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English as a world
Language{{/B}} English is a victim of its own success. Newspapers in England have noticed that the incorrect use of cliches are marring the smooth flow of a great language whose ability to imbibe and absorb has been one important reason for its success. This success also stems from the language's unique position of being the only one spoken in most parts of the world. Really, English has no boundaries. Even in countries such as Japan and China, which were not colonized by Britain, English is making a determined "conquest". Unfortunately, such a conquest is not always welcome because a language sometimes doubles as a political weapon. In fact, it has always led a troubled life. It has been disliked, even hated, largely because the people who originally spoke English conquered, colonized and terrorized half the world, or just about. The animosity to the language continues, at least in some places. The bitterness that the French, for instance, have for English is a good example of a language being given a quasi-political role in society. Fortunately, this aversion does not run as deep as it did some years ago, and there is a growing realization that English is the lingua franca. Many nations, such as China and Japan, have been making serious efforts to promote the language. But there might be a serious problem if every state or continent were to have its own version of English. As is pointed out by the newspapers of England, with too many variations of the language, a time may come when one group of English-speaking people may not be able to understand another. This is happening where the way Singaporeans speak English. Listen to the Australians pronouncing "e"; it sounds like "a". And very possibly, in the future nobody will try to correct school boys and girls for getting their English wrong. |