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The above quoted exchange has prompted me to write this post and start this thread.
Some people use a lot of emoticons, and others do not.
Sometimes - not using emoticons helps the intended 'effect' to "go over that much better" - if the reader "gets it"... The risk is greater ( for misunderstanding ) - but the intended effect has the potential of being greater, also.
Some people 'aim' for maximum effect.
Some [ more conservative ( and, I don't mean 'politically' here ) ] people, like myself, tend to use more emoticons to help define their expressions ( In my case, it is largely because people often seem to think of me as always being serious - not realizing that I actually have a sense of humor and "a lighter side" ? ) - especially, if there are "fine points" in the expression that they believe are important not to miss.
Sometimes, I use several emoticons together to try to convey a 'pattern' of emotion / feeling / etc.
In case you may have noticed ( haha ), I use a lot of other methods also - parentheses, brackets, quotes, color, bold / italics / underlines, etc. etc. etc. - to try to make up for the lack / loss of body language and voice inflection - to try to convey more precisely "just exactly what it is that I am trying to say"...
Anyone who reads enough of my posts ( think 'GRA' here, the name has changed ) should begin to see a pattern develop -- because, I try to use the same methods for the same purposes consistently.
As an example - if I quote something I am saying, in italics, and in this color - it generally means that I am saying something "just as if I had spoken it" ( where it may not conform to "properly written English grammar" - and, I know the difference --- yes, a life of "southern slang" has corrupted my use of the language a bit...
). There is really nothing special about the color - it comes from my decided use of color from its position in the color palette 'matrix' that was in use before the change-over of the site environment within the last year or so... ( yes, that is how far back this goes )
O.K. - returning from my digression now...
Some people don't use that many emoticons ( or none at all ) - instead, trusting in the language of the written word to convey the proper meaning -- which brings me to the whole point and focus of this thread...
This is what used-to-be - and is really what should be -- but, has been "dealt a severe blow" - because of the modern destruction of the structure of language ( non-use of proper grammar ) - by the "dumbing down" of society over the decades.
"It seems that - not many people ( relatively speaking - and - in the U.S.A, at least ) know how to speak or write with good grammar any more these days..."
Satan is responsible for this - with purpose in mind...
While it is true that "not being able to see the 'subtle clues' of body language" on the internet is against us --- think about this for just a moment:
When you read a well-written novel, does the lack of body language really take anything away from what the author is trying to convey? Of course not! ( IF you are well-trained in the grammar and usage of words of the language the book is written in. ) The whole of being a good author is being able - through only the written word - to convey an appreciable expression of thought that arouses a significant amount of emotion or understanding in another person ( the reader ).
An enormous amount of thought / feeling / etc. may be conveyed very accurately through the written word - IF - people learn it well and utilize it in their speaking and writing.
It seems that not many people are willing to put the effort into their speech / writing any more.
Keep in mind that the reader needs to be just as well-versed in the language as the writer. Otherwise, the reader may "miss" the more intricate details of what the writer is trying to convey. ( More on this later... )
The problem is that - without even realizing it - people have been "left out in the cold" - and "dumbed-down" - by the changes that Satan has managed to make in modern society. He has very successfully done this through things like 'ebonics' and 'leet speak' ( which "utterly destroy" the language ), as well as the general apathy that has transpired in the classroom for teaching good grammar.
To a great extent, the younger generations - without having much choice in the matter - and "not knowing any better" - have been "dumbed-down", because of the apathy of teachers and parents ( mostly parents, who were themselves "dumbed-down" ). They have been "robbed" of some of the necessary "vital components" for speaking the very language they were taught as a primary language.
The math equivalent of this is --- not being able to handle inexact change given to them at the drive-in window of the fast-food restaurant where they work...
How sad...
This is not intended to insult anyone. The result of Satan's efforts in this matter are truly tragic!
I raise the issue in order to get others to think about the reality --- and, to consider and discuss some possible solutions...
Something to think about...
( More later... )
Some people use a lot of emoticons, and others do not.
Sometimes - not using emoticons helps the intended 'effect' to "go over that much better" - if the reader "gets it"... The risk is greater ( for misunderstanding ) - but the intended effect has the potential of being greater, also.
Some people 'aim' for maximum effect.
Some [ more conservative ( and, I don't mean 'politically' here ) ] people, like myself, tend to use more emoticons to help define their expressions ( In my case, it is largely because people often seem to think of me as always being serious - not realizing that I actually have a sense of humor and "a lighter side" ? ) - especially, if there are "fine points" in the expression that they believe are important not to miss.
Sometimes, I use several emoticons together to try to convey a 'pattern' of emotion / feeling / etc.
In case you may have noticed ( haha ), I use a lot of other methods also - parentheses, brackets, quotes, color, bold / italics / underlines, etc. etc. etc. - to try to make up for the lack / loss of body language and voice inflection - to try to convey more precisely "just exactly what it is that I am trying to say"...
Anyone who reads enough of my posts ( think 'GRA' here, the name has changed ) should begin to see a pattern develop -- because, I try to use the same methods for the same purposes consistently.
As an example - if I quote something I am saying, in italics, and in this color - it generally means that I am saying something "just as if I had spoken it" ( where it may not conform to "properly written English grammar" - and, I know the difference --- yes, a life of "southern slang" has corrupted my use of the language a bit...
). There is really nothing special about the color - it comes from my decided use of color from its position in the color palette 'matrix' that was in use before the change-over of the site environment within the last year or so... ( yes, that is how far back this goes )O.K. - returning from my digression now...
Some people don't use that many emoticons ( or none at all ) - instead, trusting in the language of the written word to convey the proper meaning -- which brings me to the whole point and focus of this thread...
This is what used-to-be - and is really what should be -- but, has been "dealt a severe blow" - because of the modern destruction of the structure of language ( non-use of proper grammar ) - by the "dumbing down" of society over the decades.
"It seems that - not many people ( relatively speaking - and - in the U.S.A, at least ) know how to speak or write with good grammar any more these days..."
Satan is responsible for this - with purpose in mind...
While it is true that "not being able to see the 'subtle clues' of body language" on the internet is against us --- think about this for just a moment:
When you read a well-written novel, does the lack of body language really take anything away from what the author is trying to convey? Of course not! ( IF you are well-trained in the grammar and usage of words of the language the book is written in. ) The whole of being a good author is being able - through only the written word - to convey an appreciable expression of thought that arouses a significant amount of emotion or understanding in another person ( the reader ).
An enormous amount of thought / feeling / etc. may be conveyed very accurately through the written word - IF - people learn it well and utilize it in their speaking and writing.
It seems that not many people are willing to put the effort into their speech / writing any more.
Keep in mind that the reader needs to be just as well-versed in the language as the writer. Otherwise, the reader may "miss" the more intricate details of what the writer is trying to convey. ( More on this later... )
The problem is that - without even realizing it - people have been "left out in the cold" - and "dumbed-down" - by the changes that Satan has managed to make in modern society. He has very successfully done this through things like 'ebonics' and 'leet speak' ( which "utterly destroy" the language ), as well as the general apathy that has transpired in the classroom for teaching good grammar.
To a great extent, the younger generations - without having much choice in the matter - and "not knowing any better" - have been "dumbed-down", because of the apathy of teachers and parents ( mostly parents, who were themselves "dumbed-down" ). They have been "robbed" of some of the necessary "vital components" for speaking the very language they were taught as a primary language.
The math equivalent of this is --- not being able to handle inexact change given to them at the drive-in window of the fast-food restaurant where they work...
How sad...
This is not intended to insult anyone. The result of Satan's efforts in this matter are truly tragic!
I raise the issue in order to get others to think about the reality --- and, to consider and discuss some possible solutions...
Something to think about...
( More later... )
