Essay

Ryan Klaus
Professor Yerkes
Comp 106
6 November 2008
Formality’s Assassin

Is text messaging a key player in the destruction of formality and person-to-person relationships? Does it undermine the school system’s emphasis on correct grammar and spelling as well as sentence structure and sentence cohesion? The answer to both questions is a resounding “yes”. Despite their convenience and popularity, text messaging is silently and subtlety creating an environment and mindset in which emphasis is placed on quick, effortless sound bites and face-to-face interactions are discouraged.
“Another thing is that there is already a strong social pressure to carry a mobile phone (and therefore even strong opposition among some marginal groups, such as certain academic intellectuals). This is very much generational: the youngest generation could almost be identified with the help of the mobile phone so important it has become to their lifestyle. The use of textons (text messages or SMS; this French innovation should become universal) is one of such generational dividing lines, especially their use for serious messages (such as “I am leaving you, sorry”). (Roos 2001)”
Were people given fingers and thumbs for communication? Despite the importance of the written word in our daily lives, oral communication remains the most important means of communication between two individuals. It allows you to put emphasis on words, to instill emotions in your sentences. Oral communication creates a unique connection between to humans that just isn’t present in any other non face-to-face interaction; facial expressions and cues are lost and meaning is open to interpretation without the use of inflection. Communication is reduced to simply a means to an end, forgoing any personal benefit or lasting connection.
In fact, McKenna et al. (2002) found that the
lonely and socially anxious were better able to express themselves and develop close
friendships on the Internet than in the ‘real’ world. Whilst people with extensive
social networks and frequent intimate social contacts also use the Internet for social
purposes (Birnie & Horvath, 2002), many turn to it as a relatively safe environment in
which to form close and meaningful relationships “to make a reality out of their
virtual lives” (McKenna et al., 2002, p.30).
The preceding quote provides the base for my next point: that text messaging robs the less social-natured people the ability to develop intimate or even friendly relationships. Why would a socially anxious person ever need to venture outside their home or support structure if they can simply send a text message in place of actual encounter? In spite of the difficulties, face-to-face interactions actually end up helping nervous people cope with their social anxiety in that it forces them to overcome it. A nervous person isn’t going to be socially comfortable if they are constantly presented with the reinforcement (in the form of text messaging) that personal, social interactions are not necessary to function in society.
“According to Nokia’s world-wide survey of 3300 people (Nokia, 2001), the core mobile phone market is the under-45 age group. Over 80% of those sampled in this survey reported text-messaging as the most used function on their mobiles. Other studies have found that, in Britain at least, nearly 80% 14-16 year olds own mobiles (NOP, 2001; as cited in Thurlow, 2003), and that it is this teen market that dominates text-messaging, with 90% of teenagers claimed to text more than they talk on their phones (Haig, 2002). However, despite a small number of qualitative studies of teenagers’ use of text messaging (e.g. Thurlow, 2003;
Page 2
Kasesniemi & Rautiainen, 2002; Ling & Yttri, 2002; Puro, 2002)(Reid and Reid 2004)”
The other point I wanted to touch on was the fact that cell phones undermine the school’s teaching of the subject of English.
“While everyone recognizes that IM is widely used by adolescents and teens in the United States, there seem to be two distinct opinions of its effect on student academics. There are those who see the use of so-called "Internet English" as a breakdown of the English language – according to a recent newspaper article, "Some teachers see the creeping abbreviations as part of a continuing assault of technology on formal written English" (Lee, 2002).(O’Connor 2005)”
I have witnessed this breakdown of our language firsthand as emphasis is removed from correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation and instead placed on speed and punctuality. What use does a person have for proper English and grammar when it isn’t needed to communicate with his or her friends? It may not outwardly seem like it’s a big deal, but the destruction of the English language is just the first step on the path to the destruction of the other formal aspects of our society.











Bibliography

O’Connor, Amanda. “Instant Messaging: Friend or Foe of Student Writing?” New Horizons for Learning. 2005. The University of Washington. http://www.newhorizons.org/strategies/literacy/oconnor.htm
Reid, Donna. Reid, Fraser. “Insights into the Social and Psychological Effects of SMS Text Messaging.” 2004. The University of Plymouth. http://www.160characters.org/documents/SocialEffectsOfTextMessaging.pdf
Roos. “Mobilezation.” Staff Papers. 2001. The University of Helsinki. http://www.valt.helsinki.fi/staff/jproos/mobilezation.htm