reminded me of the Native American schools that children were sent to and stripped of their culture. How much more effective would that effort had been if Native American teachers were given teaching tools and sent back to their communities to teach these children how to succeed in this strange world outside of their home without losing any of their identity or culture. Give them the gift of knowledge and ability to succeed in any situation, without punishing them with the loss of what makes them a free and unique individual.

Black English

2006-04-10T18:19:00.000-07:00

I will have to agree with the statement that bill cosby made reguarding black english. how it seems that if a white person uses poor english they are considered uneducated, and at the same time if a african american person uses poor english it is overlooked. i am glad to see that it is actually an african american that is standing up for the fact that there is an obvious double standard when it come to language.

Black English

2006-04-10T17:56:00.000-07:00

I agree with Bill Cosby. i think that since we have to take an english class every year in school an in college that the blacks shouldn't get an exception when white people are criticitzed when they don't speak proper english and that we have to take so many years of english classes to help us write and speak better. the blacks shouldn't get an exception. if you live in america then you have to follow the english rules no matter how dumb they really are.

Idenity?

2006-04-10T14:37:00.000-07:00

With just over 2 weeks left of this semester, I can't help but reflect and think there is this chasm, a deep void separating one side from "the other." As absurd as it sounds, how one interprets Bill Cosby's remarks and position seems to suggest which side of the void you stand on. I had anticipated that I would defend his assertion that in order for Black people to pull themselves up from their sociological slumps they would have to "speak" the language of the dominating culture, and that language would be proper English, for as Nick said, when in Rome. Yet there is this resonating voice inside my head telling me that language is about more than communication. Language is identity, and furthermore, even speaking no words at all we have an incredible ability to communicate, if we really want to hear, and be heard. So I'm trying to understand where the anger is coming from, and in my opinion, it comes from the fact that we are really talking about more than words here. We are talking about accepting diversity, and permitting people to be different.
This topic has made me angry because Black English is a language, there is "NO" debate. Furthermore, it is a language steeped in more history and significant cultural identity than the Damn Queens English we value so much, lest we forget we rebelled from England in an attempt to seek our own identity. Black English is about identity, and the intolerance exhibited by Mr. Cosby is nothing short of RACISM, pure and simple, disguised only by the fact the sheep is wearing Black Clothing.
I for one was clearly impressed by Michael Dyson's grasp of language, his ability to communicate, to argue effectively, and most importantly to understand and "quick change" in his own discourse. I would wager a great deal, he is more qualified to speak on behalf of the Black community than Bill Cosby. I had nearly forgotten in fact that Mr. Cosby was actually Black at all. Most importantly though, he doesn't tear down a whole culture or it's language, nor argue that a culture should assimilate to partake in the very promises that any white person takes for granted.
There was a time when I guarded my identity by manipulating language, I knew to avoid a revealing dialect like those people in London. Who I am, was carefully concealed in words. The Black "vernacular" isn't shy about concealing itself, but rather is a celebration of it's roots in an attempt to claim some control over their historical past. Let us not forget, we are the descendants of a people who robbed them of their lives and freedoms, why now make any attempt at robbing them of their attempt at taking possession of their identity. They have the right and obligation to name their children Condaleeza, Shaniquah, or Mohammad, as do you Ezra, Izhekial, or James.
We needn't worry about coming across a Black person on main street or Wall street, and finding ourselves unable to converse with them. What we should concentrate on is "hearing" them, and having them "hear" us. If you believe that Black people don't live by the "standard rules" of English or society, then you are on the other side of the Chasm, and I hope you always find yourselves a member of the ruling majority. If like me, you realize that Black English is no different from French or Sign Language (except that Advertising, and pop culture only robs the Black English) then you will understand how Bill Cosby's remarks were not only an act of betrayal, but a hurtful act of Racism, perpetrated on a group of people, by an individual that has sought to and in doing so separated himself from that group entirely. Ultimately Black people are more likely to rise from Sociological slumps by filling themselves with Pride, and bolstering a strong community surrounding their chosen discourse and culture, rather than attempting to cover the tone of their skin with shallow make up in the form of "proper English Grammar."

Black English

2006-04-10T13:49:00.000-07:00

I always felt that if I were to hold the opinion that African Americans should learn proper english that I would be racist. I am glad that Bill Cosby stood up for this issue. There is a big controversy over wether Ebonics is a language of its own with real rules or if it is just a result of lack of education. Language practices are constantly changing. I think that Ebonics just adds to the wide variety of culture here in America. As long as African Americans are being taught and raised by other African Americans their language practices are not going to change. I believe that it would be beneficial for them to be educated in "proper english", for the advantage of communication. I think that because of the way Black English sounds it is steriotyped as the laguage of the uneducated. The fact that Cosby is African American himself and saying that all African Americans need to be educated in "proper english" it makes me feel more comfertble to feel the same way with out feeling that I am racist.

Right or wrong!

2006-04-10T11:59:00.000-07:00

I have always enjoyed listening to Bill Cosby as a comedian. he is a funny guy.In his remarks Bill Cosby stated that I go out on the corner and I hear young people speak and i dont understand them and i think what is wrong with them. Then i hear there parents speak and i dont understand them either. The parents need to teach their children proper english. I really dont know if what Bill Cosby said was right. After listening to Eric Dyson I kind of agree with some of the things that Bill Cosby said but I also disagree with some of the things and agree with Eric Dyson. I agree with Dyson that Black english is popular and people do enjoy this culture and language and even white people sometimes imitate it. I agree with Bill Cosby in that I think it would be beneficial for black people to know how to use proper english for economic reasons, not because it is bad to speak black english but because they might be accepted more in the job market and interviews if they know how to speak proper english. I think that people no matter what race they are feel most comfortable speaking their own language and it is a part of their identity and who they are.

Black English

2006-04-10T10:51:00.000-07:00

It seems to me that both Mr. Crosby and Mr. Dyson are saying the same thing with only a few exceptions. Dyson is concerned with showing everyone that Crosby is a rich aristocrat who should not be bad mouthing the black poor, while at the same time showing agreement for the main point of Crosby's comments: That Black people should educate themselves and learn the language (Standard English) in order to be successful in America. Crosby Seems to be coming more from the heart and Dyson seems to be trying to incite some anger and emotion possibly to sell more books. They both agree that learning both languages is advantageous. Dyson took some of Crosby's comments (particularly the comments about black traditional names) to the extreme and attacked them on a level that would ensure an easy victory but what Crosby meant was that the perpetual cycle must end and it must end by the actions of all members of the community (he did say nearly these exact words but I can't help but feel the need to stress it after Dyson's comments). I would wager that if Dyson was a little less concerned with sales and showing off his linguistic versatility and more concerned with the general well being of poor black people who do not see themselves as having any way out of the merry go round (so to speak) that they are on, it may just allow for Dyson and Crosby to work together (which coincidentally was exactly what Crosby was saying) to build a better future for all black people. Likewise, if Mr. Crosby was little more careful in his descriptions of some of the less admirable (by societies standards) qualities exhibited by poor black people and possibly provided the solution before the problem then fewer black people would have taken offense to his remarks thus allowing for more teamwork. Regardless of any of this, the situation will improve because emotions have risen, and beliefs have been tested. Whenever this happens people have to take a closer look and it gives them a chance to change things.

Cosby's comments on Black English

2006-04-09T20:56:00.000-07:00

I haven't heard all or even much of Bill Cosby's comments about Black English, besides the things we've been assigned in class, but I feel that while his remarks may have been a little extreme, his intentions are good and have the chance to help the black community, rather than condemning it. To me, it didn't appear that Cosby was talking bad about Black English. He seemed to be saying that blacks should educate themselves so that they can rise above the social standing they are in right now. We've all heard the phrase, "When in Rome, speak like a Roman," (or something like that). I think Cosby was echoing this in order to help the black community. The gentleman that was on the second listening assignment had some valid points in his interview, but I think that he was wrong in saying that Cosby was oppressing the "poor folk."

languages

2006-04-05T19:49:00.000-07:00

language has become a very broad term for me recently, where as in the past it would have seemed a simple thing i understood. its so much deeper than i realized and so much more fascinating than i ever dreamed. i cant believe how many different ways language is used and what it can really mean. the deaf culture is not a culture i considered to have a language, i guess i just never really thought about what sign was. it gets me wondering what other forms of comunication qualify as a language??? its mind boggling and i think its really what we all decide and agree is a language.
oh and as a side note i loved our guest speaker he was so funny and animated and really happy! its good to see someone so happy and fun, it puts a ssmile on your face the rest of the day.

Guest Speaker

2006-04-05T19:41:00.000-07:00

I thought the speaker we had was really interesting because I didn't really know a lot about the deaf culture. I never have known anyone who was deaf so it was really exciting to meet someone who helps other people. When he talked sign in different languages I thought it was cool to see that even in sign it all can be translated differently. Before I always thought that sign was just universal.

Does sign limit the way you express yourself?

2006-04-05T14:40:00.000-07:00

We use may was to communicate but one that is most interesting is that of Sign Language. ASL is the big one here in the states. Using your hands to communicate seems that it would limit your ability to express yourself. There can only be so many symbols that you can do with your hands. To me it seems that written language has a much larger window in which you can express yourself

The Diversity of Language

2006-04-03T22:27:00.000-07:00

I really dig how language can represent and shape a culture. I have never considered deaf people as a different sort of sub-culture until the speaker came. They just always seemed somewhat different, but never in the ways of culture. You can live amongst them, but its a completely different life with completely different norms and ettiquette. The deaf community should be an argument for (and I can't remember the name, my apologies) the people that say that a language is shaped by the culture. They felt different, and the differences show in their language. Seeing above the need to be indirect (bluntness) speaks greatly for its efficiency. If people good act like that all the time it seems we could ditch some of the ego, which might make room for more important things like actually communicating. I had a blast with the speaker and I hope everyone else did too.

2006-04-03T11:43:00.000-07:00

The speaker we had on Tuesday last week was amazing and interesting to listen or might I say looking at. I didn't relized how deaf people wake up in the morning. Having lights go off or a vibrator. Honestly, I haven't seen a deaf person for a while, meaning signing. I remember the last time I saw signing was when I was in jr. high; and one specific person was signing very angry at another person.
Also, relating to our reading that not all deaf people can read lips. Lip reading is sometimes hard for the people that can, because of the "p" or "b", "blue" to "blew", etc. I think reading lips is already hard enough so I give whomever credit for learning this specific language.

2006-04-03T06:07:00.000-07:00

Neurolinguistics is probably the least understood branch of the study of language. Our ability to understand the brain is well behind our ability to understand any other part of our body. Less is known about our brain and how it works than is known about our fingers. This science is also one that shows the most promise. If we understood neurolinguistics better it would be possible to address many different diseases and problems. However, right now, we barely even have theories. These theories are a poor substitute for any level of understanding of what is going on.

Signing

2006-03-28T04:34:00.000-08:00

I didn't realized that the deaf culture have different signing in different parts of the countries. At my work we used signs language that are simple and easy for kids with autism. We don't grasp the whole movement of the signs...so I guess our signing in our community is a different, new, and improve way of signing. But I can guarantee that people that knows American sign language could probably understand them even though we don't use the whole movements.

A different perspective

2006-03-23T08:58:00.000-08:00

I really enjoyed the readings about deaf culture because I learned so much. I'm hearing and don't have anyone in my family who is deaf so this hasn't been really apart of my life in some ways but it is good to know how to communicate with everyone, especially with those who can be seen as "disabled" even though they can fully function in society. I loved the story about the deaf boy who met his neighbor and how they became friends and it wasn't until her mom said something to her and the girl reacted to it that he realized something was wrong. The most interesting part is that HE didn't think it was him that had the problem, it was THEM. It just gave me a different perspective in life and that "not everything is about me" in a lot of ways.

The USE of LANGUAGE

2006-03-21T08:05:00.000-08:00

As I went out this weekend end to hang out with my friends, I couldn't help but notice how we used language to manipulate each other into doing things we didn't want to do. For example, this weekend we went lazar tagging, a fun activity. However one of our friends didn't want to participate because it scared her, the whole concept of shoting one another and the added darkness terrified her. So of course me and my friends decided to use language to get her to join us. We started out with your a tough girl aren't you, you can do this so why can't you go lazar tagging. And so the taunts continued for some time until we got her to join us. I was quite amused by this, and I realized we do it everyday to get what we want. So try to notice when you use taunts, is it to get what you want and influence someone else, or is it another reason.

Deaf

2006-03-20T17:52:00.000-08:00

I am glad that deaf people have a language of their own to communitcate with. the only problem that i don't like about ASL is that you have to leave out words that need to be in the conversation for the person to understand since they can't hear what the tone of the peoples voices are that the translater is trying to tell them. No wonder so many deaf people get confused in the middle of conversations.

Life isn't perfect

2006-03-19T16:59:00.000-08:00

Parents didn’t raise their children to think that they are the opposite sex. Also, god made them the way they are. Society think that everybody should act and be the way everybody are.
Transgendered females think and know that they are females, but society always give them a hard time. Why? Does this effect them at all? They are human right?

!!!Rights!!!

2006-03-08T20:23:00.000-08:00

Women came a long why to get to where they are today. In history it took decades for women to have the rights to vote. Women have to put in more effort than men do to get a higher position at jobs now and days. I think society is changing for the better of women's rights, but there is still sexism still involved. Yeah we are consider equal, but how equal are we? Like the picture on pg. 57 women are reaching for a better place, a place of choices, a place of rights, a place that consider us equal. Example: I went into a job interview for the management position. A total of five MEN applied and one women (that's me). Of course I would have lost, why, I don't know, but I have as much experience as the other men does. Concluding that sexism is still involved in this day and age, but why?

Gender

2006-03-07T20:55:00.000-08:00

After reading I found it very funny how people can think of such sexist comments. How as a society we let it happen. We hear something then the younger generations will catch on not knowing what it means and repeat it. When we were talking today in class I thought our conversation was really interesting. When we try and degrade men we try and refer to them as women because that's what would offend a man more easily. But, for women we just say something about their sexuality.

Girls and Guys

2006-03-07T20:54:00.000-08:00

Can I comment on todays class? I just thought about it all day and I thought how true it is, that men have more power. Men can be scrawny and weigh less, but they still have the intimidation factor.
My step dad is 6'3" and weighs 320 lbs, and I'll tell you right now, when he gets mad at anything, I'n scared of him. It doesn't have to be directed at me, I'm scared of what he can do to the object he's mad at. Now my brother is another example; he's 5'8 weighs 180 lbs but this time its all muscle, and I can be intimidated by him at times especially when I do something to tick him off.
I personally do the the key thing later at night when I'm by myself. It gives me a greater sense of security, then what I can just do if I didn't have my keys out, and the ironic thing is that tip came from my step dad.
Anyway, intimidation it's a huge thing.

Gender

2006-03-07T20:39:00.000-08:00

It still gets to me that even in today's society there is still sexist people out there. They should just get over the fact that women are coming into power more often now and not to call them names just because they are in charge of you. I can't wait till the day a women runs this country. Maybe then those people would see that having a female in charge would not be such a bad thing and even make this nation better. Gender should not be an issue anymore.

Label You Up

2006-03-07T19:16:00.000-08:00

We judge before we even think. I believe that this is an instinct built in our genetic makeup gives us some sort of idea of what it is that we're getting ourselves into. At least if I label you I have a notion of how your going to act. This can and in some cases does get you personally into trouble by labeling people.
The gender differences in language is power! But I know some exceptional women that can do most everything a guy could do maybe even better. So should we stick people with a certain label. I don't think so, because once the label is stuck on them it's hard to get off and change.
I liked the blog entry that I read that said that we should look at life and enjoy it take one day at a time and when it comes to people treat everyone as you would like to be treated. Just as the golden rule portrays. This is why it is made out of gold.

gender

2006-03-07T16:44:00.000-08:00

Well as i read the reading about gender. I thought about the big problems we have in our society with sexist discrimmination. Traditionally the woman was the mother and rised and took care of the children. Making and cleaning their clothes. Cooking to feed the family while the father would hunt and work to provide for the family. As the generations have progressed there have been circumstances where woman have to be the bread winner of the family. They set the example for future generations. Now a days, the rate of working women espically woman business owners is going up. I don't believe that woman are any less talanted then men. I think it is just that it is something knew. Change in economy is a slow and hard process. Naturally we resist change. I think that is where alot of the sexist issues come into play. It is all about the resist of change. I bet in future generations. Many sexist comments won't even be thought of. Weather it be sports, or business, women are being able to compete with the best of men. Naturally men will always have the advantage of strength over woman. Steriotypes are created by past expirence and that is what alot of gender discrimmination is based off of. I don't know if there will be a complete disaperence of sexism it will just change.

Hello, sir?

2006-03-07T07:01:00.000-08:00

So this is actually a big problem that I run in to every day. I work at Discover Card Financial Services and I call people to pay their bills. Unfortunately there are many names that fall under unisex and when I'm talking to a third party I don't know how to identify if they're male or female. I've found myself many times accidentally slip up and say sir or ma'am to someone that it's very obvious they're the other gender. Sometimes they notice, sometimes they don't. But I do remember fairly well this one call I had early on in my calling experience. A lady answered the phone but sounded like a man, and either I was calling for a male card member or I was just trying to identify who this person was that I was talking about, but I called her sir. She became very upset and said to me, "Do I sound like a man to you?" Of course I couldn't come right out and say, Actually you do. But instead I apologized and asked for her name. I feel bad in moments like this because I don't want to upset sometimes already angry people, but they have to realize that when accounts pull up sometimes seconds before someone answers and you've never spoken to them before you can't always get everything right.

Gender

2006-03-06T22:35:00.000-08:00

Gender issues and stereotypes are getting way out of control. Now days you have to be so careful what you say in order not to offend someone it on the borderline of insanity. I work as a leasing agent for an apartment community and you have to be so careful how you talk to people. I had to go to a week long seminar on fair housing that went over all the things you could be sued for. For example if a man and a woman come in to apply and they are married they only fill out one application but if they aren’t married the have to fill out two. But here’s the kicker you’re not allowed to ask if they are married because you can be sued for discrimination. Things have gotten so out of control that you can’t even say, "you guys," because companies have been sued for referring to people as men. This oversensitive way of thinking has got to stop because it is only getting worse and someday who knows what it will become.

arent you supposed to be in the kitchen making brownies for me?

2006-03-06T22:27:00.000-08:00

my views on sexism used to be so intense but over the years i grew to ignore or rather not care about if someone was sexist because i dont have to deal with them, but growing up i was pretty edgy about it. i grew up with four brothers and i was the only girl. growing up i did pretty much everything my brothers did, naturally i was a tomboy. ever since i was about eight i played basketall, being a young religious youth i usually played ball at my church. i dont remember ever playing basketball with any girls growing up except on teams so when i played at church i played with the boys. i rememer two boys specifically Chris and Mike who would always try to upset me by telling me to go bake them some brownies or a cake. back then i would take them seriously and really get ticked off where as now i would probably laugh so hard i would choke. its funny how we can choose how to take things and let it affect us or not. as for me i dont usually get offended or lose my temper over stupid sexist things but every once in a while i revert back to my old ways and really lose my tolerance or maturity i have acquired. but then again back then i didnt have pms and that might be what that is now, one can only guess. ha thats lifes- so ironically funny. learn to laugh about it!

I think we've come along way...

2006-03-06T22:24:00.000-08:00

Transsexuals, Homosexuals, Zoosexuals (I think that’s the term for it), Metrosexuals, Bisexuals, Heterosexuals, and all the other sexuals out there... it seems the gender lines are pretty faded. Without a doubt some strongholds still remain. We still don't want our daughters going off to war while it is acceptable for males to go off to war. I think this is more because of the way the males react to women being in those situations than any perceived incompetence or unwillingness of women on the battlefield (I would say I know but that would be presumptuous even with my limited experience). We still don’t feel right if we hear about a man who stays home with the kids while his wife goes out and makes the money. No doubt there are others, but we are redefining our gender roles and the language we use to define them has to be more sensitive now than ever before.

Stereotypes as Weapons

2006-03-06T21:34:00.000-08:00

I thought the article called, "Why We Oppose Votes for Men", was fascinating. It was interesting to see Alice Duer Miller use the typical stereotypes of her generation against the men who were using similar stereotypes against women. I was grateful for the reminder of those heroes and heroines of the Women's Suffrage era; grateful for their difficult sacrifices that I might live my life in easy equality. My only concern is that feminism can be taken too far in certain circumstances. Taken to the point that women do not believe in equality but behave and believe they are far more superior then men. For five years I was a florist working in a shop that had a completely female staff. It seemed that the absolute top topic of conversation was how idiotic men are (it was never "some men can be", but "all men are"). “They are stupid, cruel, emotionless, unfeeling, insensitive, selfish, uncaring and unnecessary.” The second favorite topic was how superior women are. Their conversation never allowed any give or alternatives to these two assertions. How could you possibly not treat the men in your life with contempt when throughout your eight hour day the only language you heard concerning them was negative? How damaging are these negative words to some of the most important relationships in your life? Can a person condition their mind with these false (in a HUGE majority of the population) and potentially harmful statements, and expect to have quality friendships, family relationships or marriages? No, I don’t believe a person can hear and say these words everyday and still respect those men around them. This attitude and those words will always cause misery and misunderstanding in relationships, just as it did in generations past when women were considered empty-headed, fragile creatures, whose place in life was the kitchen and her ultimate goal was crisp, white laundry.

Feminists: the other female.

2006-03-06T21:21:00.000-08:00

My textual analysis is on a feminist paper defending the minoritive feminists who are pro-life, so I found it interesting that this was the topic for this weeks' Blog. I'm not really a big feminist kind of guy, hehe, which is why they interest me so much. Maybe because women are equal in my eyes, I don't get the fuss. But I noticed a big difference in their language. These guys are getting blasted by everyone except the uber-Christian Right. They aren't just trying to look tough in the "eyes of men", but they trying to bring up a small minority of non-pro-choice feminists which were really the staple of feminist beginnings. These guys... are nuts. Its like... if there were pro-slavery slaves. How can they want to defend women's rights by limiting them? ??????? ??? This backward-ass thinking is totally bizarre... and I am having a blast analyzing their papers. They're so pro-everything they can't even see their own contradictions. There are so many rhetorical discrepencies that I don't even know where to start on my paper. I reccommend you guys check out http://www.feministsforlife.org/history/ to see if you see the swiss cheese that are the ideals of the "Feminists for Life."
P.S. I love women. I am by no means a misogynist.

Gender and Language

2006-03-06T21:10:00.000-08:00

In the piece from Quindlen, he talked about the press needing to carefully choose their words in this 'wars' that have gone on surrounding issues of racism, homosexuality, and sexism. I thought back to when i worked as a waiter at Dee's. My manager was training us and told us to not call our customers 'guys' and that a customer actually got mad once because a waiter referred to he and his wife as guys. It's something little, but does it suggest discrimination, leaving out women, or is it just a part of speech?

The Academy Awards,Women, And Language

2006-03-06T20:19:00.000-08:00

So I was watching the Academy Awards the other night, and I found a pefect illustration of Gender and Language, and the importance words can play in shaping our notions of Gender and Identity.

If you don't already know, Reese Witherspoon (who I generally like) won the Oscar for Best Actress for her portrayal of June Carter from Walk the Line. Experts predicted her win, but I was hoping that Felicity Huffman would win for her role in Transmerica. It's a fantastic film in which she plays a preoperative transexual. So in essence, she's a woman, playing a man, about to become a woman. Now there's some gender confusion if you ask me, but I digress. When Reese won the award she said that she was delighted to play the character yada yada yada, and that she (June Carter) was a "real woman."

Perhaps I was a bit upset that Felicity didn't win, and therefor a bit sensitive at the time, but I saw that use of gender and language as extremely rude and insensitive, and an attack on the character Felicity Huffman played in Transamerica. I can't really be sure what Reese meant, but considering I've seen Legally Blonde more times than I should admit I will give her the benefit of the doubt, and assume she meant no disrespect, still in this day and age, one must be careful of the terminology they use with regards to gender and language.

When I was explaining the movie to my parents I used the term "she" when ever I was speaking about the transexual character, as do I when referring to dragqueens, not that I know any personally, but in Rent for example.......Angel is a she, and I could tell at times I was confusing my parents. The point is June Carter was no more a "real woman" than the character Bree in Transamerica these days, and the language we use should never be used in a pejoritive or harmful manner meant to degrade any person intentionally, but that these terms which relate to gender in our language are evolving just as Miss and Mrs. evolved into the preferred Ms.

shoe on the other foot

2006-03-06T19:10:00.000-08:00

I thought the Miller article did something very interesting. At the time Miller wrote this article and others America and the world were at war. Men were expected to go to war and fights for their freedoms, while women were suppose to stay at home and watch over things. In this article Miller “discriminates” men the way men were discriminating women. Instead of women should stay at home, Miller says man’s place is in the armory etc. I really like how she used the arguments men were using against her and women in general to attack them in a sense. Very clever.

War Words

2006-02-26T23:06:00.000-08:00

I never realized how much we use war terminology in our everyday speech. I have enjoyed studying this in our class. Now that it has been brought to my attention I see and here it all the time. Now that I am looking for it there are also metaphors used every where.

Which is the righter of the wrongs?

2006-02-21T11:41:00.000-08:00

I wanted to post about the different viewpoints of war, the position taking that is inherent in those viewpoints, and whether we would be able to develop a new language to describe war as the article suggested. Prowar would speak of it positively Antiwar would speak of it negatively and taking a neutral viewpoint would ignore or at the very least leave unprotected certain inherent rights not the least of which is our right to life. For me it seems impossible to speak about war without taking a position. One could argue that speaking of war in the passive or neutral sense and not taking a position for or against war would be a new language but I would disagree. People who do this would still be taking a position based on their experience; in this case neutral because of lack of knowledge in either direction. The passivists would say that war is not always bad and it is not always good but that it can be either and we should talk about it more which would ultimately lead to a false sense of security, long indefinate discussions of heppenings that though worthy of attention would never allow for any real action to take place because there is very little (or no) fear of repercussion. Everyone will admit that while a Utopian society and world peace is a beautiful thought that we all want to see realized, it is not likely. I believe in order to have world peace we would need a world composed of utopian societies. If the US became a Utopian society (most likely through some form of passivism) it would be constantly influenced by other societies who had not yet burried their swords, so to speak. These other societies would commit wrongs unchecked that would eventually force us into war, for the only guarantee that anyone has in carrying out their will is power. Power is the ability carry out your wishes against the resistance of others (I realize this can be done with non-violent means but there is no guarantee where as force and the taking of a life is a permanent guarantee). This, on the nation/country level, means war. I have been trying to look at this from another viewpoint but due to my experience (or bias :) ) it is difficult so if anyone has any thoughts please post them.
My daughter is making me cut this short, hopefully it made sense...

Those Dreaded words someone hates to hear!

2006-02-20T22:46:00.000-08:00

For someone involved in the dating process, the following words or phrases are something you don't look forward to hearing from or saying to someone: I had a great time dating you, but.......I am not ready for a serious relationship... I am not ready for marriage.. I think we should see other people...It's not you, it's me...
I will continue relating a personal experience on how a few of these phrases or words made me feel.I started dating a girl, sweet, funny, cute, smart, fun and an all out good person. Things were going good so far, or so I thought. We had been dating for about a month and a half and I had held her hand. So last night I was waiting for a phone call from her (we hadnt yet had our D.T.R. talk ) for those who dont know what htis means it is the determining the relationship talk. I hate bringing this talk up because it's like having to jump off a cliff and not knowing whether according to her reaction or response whether you are going to soar through the air or stumble off the cliff and land in a heap on the ground. I was curious though to see how she considered our relationship.I guess i got my answer last night. The moment I heard her say,"Peter I had alot of fun dating you and meeting your friends, ( As she started saying this I was thinking "Oh no! here we go I am about to get crushed") She continued on and after she said she appreciated everything .......But, I am not ready to think about marriage or get in a serious relationship... I am too young.... I need to date other people.. So these dreaded words It could be debated which is worse to have to tell someone this or be told, to crush or be crushed?

WAR

2006-02-20T22:37:00.000-08:00

I hate war! those are powerful words to most people but it is my statement of what i feel about war. my biggest dream is for world peace so each time i hear of a new war going on it makes me feel hoorible. its amazing that one three letter word can bring so many feelings out in people. war justs makes a battle itself by just saying the word and having people react to it either in a argumentive way or a support way.

Russian Matryoshka

2006-02-20T22:30:00.000-08:00

These are Russian Matryoshka, you probably know them as Russian nesting dolls. At first glance you would discover the larger doll, and after splitting her in half ( a rather violent notion, but appropriate considering our nature as human beings according to Hedges) you would find nesting inside a smaller doll. If you continue the process, and I know you will because it will give you purpose as a war monger, you would find one stacking doll inside another, until you cut the last doll open to no avail. In the end you would have a broken pile of wooden women copses, and a better understanding of the War metaphor in Language. Language is War, and War is power, therefore, according to the transitive property of mathematics, Language is POWER! OK, we're done with the math lesson for today, but here's the point. War is just a metaphor buried within a metaphor, and what we are to understand is this, HUMAN BEINGS ARE POWER WHORES! We fight wars to either take, or maintain power, and we use words in similar ways. It's machismo, it's violence, is self preservations, but above all, it's a way of making sure we end up on top of the dog pile. Sometimes we manipulate the truth with a lie, sometimes we force an interpretation with a metaphor, but we always make sure that we watch out for OUR INTERESTS. When we aren't doing that we get lost, and as Hedges tells us, waging wars reminds us of our purpose, that above all else we are protecting ourselves with layers of meaning, in an attempt to make sure that we are not one of the split corpses lying in the pile at the end of the battle.

Language Chat

2006-02-20T22:24:00.000-08:00

I'm amazed how much metaphors we used in everyday life that I didn't even relized. But I think it's consider little metaphors we used. Cuz in my previous writing class we had to use a metaphor in our essay. The essay had to be a metaphor on someone we admired. I wrote about my grandpa one specific example I wrote was, "How could god give us something we treasure, and take it away from our hearts? A tree that stood so still and sturdy being chopped down into tears." To me this is considered a strong metaphor.

Language and Culture

2006-02-20T22:23:00.000-08:00

During the weekend I had to work and a girl and I were talking about life. She is about the same age as me but she is from India. I don't really know a lot about the Indian culture but she use to live in Texas. So while we were talking I noticed that our language was different, meaning that even thought we both were in similar age often times we didn't understand what the other was talking about. When I would say something it meant something else to her, so it was really confusing. For some reason I always have thought everyone around your own age should understand the slang of your generation. I think it's funny because I always thought that my parents generation was out of the loop. But it turns out that I am really out of the loop, and maybe it's just me who doesn't understand the slang.

War

2006-02-20T22:13:00.000-08:00

War is a very sensitive topic with most people. It is rare that you find someone with a neutral opinion on war. People are always either for the war or against it. It is interesting to me that war is one of the biggest necessary evils in life. War is one of the oldest human instincts we have, since the first man walked on the earth there was war. War is the one topic you can bring up in a room and no matter what stand you take you will end up offending someone. War is every where now days, in the media, in children’s cartoons, everywhere we look there is some sort of a war going on. Whether is be in foreign countries over oil or in the streets of our very own country over gang territory. War is unavoidable, no matter how much we try or protest it we will never rid ourselves of the presence of war. It is not all clear to me... mans strongest drive is self-preservation, mans deepest emotion is love, and mans greatest fear is death... where then began his unquenchable appetite for killing; even believe it or not other people. In my mind this is nothing more that madness.

Body Language

2006-02-20T22:11:00.000-08:00

Body language is very powerful. If used in the right way you can send messages to someone across the room, of either, "come here I want to get to know you" or "don't come near me!".
Example, at my work there is a fellow, and I'll call him T for secrecy purposes. He thinks that he is Gods gift to women, because it doesn't matter what you do to try and shrug him off he doesn't get it. I'll be standing up front and he'll come walking up out of the corner of my eye and I'll try to act "occupied"; but no still he comes and talks to me so I avert my eyes, fold my arms, and turn my body so that it isn't facing him at all.
Other times, when there is someone I like, my arms or down, I try to "agree" with their body positions, and everything is opposite of what I do with someone I don't agree with.
Something that I still find interesting, when I was in a psychology class going over this stuff, and the professor intentionally turned to me and imitated my language, which at the time was laid back and arms folded, but not defensively. It was hard after that to stay in agreement with him.
Anyway, I just thought that body language can be just as powerful as the spoken word.

War

2006-02-20T21:57:00.000-08:00

In my creative writing class, we've been reading some short stories written by Tim O'Brien. He was a Vietnam veteran and most of his writings are about war. In one of his short stories, he tells a story about how a girl goes out to visit her boyfriend in Vietnam. She is first represented as this classic hometown girl that has probably never done anything wrong. But throughout the story, the war experience changes her and she basically becomes a killing machine. Well, the story is pretty complicated, but it showed how the mindframe of soldiers is so much different than in everyday life. I think that's why war has it's own language. Because it's almost a different way of thinking.

what has history shown of war?

2006-02-20T21:44:00.000-08:00

the topic of war has lately been our topic of choice, this is interesting to me because not only in this class has this topic arisen. its crazy to think about how intwined war is into our lives, our language, and our thoughts. the impact of metaphors of war hit me pretty hard, honestly it made me upset. they say that war is the biggest money making corporation in the world, and i tend to agree with that statement especially with our president, the war in iraq, and the american history overall. war pulled us out of the depression, it allowed us to become seen as a higher power, america that is, and as a feared and dominant nation. war, in view of the united states history is also a means of distraction and cover ups, it can be a means of uniting and a means of sorrow. history has shown that war is both negative and positive, as my views of war are mostly negative i didnt like the realization i had to how big of a role it plays in our lives. war has creeped into our values, our language, our culture, and most sadly our way of life. even as an individual against war i found the realization i had was so upsetting because i am part of it. i dont think anyone is removed from the consequences and affects of war, it all makes me wonder how different we would be with out war being such a part of us and what in turn for war would be the element we would replace it with and fill that part of our lives?

Lnguge in the Wrk Plce

2006-02-20T21:14:00.000-08:00

utx30 tch1 swcm advsd nd.. set up pbp for nd.. vrfd info.. advsd of nxt due date.. set up ongngs on due date for min pymnt each mnth..

Did any of you have difficulty reading that? Let me give the "direct" translation for those of you who don't work at Discover Card.

Utah x 30 department.. Tried to call the first home number.. Spoke with the card member, advised them of their now due payment.. Set up the payment over the phone for their now due.. Verified all of their information.. Advised them of their next due date.. Set up ongoing payments on their due date each month for their minimum payment each month..

When I first started working at Discover Card I would walk past people's cubicles and read notes on card members accounts and have no clue what they were trying to say. It wasn't until about three days after I was reading them consistently that they even started to make sense to me. This technique is used so that we can say many things but not use a lot of space especially if we talk to the card member a lot. It's interesting now because when I'm talking to somebody in a customer service department I know kind of what they're writing down and where they're coming from when they say certain things. It's an interesting type of language that has to be taught and when it isn't relayed correctly it can really affect how a call will go in the future. Now when you all talk to somebody that is calling to sell you something you will kind of know what they're writing down with your number!

war

2006-02-20T21:02:00.000-08:00

Ok in one of my other classes I had to right a paper. I wrote my paper on horse slaughtering and how I strongly disagree with it. Well I think war is like sending men to the "slaughter house" we send the men out to fight for our lives and a lot of the men lose their lifes. We just give this kind of slaughter a historical inevitabililty (as said in one of the readings for class) Men basically lined up to enter the slaughter house. The only thing that is different from a horse slaughter and a man slaughter is that with men, some come out alive. I think that War is wrong in so many ways but also can be good to show that we are a strong country. I thank all the men and woman that have lost their lives in the war and all those that are serving our country. I believe that the Iraq war is a mythic war because America has Hussen made to be evil. America is not trying to show how much stronger it is from Iraq like a Sensory war would be,but we have titled Hussen as a evil man, that he has done wrong to his people and our people.

The Myth of War

2006-02-20T20:21:00.000-08:00

I think it's funny that people sugarcoat wars. They make them seem like they are some honoral privlage to go and be killed or kill innocent people that have done nothing except live in a different country. Like in the movie Saints and Soldiers, the kid nicknamed Decon tells the medic, that the germans are humans too, but if it's easier for him to hate them, then to go ahead. Those germans that they are fighting against are there for the same reason, or maybe even a better reason, to protect their homeland.

The Politics Of War and ME!

2006-02-20T19:31:00.000-08:00

Thinking of war and politics the question arises, why is war a hot topic? I believe its because there is a lot of action within war and the items leading into war intrigues people. So what is going on with the world today in communication and war:

Are we so board we experiment with words?
Do we like war so much we incorporate it into are every day vocabulary?
How often do we think of violence and war?

These are just a couple of things to think about. Does one or all apply to you in your lives. I do a lot of poetry and experience with words. When I'm writing its thought out and sometimes when I speak is a different story. To speak is on the spur of the moment and words are planed out.

Is it this way all of the time is speaking a different story or can it also be thought out? I think that you need to focus on what you are trying to say and you can think about what else your going to be saying, even before you say it!

A War of Words

2006-02-20T19:08:00.000-08:00

I have recently taken a notice to how much I use the "language war" in my everyday life. Weather it be when I arrive at work and ask my co-workers "how goes the battle?" to when I arrive home from a long day at school and work and say "I am dead". It baffels me at how much war encomposes our everyday lives and we dont even know it.

language of friends

2006-02-20T18:53:00.000-08:00

something i have noticed as i've been hanging out with my friends is that we have our own little slang words. for example if there is a guy we don't like or annoys us we call him a putz. we also have our own idioms and when we tell a story we only have to say a few words and everyone remembers it and nothing else is said only laughter is heard. Think we create our own language to set us apart from others and to make us a more tight group of friends. pay attention to what you say when you are around your friends and it might surprise you what slang you have invented.

2006-02-20T17:49:00.000-08:00

Language is an odd thing. I mean, yes there aren't really any better ways to communicate. Speaking is about the fastest way to transfer information there is. But it's an odd thing. Different languages can be complete diamatric opposites. Sharing no real similarities. Or they can share a lot. Sometimes one word shows up spontaneously in many languages far across the globe (Look up "aniki" for brother. It's in at least 40 different languges. Most of which have never come in contact with one another.) Language has been studied by thousands but still, we can't really explain why one sentence is right and another one isn't.

Kids and Slang

2006-02-20T15:43:00.000-08:00

I had a very fun language experience last night. I was watching my sister-in-law and husband play a children’s video game. They were “just seeing” how well it worked. I was rooting for my husband, while my nephew, who is seven, was cheering for his mother, my sister-in-law. Every time one of the players would do something well I would say “Sweet!!!”. They were playing for about a half an hour when my sister-in-law did something neat on the game and I heard my nephew say “Sweet!”. He used the exact same intonations that I used with the exact same feeling and exclamation in his voice. It made me laugh. I said "Sweet!" several more times just to hear him unconsciously repeat it a few minutes later. It will be interesting to see if he remembers the slang word and uses it in the next few weeks.

War

2006-02-20T15:03:00.000-08:00

Well since we are discussing war I wanted to post a few of my thought about it. I had never realized how much there was to war looing at it from an angle of language. We have discussed about metaphores, there are many metaphores that come from war terms. As I read over the readings for tuesday I realized how many myths there are about war. It really is increadable how language can effect our reactions. As we discussed the naming of war I realized how technical it is as to how the public racts for or against the war. We have also discussed about war in by business class. Techniques and stratagies of war are used the same in the business world. This is where you would hear alot of metaphores. "Take them from behind", "Know your apponents weaknesses and make them your strenghts," or talking about an explosion in even a stock market. It is very ineresting the way we use metaphores and even interporate them. I believe that there are many metaphores out there that are understood only by their metaphorical use and not the true meaning or background behind them. War is created because of language. Myths of war are created. Language is the basis behind everything. It is the tool we use to create the future.

LOL FTW!

2006-02-20T15:02:00.000-08:00

I was recently playing an online game and I noticed something. There are many acronyms that do not make sense when said outloud but when used in a situation make sense. For instance, FTW (For the win!) for the longest time I saw this and could never really place what it meant until one day I grasped the meaning after hearing the context, after something great happens this acronym is used along with a direct object to state that it is the reason why that event happened. Another example I have seen is the use of gtg which can be mistaken for either, good to go or got to go. I have seen both ways used so it seems that these acronyms can be traced to certain groups of people that understand the idea similar. It was sad because I never really realized how exclusive the language is that I use everyday! Even worse I find myself categorizing people in genres by the way they speak or in the way they present themselves.

Follow-up on IM discussion

2006-02-20T14:00:00.000-08:00

Listening to NPR I heard this short (5 min) story Saturday morning on IM culture/langauge. The piece suggests that the acronyms like LOL or TGIF can become more than the sum of their parts; they come to represent a concept behind the literaly translation of, for example, laughing out loud. I think this contention gets at the interesting and unpredictable ways in which language is created through usage.

I look forward to your open posts coming in tonight--these can address any aspect of the course we have covered or, for that matter, any aspect of language you've been thinking about because of the course. Note that we will also have a quiz on the readings tomorrow--see you all then.

Ron

War

2006-02-20T11:40:00.000-08:00

As I was reading the piece I thought about what war does to people. This might not seem connected to lang. in society, but since this time it's our choice, i guess that's okay. I thought the author's story at the airport was very interesting. He was not a soldier, but he was in the heat of battle and that changed him. It made him full of rage, to the point of attacking an airport employee. I thought of my Grandpa, now dead, who fought in WWII. He fought in many major battles such as the battle of the bulge, and the famous battle of normandy. After seeing the opening sequence of the movie 'Saving Private Ryan' i gained new respect for what soldiers go through. Looking back i can see many ways that war affected my grandpa, and in many senses turned him into a hard, insensitive man. War is ugly. Sometimes it is necessary, but it is ugly nonetheless.

Words have the power to lift and crush!

2006-02-10T15:20:00.000-08:00

Isn't it just great when someone, either someone that you know or someone that you just meet gives you a compliment or says something nice, it lifts you up and makes you feel good. Sometimes a person may say something rude to cut you down, demean or belittle you, and it can crush some people. I think their is power in a word and everything said or spoken to us in our lives can either lift us up or have negative effects on us. So I better be careful and watch what I say to people because words can have a lasting effect on how someone might feel about his or herself. The power of the press is one example, what is said in the news and the media can automatically inject an opinion in someones mind on a topic just how the topic is broadcasted and layed out in the news report or in the news paper.

A rose by another other name...

2006-02-10T00:07:00.000-08:00

So what is the point of a word? I think a word is just another way of representing an association with an object, feeling, etc. Even though it may not be a universal association (I may have a totally different thought pattern about love or biking than my neighbor) it is connected with something else for every person. Think of when you hear a word you don't know--it means nothing to you until you can get an explanation that is relatable to you. You have to search for some kind of way to grasp it. We need to have an association in order for the word to be effective communication for us.
I don't think it can work the other way around. Even naming comes back to being the reflection of something...it starts with something that already exists. Making up a word and then pairing it with something reminds me of what fourth-graders do...create their own language so other kids get left out...which essentially fails because others start to pick up on the correlations between their made up words and what they represent. Once outsiders make associations with words and objects or feelings, than the words can be decoded as easily as a first language.

words are words

2006-02-09T09:54:00.000-08:00

As I went throught the assigned reading it made me really think about words. My friend sent me an email once that was all missed spelled, only the first and last letters were the same. At first i was kind of taken back at the view of jumbbled letters, but to my suprise i was able to read it. Here it is see if you can read it as well.
Amazing
Aoccdrnig to a
rscheearch at
Cmabrigde
Uinervtisy, it
deosn't mttaer in
waht oredr the
ltteers in a wrod
are, the olny
iprmoetnt tihng is
taht the frist and
lsat ltteer be at the
rghit pclae.
The rset can be a
total mses and you
can sitll raed it
wouthit porbelm.
Tihs is bcuseae the
huamn mnid deos
not raed ervey
lteter by istlef, but
the wrod as a
wlohe.

No matter how we spell i think words will still be words.

Fun, but not so likely

2006-02-09T07:25:00.000-08:00

I love the idea of learning new words from other languages to express new things! I also love the idea of not having to learn the entire language in order to use them--especially since that's all I seem to be left with after a few years of schooling in one! To be able to know those powerful words would be so fun to me..but not practical. I like the thought of knowing them, but how often would I throw ho'oponopono into everyday conversation? Not very. Especially when they sound so different from English, it would just seem pompous and flashy until it was widely accepted and that would take a lot of work for it to become a static word, not just slang that would die out quickly later on.

What's in a word?

2006-02-09T00:19:00.000-08:00

How many of us have heard the saying, think before you speak? I don't know about you, but I've been told that time and time again because for some reason I just blurt out whatever comes to my mind - most of the time I am innocently trying to say something and it is misinterpreted and then I get in to a lot of trouble.
Another thing is that one word or phrase can mean so many different things. Especially with the many different ways we communicate these days - ex: via texts, email.. - it's hard to always understand what someone is saying or how they're meaning it. I tried to send an apologetic email to this guy who I had said some very rude things to, but in my attempt to try and end things smoother I think I ended up making him more angry or at least he truly wasn't understanding where I was coming from.

Freespelling.com drove me nuts!

2006-02-08T23:01:00.000-08:00

That website repulsed me. Maybe I didn't get some big picture or overarching theme it was trying to present because I didn't care to spend much time on the site, but why encourage people to be illiterate? There is almost nothing more annoying to me than incorrect spelling, and I don't know why. Sometimes when I get an email or a text message that has bad spelling in it, I won't reply. What's even more weird is that I have cousins and other family members that I didn't grow up around that have this same mindset about spelling. I totally understand that this isn't normal. Does anyone else have this problem?

Tomadachi speak

2006-02-08T22:56:00.000-08:00

Word choice is surprisingly important. It defines the speaker, and the relationship between the speaker and listener. I recently went to Japan. I was surprised at how much more difficult Japanese was in Japan as opposed to a classroom. I expected for them to speak way too fast, but what I didn't expect them was to speak a completely different language than the one I was taught. While in Japan I lived on a college campus, and most of my language instruction was through talking to students. The problem was the little Japanese I knew was formal style. I was taught how to converse with professors and adult strangers. When I got to Japan I had to learn Tomadachi speak, or friend speak. For example I learned that when I wanted to ask some "really?" I said majide. However, all the college students used Homone. This type of thing was practically across the board. I realized that the exact same thing happens with English in the united states. Language is constantly definining people and their relationships. This happens whether we are cognizant of it or not. Ultimately we are what is in a word.

The Pen is Mightier Than The Sword!!

2006-02-08T22:45:00.000-08:00

The quote is by Edward Bulwer-Lytton btw. I don't know I'm just a succor for famous quotes. Besides it’s easier than saying “just trust me I’m right, it doesn’t matter who else thinks so.” It’s a nice change of pace to have this blog after the visual rhetoric blog. I would have to say that words have the potential to be far more powerful than any single image could ever be. Thomas Paine writing “Common Sense” would be a perfect example of this. An entire nation united behind an idea that only months before would have been considered treason all because of the power of words. Images can leave a very powerful effect on us and can even make us act in ways we normally would not. Words still have my vote because only with words can we truly change the way people think.

Words

2006-02-08T22:35:00.000-08:00

Did any one look at the new freespeling words? If you scroll down enough you will see that they simplified the British spelling "manoeuvre" for our "manuever" to MANEUVER. Hey hey, we get a lot of crap over here in America for not speaking the Queen's English... but notice any similarities? Yay to America for keepin it real, eh?
Also, I always wondered if a conglomeration of language would be such a bad thing. If the world got together and each language picked their most idiosyncratic words/ideas and brought them all together... communication would be simple. Of course, this is in no way to denote from other cultures. But it is an interesting thought. How much easier would national conflicts be resolved? Also, this language class reminds me somewhat of the Matrix. I have studied language before, but only for use of conversation, never food for thought. I never realized just how far the lingual rabbit-hole goes. :)

WORDS........

2006-02-08T22:29:00.000-08:00

Be Careful of Your Usage of Words!!! Choice of words could be a good or a bad thing. When you hear someone speak with good long word choice, you assume that person is really intelligent. When you hear someone on the streets swear you would assume that person have a low vocabulary. Most of the time swearing does turn heads. But why though??? Maybe because it's a strong way to offend someone, especially a person you don't know.
My sister quoted to me when I swear, "You got to lower your swearing, it's bad English grammar."

Words

2006-02-08T22:23:00.000-08:00

Words have a lot of power. As Tassie mentioned in her blog she may have dwelled on the hurtfull more so than the soft spoken. But someone mentioned that it didn't really have to to do with just the word, it was the emotion behind it. I mentioned that in my conversation analysis. When I wrote my feelings down on a sheet of paper, and tried to read them with the same feeling, there was none. The words lost all meaning, and so I gave up trying to read a script, and just started over.
As far as the web sites, the Words Can Heal site was really good. I actually got the book, or some of the book, off of on-line to look at and some of the examples in there are truly hilarious and then some of them are just sad. I Pledge to be nice and all the other stuff they asked. Yes, I took the pledge.

WORDS

2006-02-08T22:19:00.000-08:00

Reading the website freespeling I could understand it and relate to it. I have a problem spelling this correctly ever sense I was little and I tend to spell things the way I hear or say them. I also text message to my friends and abbreviate things like u, r,jk, and on. I find it easier to spell my way, but some people can read my spelling ways. So I have to adapt to the "proper" way of spelling. I think English is a very difficult language to learn to speak and write. It has too many rules to follow, because there are words that have the same meaning but different spelling. They should choose one spelling for one word. Try to make it simple for people. That would be the nice thing to do.

whats the big deal?

2006-02-08T21:57:00.000-08:00

When I first looked on our assignment sheet and saw that we were blogging on "What's in a word, then?" nothing really came to mind. I really didn't have an answer to the question. But as I did the readings, I noticed a few things.
I am not an english person, meaning I have never done well in english classes growing up, and I really don't enjoy writing because my spelling is horrible. But as I looked at the freespeling website, I realized what the original question ment. Even though I am not the best reader, and I misspell words a lot, I hated trying to decipher the words that they had tryed to spell. It was very chaotic. There was no rules behind any of it that I could see.
I admit that I hate trying to figure out the correct spelling to words. But I think that it makes life a lot easier when there are rules being followed, even if I don't understaind all of them. The spelling of words can also gives them more meaning.

Words Consist of Letters

2006-02-08T21:51:00.000-08:00

Words can be very powerful and create allot of emotion. It is interesting to sit and think about the fact that people can use certain words and ultimately change not only the tone of a conversation but also the feeling. I also find it interesting that we can use the same word in different connotations and get different meanings. Words have become so powerful but if you think about it only negative words. We have so many powerful words that have such a large impact behind them, but none of them positive. Try and think of a positive word that when you hear the word it really makes you stop and think. I personally can’t think of any, we have tried to make words that have very strong positive feelings behind them, but we over use them to the point that the effectiveness dwindles. For example, awesome! means awe inspiring, Webster defines "awe" as an emotion variously combining dread, veneration, and wonder that is inspired by authority or by the sacred or sublime. Now with that being said was the Super Bowl really awesome? Just some thoughts I had on words.