The Return of eLf ideas

ideas of an eLven being in Canada

Tuesday, October 25, 2005

"Intuition is concerned with time

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The intuitive person is able to 'see round corners,' to have hunches about things, and is more interested in the possibilities of things than in their present existence."

Expressing my sentiment with regard to my blog-writing style (or even writing e-mail or text messages, for that matter):

Perhaps most people who knew me or, at least, think they know me through my writings could sense how obsessive-compulsive I am, in the sense that I attack every topic or situation—be this trivial or controversial or scholastic—with mighty conviction. Thank you. Yes, I am. And, yes, I do.

Even back when I was still in the Philippines, I never succumbed to the so-called cellphone text language. How I abhorred "telegraphic" messages. For instance, TNX. C U L8R, K? DNT 4GET 2 BRNG D BUK. No matter how limited the cellphone's LCD space and urgent the need for the reply, I still persisted in observing spelling and grammar, for through this I believed I was expressing literary courtesy—courtesy to the language, that is.

Did you ever wonder what enabled Shakespeare to write his chefs-d'oeuvre with seemingly flawless beauty and elegance? More than his talent and skills, his passion for writing and respect for the language, I believe, were the chief enzymes of his prolificacy.

I am known to write lengthy letters and send or reply with "kilometric" e-mails. This is not because I try to flaunt and impress but because I want to preserve and express the beauty and sacredness that I discovered in language. So many languages had long become extinct. So many others are nearing extinction. Do you like this to happen to your parent tongue, or to English or any other widely used language for that matter? Would you let yourself become a maggot of its decay?

I always observe at least simple grammar in all areas possible, because I don't want the regressive evolution of language to corrupt my literary soul.

Strong, the dark side of language neglect is; but the Yoda in me, I believe, is formidable as ever.

I don't want to be declared someday as a cheap catalyst to a language's deterioration and eventual decomposition.

I have my flaws. That's inevitable. And who does not have? But in the same intense sentiment that I continue to uphold literary beauty and elegance; and there is no other best way to achieve this but to write and to write and to write with unfaltering passion and literary conviction.

2 Comments:

  • At Wednesday, October 26, 2005 10:07:00 PM, Blogger Jennie said…

    Very interesting. It was found recently that a lot of kids cannot even spell correctly because of being so used to "text english". Imagine a teacher's surprise in seeing a paper/assignment submitted by a student with words such as BUK, L8R, PLS, TNX. Sheesh!

    I'm the same. I'd rather waste precious LCD space than come across as a illiterate "maggot of a language's decay."

     
  • At Thursday, October 27, 2005 9:39:00 PM, Blogger eLf ideas said…

    Jennie,

    Yeah, I know.

    In fact, even my then-College sister...told me back in 2003 that, because she was so used to the so-called text lingo, there were times that she unknowingly wrote such shortened forms in her essays. It was not her intention, but it just came out naturally. She admits that she now finds writing in the proper manner difficult.

    Kumabaga, nagiging natural na kasi sa mga cellphone generation kaya automatic na yun ang naisusulat nila. Hanggang sa ma-confuse na sila kung ano na nga ba ang spelling--especially those tricky words with double letters in it. Nakow! Yan ang numero uno na nami-misspell.

    I think, the best cure for this is discipline--discipline in using at least simple grammar and observing spelling.

    syfbklk

     

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