[1] Txting: frNd or foe?
If I ........ a pound for every time I heard
someone predicting a language disaster
because of a new technological development,
[5] I would be a very rich man. If I were a time
traveller, my bank balance would have started
to grow with the arrival ∈ the Middle Ages of
printing, thought by many to be the invention
of the devil. It would have increased with the
[10] telegraph, telephone and broadcasting. And I
would have been able to retire on the profits
from text messaging.
All the popular beliefs about texting are
wrong. It isn’t just used by the young
[15] generation: the vast majority of texts
circulating ∈ cyberspace are among adults,
especially by and to institutions.
Only ........ very tiny part of text messaging
uses a distinctive orthography. The
[20] abbreviations are not a totally new
phenomenon. Young people don’t use them ∈
essays, nor ∈ exam scripts. And research is
piling up that text messaging helps rather
than hinders literacy. Texting has, indeed,
[25] added a new dimension to language use, but
its long-term impact on existing varieties of
language is negligible. It is not a disaster.
The popular impression is quite the
opposite. People think that the written
[30] language seen on mobile phone screens is
new and alien. It has been labelled “textese”,
“slanguage”, and a “digital virus”. It has been
described as foreign and “outlandish”.
However, ........ most striking characteristic
[35] of text messages is the combination of
standard and non-standard features. Although
many texters like to be different and enjoy
breaking linguistic rules, they also know they
need to be understood. There is no point ∈
[40] paying for a message if it breaks so many
rules that it ceases to be intelligible. There is
always ........ unconscious pressure to use the
standard orthography.
Adapted from: CRYSTAL, David. Txting: frNd or foe? The Linguist, v. 47, n. 06, Dec. 2008/Jan 2009. Available at: <http://www.davidcrystal.com/DCarticles/ Internet16.pdf>. Access on: Sept 09, 2012.
Consider the statements below.
I - Research indicates that text messages harm languages by breaking their grammar and spelling rules.
II - Text messaging is a digital virus used mostly by young people.
III - Texting is only one out of a variety of technological developments that have had an impact ∈ the way languages are used.
Which are correct, according to the text?
