Birkerts, an essayist widely known for writing The Gutenberg Elegies, is, as Scott Stossel describes in an Atlantic Online conference, a technophobe. He doesn't own or use a computer, and certainly doesn't plan on it during his lifetime. In fact, he scorns the use of electronics altogether, stating "[cell phones, television, and computers threaten] to swamp us in an element of connectedness." While we, the members of the current generation, clearly enjoy the creativity and mobility that the Internet and other technological devices offer, it is obvious that Birkerts doesn't share our enthusiasm. But why? To cite another of Birkert's articles, "Into the Electronic Millennium," there are three ramifications —the erosion of language, the flattening of historical perspectives, and the waning of the private self—that he believes will emerge during the development of the "'proto-electronic' era," all of which seem to hinge on the replacement of written text by online media. Yet only his first idea can be seen as a critical judgment of our Internet dependent lives.
While we will not literally see an end to the spoken English language, Birkerts claims that increased usage of the Internet will encourage users to develop a sort of "'plainspeak.'" In cases such as this, it is suggested that syntactical elements such as wit-fast and ambiguity will be replaced by "simple linguistic pre-fab." This is what he describes as the erosion of language. In any case, it is unfortunately an accurate assault on my Internet addiction, because I often use simple sentences when typing having a conversation online. But, after all, this is because the speed at which you type literally determines whether or not your idea is heard or rather seen by the other person. So, the more easily you can sum up your ideas in a smaller sentence, the easier it will be to rapidly convey them to the other person. On the contrary, this "'plainspeak'" only stays within the boundaries of social networking sites, while in other places (here, for example) I continue to use the traditional English language, still full of imagery and irony.
So, although Sven Birkert's idea of the erosion of language strongly criticizes my use of the Internet, it is clear that I have managed to keep separate the domains in which I use "'plainspeak'" and regular English. I believe that this is the most important way to keep the erosion that Birkerts speaks of to a minimum. Yet, with the continual development of technology, who knows how long this simple precautionary measure will hold? When technological innovation ultimately destroy society?
Works Cited:
- Birkerts, Sven. "Into the Electronic Millennium." Boston Review Oct. 1991. Boston Review: A Political and Literary Forum. Boston Review, 1993. Web. 28 Feb. 2011. <http://bostonreview.net/BR16.5/birkerts.html>.
- Stossel, Scott. "Is Cyberspace Destroying Society?" The Atlantic Online. The Atlantic Monthly, 30 May 1995. Web. 28 Feb. 2011. <http://www.theatlantic.com/past/docs/unbound/aandc/trnscrpt/birkerts.htm>.
I do see "plainspeak" not in the LOL AFK BRB of texting, but in the "suitcase words" that students love to use, such as "society" and "we all know."
ReplyDeleteWe don't all know, or we'd not have to say that :D
It's hard to convince me that Birkerts was incorrect, even though, unlike him, I happily use the Internet hours daily.
Incidentally, one stylistic note: the article title would go into double quotations, as in "Is Cyberspace Destroying Society?" and Birkert's book, The Gutenberg Elegies you have correct.
Oh no! Scott Stossel used the dreaded suitcase-word "society!" Well, one can get away with it...in a title perhaps, given that titles are mere promises of the focus to come.