Meaningless Language
dude: 1) an individual with a western air about them, 2) a greeting, 3) an exclamation of surprise, 4) a statement to declare disbelief, 5) agreement affirmation, 6) a name for a friend, 7) a name for one held in contempt, ...
Shall I go on? So I ask you, what is the point of using this word? Just by changing the inflection or facial expression the word takes on a new meaning. It is such an ambiguous word, that it can really no longer be used in the written form. Unfortunately, there are many words falling to this level in the English language today. Each generation keeps insisting on being independent of the previous generation by changing the definitions of commonly used words, so that it becomes "theirs." Of course, when they get in the work force and find out they can no longer communicate with their boss, most of this nonsense goes away.
But today, however, this is not always the case. The new generation is so headstrong with its definition ambiguity campaign, and coupled with technology advances, the effect is becoming persistent. I would almost venture to guess that half the people reading this cannot understand or misunderstand most of the content. There is an old saying, "a shoe by any other name is still a shoe." Words should fit this mold--in other words, they should never lose their original definition. If they do, then all previous writings and texts which used it, become undecipherable, or gibberish. My daughter constantly complains about some of the authors she is required to read in school, (Dickens, Steinbeck, Wells, Shakespeare), because she has to keep an "old" dictionary handy to understand it. At this rate, The English Classics will soon be defined as books that were written in another language.
Not only is this a generational thing, but the media coupled with politician double-talk is making a big impact on this phenomena. See my previous article on the terms liberal and conservative.
A language that becomes too ambiguous ceases to be useful as a tool for communication or recording of history, science, or any type of knowledge. In fact, a society that is fractured by its language no longer produces, no longer defends itself, and eventually, no longer exists. Don't believe me? Ask the descendants of a city called Babel, but then again, you probably wouldn't be able to understand them anyway.
I'm Been Franklin
