Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Decay of Language



The English language is slowly decaying. More and more, ordinary words are being taken and given new, profane definitions. In the past there were only four or five vulgar words. But now, there are at least a hundred words that have some profane alternate definition. I can't remember the last time that I actually said the word "balls", for the sole fear of being misunderstood. For people like me who have decided to refrain from using profanity, it is quite difficult, as we may say words whose primary meanings have changed and not even realize it. I only just recently realized that "trick" is no longer just a prank you play on someone. It is bad enough that words are being changed into something taboo, but even worse is that these bad words are slowly becoming more used for their vulgar meanings than their original ones. People no longer refer to a donkey as an ass, because they feel that doing so would be morally unacceptable, and they feel people would assume that one is referring to the buttocks. Everyone seems to have forgotten that a hoe is just an instrument used to till land. And if someone says you're gay, they don't mean to say that you look happy. All because a few individuals decided that the English language was too clean.

What's more, it seems to me that those who have taken it upon themselves to contaminate these words don't believe they are doing anything wrong. I often hear people say something along the lines of "They're not bad words, stop being a punk." or "There is no such thing as bad words... they're just words." So, then is it safe to assume that it is perfectly normal for a 5 year-old child to use these words? Or a minister? Of course not. This trend is spreading fast throughout our language-- so fast that future generations of children may just learn these profane definitions first, and old meanings will be forgotten.

The cartoon aesthetic just goes to show what future children's dictionaries may look like if this continues!

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