On The Gold Coast: Thoughts On Using The English Language
"It is a sad fact that the lack of literacy skills often labels us uneducated and can greatly influence the amount of money we may earn in return for our labour,'' writes Judith Wallis.
Written or spoken the English language is primarily a means of communication. It could be said that it is the level of our ability to express ourselves fluently and to communicate well with others that seals our position in society. For no matter how moral we may be or how inspired or how willing we are to work, limitations of language are likely to limit our individual world.
It is a sad fact that the lack of literacy skills often labels us uneducated and can greatly influence the amount of money we may earn in return for our labour.
It is the power of words that defines our imagination, names insightful concepts and brings them into being. The reverse occurs when we read or listen to others speaking. If the message is clear, evocative of thought and feeling, our minds will illustrate the words as we absorb them, adding greatly to our understanding.
Presented with wrongly spelt words and errors of punctuation we may receive the wrong impression and in doing so, fail to understand the intended communication.
If beauty is in the eye of the beholder then enjoyment of the written word lies entirely with the reader. For some people the greatest pleasure may come from a comic book. The mis-spelt abbreviated text producing nail biting apprehension as the hero slugs it out with the bad guy. Others will succumb to belly shaking chuckles as cartoon characters, uttering sounds rather than words, bounce from one humorous situation to another.
I have to ask myself, are the reactive sensations of the readers of Penny Horribles any different to those felt by readers of excellent or classic literature? Is the measure of amusement or the urgency with which the pages are scanned to learn the outcome of a situation dependent on the standard of our choice of literature?
While our emotional responses to either type of written work may be similar, the extent of our appreciation and understanding would appear to be different. Comic books are rarely read more than once. Newspapers, with their terse journalistic jargon, offer a message that is immediately grasped and the redundant paper consigned to the recycle bin without delay.
The practiced use of good English is an art used to create appealing and informative literature. Literature that encourages the intellect, stimulates our innate curiosity and expands our mental horizons. It allows us to discover parts of ourselves and often draws us back to re-read, searching for that elusive something that delights our senses and stirs both our interest and imagination.
As a novice writer I liken English grammar to a minefield. I know of nothing so fraught with pitfalls as the pursuit of perfected English language. The rules being so fixed, yet so often manipulated, so as to erase all hope of attaining a faultless conclusion.
English, written or spoken, offers education and enjoyment to an incredibly diverse section of the world’s population. It is important we offer our best but let us also be thankful our lives are enriched by the ability to find enjoyment in the search, whether or not we reach the ultimate.
