“Nobody even talks like that anymore . . . ”
Technically, you’re making not only your point, but you’re making Stu’s point also. Very few people speak correctly anymore, English gets abused, misused, neglected, battered, butchered, garbled, assaulted, etc., all in the misguided assumption that it’s a natural result of positive evolution of language. I counter that while it is truly evolving, not all of the evolution is positive, good, beneficial, worthy, appropriate, adequate, etc.
To make my point, I offer two analogies: the first is ”Ebonics”. Its proponents and defenders tout it as a valid, acceptable and appropriate way for some people to speak and write, partially because it is more in keeping with familiar territory to them, it’s what they’ve grown up understanding, and it’s what is spoken in their households, neighborhoods, extended families, etc. They claim that to curtail or restrict Ebonics is a denial of culture within the communities where it flourishes. Their point is that Ebonics may not conform with more standard English, but that’s fine, because there should be a separate English based on ethnicity, race, skin color, etc., and as standard English evolves, one of its natural rebirths is a separate and decidedly unequal manifestation: Ebonics. As such, they want Ebonics to be taught instead of standard English.
Hog and wash. If every ethnicity or every variance of pigmentation is supposed to determine how people speak within the same country, especially a country with a population of over 312 million, then a New Tower of Babel will soon overtake everyday communication and everyday life. Allowing separate sublanguages and/or dialects to actually permeate to the point that they are taught and become divisive methods of communication also invites the inevitable discrimination that comes with that practice. Student A is graded on proficiency in Ebonics but Student B on standard English. They attempt to join the workforce, either wide open or tacit job discrimination takes place based on real or perceived difficulties in spoken and written abilities. Those who don’t follow Ebonics and those who don’t follow standard clash with each other on every imaginable topic or issue that requires discussion, reading and/writing. The written word suffers because one system fails where the other surpasses it.
The second analogy looks directly at the evolution of language argument. Not everything that has evolved in human history has been for good. As a species, humans have evolved into the worst polluters on the planet. More ecosystems suffer because humankind has evolved into destroying habitats that once belonged to nature, all in the need for more space, more resources, more food, more advancements and more people. Lastly, the worst way human evolution has taken place and continues to take place is the efficiency of killing each other. From one man being able to kill one other man in a face-to-face confrontation, to what we have today: the simple push of a button can give one person the immediate ability to kill thousands or hundreds of thousands of other people.
Like many things in life, there are theoretical good sides to something and there are also bad sides to that same thing. When I hear people try to prop up excuses for the avoidance of using correct grammar by pushing the evolution angle, not one has been able to counter my perspective on how it’s not a panacea.
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Nanoose 