I have most certainly used this form of slash in the past, slash I am still currently using it. In reference to the last sentence in the blog, it is terrifying/ so interesting to me that I never noticed the change in usage. Though, I think that this is a common occurrence in language and linguistics. Perhaps such a common occurrence that we don’t even notice it. The difference in the original use of the symbol (/) and the newer usage lies in that the symbol was used to signify another name for something, while the newer use is to continue an idea or make a shift in topic. I often see/ use the new word when one is joking around or not being entirely serious. It seems to add an element of discontinuity and instability in what one is saying. It makes a sentence seem more cluttered and anxious especially when you use it more than once. For instance, “I’ve never learned how to ride a bike, slash it’s hard, slash I’ll fall, slash someone please help.” I think that this new usage arouse somewhere on the internet like tumblr. I do think that changing the meaning has a profound effect not only on how we use it, but also on how we understand what is trying to be said. Using the word slash to continue a thought or idea will make us think differently about the expansion in question. As opposed to making a new sentence, using the slash will help us understand that the latter thought or statement is in some way connected or related to the prior. The podcast made me understand how language can change the we think more than this blog post. But I do think that language has a deep effect on how we think because most of what we think is in words and sentences. So changing the language can change how we form and connect thoughts. I’ve often thought that slang and new jargon was an awful thing to happen to language, but this blog post made me think differently about this. It is bound to happen and it can make communicating easier while also introducing new ways of forming thoughts/concepts into language.
I have to disagree with you. While language plays a great role in communicating our thoughts, our life experiences really have the most effect on how we think, or how we perceive the world around us. For example, an old woman, about 70 years old, and a young man, about 20, are sitting on a park bench when a teenage couple walks by, laughing and loving on each other, not a care in the world. The old woman smiles, beaming at the sight of the couple and remembering when she and her husband were young and head over heels for each other. Meanwhile, the young man feels the pain of his broken heart, shattered by the girl he was going to marry in a couple months. The two views of the couple stem from the woman and the man's different experiences relating to what they see. That's what really forms the way that we think and react in situations. Language is just how we can describe those experiences and reactions.
ReplyDeleteI have to disagree with you a bit on the same thing as well, when it comes to "I do think that language has a deep effect on how we think because most of what we think is in words and sentences". Yes, what we think comes out as words and sentences, as in language, but language isn't necessarily how we think. I feel that our perceptions, how we acknowledge stuff, has a deeper effect than language itself. For instance, say a friend and I are at an amusement park. We're there patiently waiting to ride a huge, fast, stomach twisting roller coaster. I can be there looking at excitement waiting for my adrenaline to be rushing. Then there's my friend looking at the ride, scared out of her mind, thinking we are about to die. Yea we're looking at the same thing but are thinking differently because of how we see the situation. Changing the language wouldn't change how we form and connect thoughts its the way we approach and perceive the way we think of things.
ReplyDeleteLanguage is a big role in our life’s (comma) but language isn’t the only way we think (period) I do not spell out the word “slash” ever (period) I think it is useless to spell out a word that already has a symbol on the keyboard (period) I do use the symbol when I I’m using “or/and” (period) It’s not much of a difference (period) Well not a difference at all it has the same meaning and we are using it the exact same way (comma) it’s just more work trying to spell out the whole word when you already have the symbol of it (period) A good example would be when someone text us “LOL” or “LMAO” we know what it means so we say it in our head (period) Language doesn’t necessarily change the way we think (comma) it just helps us get the to the point (period) I’m not sure if you all have caught on but I’ve been spelling out all the punctuations out (comma) and I still think it’s a waste of time (period) I’ve been spelling them out because it’s the same way they were spelling the word “slash” out (comma) now imagine if we would have to spell out every punctuation out (comma) it’s just unnecessary (period) When I use “/” I don’t say it out loud because I know what it means when I’m reading it and it should be the exact same with periods, commas, and any other punctuation mark. So clearly language isn’t the only way we think. I will know what you’re trying to get across without you having to spell out everything.
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ReplyDeleteI have to disagree with you because I think people that learn new languages should only have to learn what the certain word is. Having slang while communicating just throws off what the real meanings of what things are. For an example when Susan Schaller taught that man to sign, she taught him that everything has a certain name or word. By her acting out things he could understand what went with what word. By having slang would be hard for him to understand and learn. There really is no way to teach slang and its kin of hard to understand. I do understand that changing the language can change how we form and connect, but everyone connects in different ways, by signs or communicating. So when slang gets involved we need to think about all communication and the affect it really has on us.
I would also have to disagree with you. Slang is not common everywhere and it would be difficult for someone to comprehend what we are trying to say. Sometimes it's just better to have one certain word to describe something or someone. Just like Susan Schaller did when she helped the man to sign by teaching him that everything has a certain name. Everything then became clear to him. I believe using slang would only cause a sense of confusion because everyone communicates in various ways. Is it really necessary to spell out a punctuation mark instead of just using it in its symbol form? We already know what it's used for and I just believe it's a bit of waste to actually spell it out.
ReplyDeleteLanguage does change the way we think. It changes the way we think when we broaden our vocabulary and learn slang words like "slash". I believe for the most part our past, present,and future experiences will and are changing the way we think, like Emily mentioned. Our experiences shape our options and ideas. We then use language to convey thoughts. I'd like to think we have a more complex way of thinking than just language. Like I said, our experiences shape our thoughts, our emotions take part in our thought process, and some people have intrapersonal conversations that sway their thinking methods. In the podcast, Schaller not only used language to help the man, but she also used gestures and objects to help his thought process. We'd be screwed if we couldn't use language to communicate. Trying to ask someone in Costa Rica where the bus station is solely on gestures doesn't really get the job done. We need language. Like right now, I'm using language intrapersonally to write this comment, but it's not just language helping me finish it, it's thinking of my opinions and recalling me charading out "where's the bus station" to someone who knew no english. For sure language coincides with changing our thoughts but our experiences, emotions, interpersonal thoughts are what create and change our thoughts.
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