| |
| |
|
Language Information |
|
|
|
English Has Come A Long, Long Way...
I often wonder what would happen if Shakespeare were to be transported in a time machine to our world today. What would he think? How would he react? Yes, Willie would probably tell me "thou hast too much time on thy hands if thou spendeth it wondering about such flights of fancy." But only after he found his feet. You see, Willie would be blown away by some of the comforts we take for granted. For instance, that box we walk into. The doors close all by themselves...just like magic. When they open, we are magically in a different place. "What callest thou this contraption?" Willie would ask in utter amazement. An elevator. You would think nothing would phase a man who just landed his time machine 400 years into the future. "Ah, I see. It was not magic after all. It elevated us, because it is an elevator." This Willie guy is pretty handy with his English, isn't he? But that won't get him far these days. A hundred years ago, even fifty, he could have figured out just about every new word by tracing its roots (often to Greek or Latin). But not today. "What are those...those...those, things?" Why that's a TV, with a VCR and a DVD player. Over there, it's a CD player, an AM and FM radio and an amp. This is a PC, with CDRW and floppy drives, a powerful CPU, A and C drive, and more RAM than a MAC. "What? Thy alphabet seems a bit confusing." Once upon a time, the meaning of a word could always be guessed by simply tracing the entomology of the word back to its lowest roots. "Thou meanest 'etymology', dost thou not? Entomology is the study of insects and bugs." I knew that. I took out a 'Kleenex' because my nose was running. "But how dost thy nose run?" I suppose the same way I drivest on a parkway and parkest in the driveway. Or how it doesn't matter whether we fill in a form or fill out a form...either way, the taxman gets the last laugh. I offered to take Willie for a ride. "That is more like it. There is nothing quite like a horse under one's bottom.' No, no, no. We don't ride horses anymore. That is a barbaric way to treat such majestic beasts. Now we drive cars...and kill the horses off with the exhaust. "I have no idea what you are talking about." Just have a seat in the BMW, Willie, while I turn on the AC and rev up the RPMs on this old V6. Before you know it, we'll be doing 100 mph down the 102. "More letters and numbers. Have words become redundant in the future?" Pretty much. As life got more and more complicated, words got more and more complicated. Pretty soon it was taking several minutes just to pronounce a single government department. So real word groups had to be replaced by acronyms - the first letter of each word. Pass me a CANDY. "What does CANDY stand for?" Candy, actually. But maybe I should just leave old Willie guessing. After all, there is just so much to discover in this brave new world. Like why there are so few sundials around. And why some people sleep on the street, while other climb 34 stories to an office tower above to sleep at their desks. And just how do they shrink those liquor bottles for the airlines. "What is an RSVP? And ASAP? And TLC?" I had to find just the right way to explain to him that all these crazy letters actually made some kind of sense. Internal Department of Income Overhaul Transfer Systems. "Ah, IDIOTS. Now, that I understand!" About The Author Like Shakespeare, David Leonhardt is a writer: He is author of: Inspiration & Motivation To Go: http://www.thehappyguy.com/l/daily-motivation-inspiration.php The Get Happy Workbook: http://www.thehappyguy.com/happiness-work-book.html and Climb Your Stairway to Heaven: the 9 habits of maximum happiness: http://www.thehappyguy.com/happiness-self-help-book.html To write your website copy, newsletter or anything else, email him at: info@thehappyguy.com
MORE RESOURCES:
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Bridging the Language Gap Using Bilingual Picture Books There are more than 39 million Hispanics live in the United States making it the fifth largest Spanish-speaking nation in the world. It is estimated that within five years, only Mexico will have more Spanish-speakers than the U. Preschool Spanish Why an EarlyAGE 2nd Language?Research indicates that from ages 1 through 8 is the best time to introduce a new language to a child. If the 2nd language is introduced early in life children will learn it faster and retain it longer. English Slang For Perplexed Tourists I watched the British version of 'Big Brother' recently. That's the television show which is a human hamster cage. Teaching English in Greece - What Do You Need to Know? The employment situation can be quite uncertain for newcomers to Greece and therefore many people choose to try teaching English as a foreign language, on a full or part-time basis. It can bring in a good income whether it is your preferred career choice, or you wish to do it short-term until another career choice pans out. Learn Italian in Italy You can combine your love of the Italian language with an unforgettable experience in the country where the language is spoken by studying Italian in Italy! Hands-down, the best way to learn a foreign language is to live, work, or study in a native speaking environment. Studying Italian in Italy is the best possible experience you can have to learn the language. Learn Italian for Free Italian is one of the most widespread languages in the world, and speaking it can give you a tremendous sense of accomplishment, an edge in your career, and even a stronger bond with your ancestors if you are of Italian descent. There are many ways you can learn Italian, including textbooks, tapes, CDs, software, group classes or private lessons, but there are also ways you can begin or continue your studies of the Italian language entirely for FREE!1. Don't Take The Romaji Short-Cut When Learning Japanese This is an issue many Japanese learners come up against, particularly if they live outside Japan. After all, If you are not in the country, it seems difficult to justify the huge amount of time that learning Japanese characters seems to require. Learning French in Paris Nothing can be more frustrating than to be in France and not been able to speak their language. For, I remember the days when I was among people chanting around in a language totally alien to me, and me, trying to bring a smile in my face while shaking my head from north to south doing as if I am getting everything what they are speaking about, and waiting impatiently for my French wife to do the translation - and I can't deny, that that was not the most comfortable period of my life. Japanese Kanji Learning: Short-Cuts to Rapid Mastery (Part 2) In Japanese Kanji Learning: Short-Cuts to Rapid Mastery Part 1, we looked at mnemonic methods devised by James Heisig and Kenneth Henshall to speed-up kanji acquisition. We saw how their techniques activate the imagination by assigning different meanings individual elements of each kanji. Whats In A Word? More Than You Realize What's in a word? Apparently more than we might want.For others, the ability to express yourself in the most meaningful way. Speaking Spanish To Increase Mind Power Our "mind power" is largely in the way we use our words, and limited by our vocabulary. Words, and the concepts they express, are different in each language, and there are differing common expressions. Uncommon Facts / Rules of English Language English is an international language. It has so many grammar rules and each rule with many exceptions. Learn Korean: Part 2 - Social Status in Culture Part 1 of this series covered the language and language families in general for the Asian languages. Part 2 will cover the social conduct that is seen throughout Asian countries. Can You Understand English? There is a lot of talk about making English the official language of the USA. That would stop the need to spend so much money printing out things like drivers license, tax, voter registration and other official forms in so many languages. Second Language Competence Beneficial but often Misunderstood Second language learning has associated with it many types of benefits. Among them include: social, economic, intellectual and linguistic. Chinese Pinyin or Hanyu Pinyin Overview Chinese Pinyin is the romanization of the Chinese "written sound". Romanization approximates Mandarin pronunciation with Western spellings and includes a tone mark to signify the pitch of a word. Learn Italian in Your Hometown Are you interested in learning the Italian language right in your own hometown? There are several options that you can explore to find the Italian classes that are just perfect for you! First, you should consider whether you would you enjoy the interaction that takes place among students in group classes, or if you would prefer the one-on-one attention of a private instructor.1. Learning a Foreign Language: the Ventriloquists Lesson The main feature you have to master, in order to call yourself a ventriloquist, is to speak without moving your lips. It is not that difficult. Learning a Foreign Language: Why Should you Learn Words You Never Use in Your Mother Tongue? Imagine a child sitting in front of a desk, his head in his hands, and mumbling various lists of words over and over. Does this child remind you of your own experience? If yes, I bet that "list of words" does not sound appealing to you. Online IELTS Preparation - Why Does It Make Sense? Because IELTS is a difficult test. While most agree that IELTS is a reasonable test, it is generally regarded as one of the most challenging tests of its type.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 Indexadvertisements.com |
