With the advent of Facebook and Twitter, our language has seen a significant shortening. Keeping our thoughts to 140 characters or less, while fun, has (I'm afraid) marked the beginning of the end of our elaborate, romantic, beautiful language.
Being a Historian, I often look to the past to dig deeper into today's problems. And I'm always amazed at what I find. From Shakespeare to Emerson to Longfellow, our language has been used to convey such a variety of emotions in such an inspiring, captivating way. But it needs not be just the poets that use language in this fashion. Below is a paragraph from an actual Civil War letter written by a normal soldier, Lieutenant Edward Lewis, to the wife of a slain comrade:
Mrs. Kellogg,
Dear Madam
I would fain hope that I am not the first bearer of the tidings which it is my painful duty to communicate. If unhappily I be so, I can only bid you summon all your fortitude to read the next words I shall write, and may God soften the terrible blow; your noble husband is no more, he died the death of a brave man on the 20th while leading his company, sword in hand, in an important advance to a close position under the fire of the enemy’s works. The fatal blow from a piece of shell in the head was at least merciful, in so far as that he died quietly and without suffering. His comrades were especially around him, but he never spoke after the shot. We have made every effort, by his special request before his fall, to send his body to you; but as no boats are allowed to assault the river at present, we have been compelled to postpone this purpose for the present. We design to fulfill it at the earliest providable time.
(Courtesy of http://www.civilwararchive.com/LETTERS/letters.htm )
The poetry with which these words are written, conveying the worst of news, is something both sad and amazing. Today, do we see these kinds of words written by a normal person? Sure, mass produced letters can be written to communicate things, but these are so informal and impersonal they become hard to digest. I myself can only remember a handful of times where I have written a personal letter to somebody.
Think about this: When you get a nice email from somebody, it may make you feel pretty good. You read it, maybe save it, or more likely, delete it. But what if you sent a thoughtful, carefully penned letter to somebody? (Yes, I'm talking about snail-mail) I can almost guarantee they would treasure it, or at the very least, greatly appreciate it.
No, I'm not being paid by the ever-profitless U.S. Postal Service. I'm simply making an attempt to re-introduce the wonders of the English language to everyone. And though I may not succeed with any of you, I will succeed with myself. So if you're lucky, expect a letter sometime. ;)
Yours most sincerely,
Mike Borda
"Language is the blood of the soul into which thoughts run and out of which they grow."
--Oliver Wendell Holmes
Yours most sincerely,
Mike Borda
"Language is the blood of the soul into which thoughts run and out of which they grow."
--Oliver Wendell Holmes
I think that preserving detailed craftsmanship, not just in writing, will always be up to the individual. For example, I'm sure not every Civil War soldier wrote poetic, albeit sad, letters. There were probably a good percentage of soldiers, as is there's a good percentage of people today, that never really wrote letters, have a limited vocabulary, or just plain don't care about writing. Naturally history books will contain the most beautiful and most well written letters. I'm sure there are still purists out there that write a letter a day, calligraphy and all. Just like film camera buffs that won't go digital, and fitness enthusiasts that use kettle bells instead of the shakeweight. You get the idea.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that things have become easier, some argue, lazier, with time, it's the world we live in, and it's up to the historians, like you, to help us not lose track completely of the way things used to be.
Yet again I agree!
ReplyDeleteI dislike that english is deteriorating so heavily under pressure by such things and also by illiterate youths who feel talking "like this yeah bruv" is appropriate or smart.
I love english as a language, and I always enjoyed literature at school too (I won't boast about my grades :D haha), and I'm also upset with this change.