Pages

Sunday, November 21, 2010

New ways of communication. LOL, ROFL and beyond.

Many of you know these abbreviations that are used extensively all over the internet:
LOL, ROFL, LMAO etc.
Most of you love them, a few of you hate them. But the latest grammar-nazi-troll-food is the next step in modern communication: meme-based words. Recently I had an extensive discussion with some guy that tried to showcase his superiority by questioning my intelligence, just because I used a meme. "Awesome Sauce", a goofy word I used only once, was enough to act as a catalyst for an intellectual battle of epic dimensions. Well this guy was, to be honest, unarmed.
His main point was, that the common Internet slang just supports the "stupidification" of the common population by raping language (or something like that). I have to politely disagree. The inability to follow the rules of grammar or to build correct sentences and making typos are a problem, not these "new words" that are emerging.



A short history of language:

Most words of a language are based on words that were initially used by a certain, closed group of people (mainly professions like sailors, tailors, farmers, workers) before they became common. The Internet Slang isn't different. Not so many years ago, abbreviations, memes and emoticons were used just by a few thousand people (the early adopters and technophiles) and 15 years later, millions are speaking this slang fluently. It's a natural process that language evolves and if you don't accept that, you are denying reality.
Most proverbs that are commonly used are what we would call nowadays a "meme" or are based on a "meme"

  • A stitch in time saves nine.
  • As thick as a brick.
  • It's raining cats and dogs.
  • You can't make an omelette without breaking eggs.

So, just tell me... Why should this be so different from "double rainbow all the way"?

Maybe it's just you dear troll, because you are an asshole.

No comments:

Post a Comment