Letter to the Editor in Regards to a Daily Mail Article

After reading the article about the negative impact ‘text speak’ has on children on the online site, I realized that “Text speak” - as it was called - does, in fact, have some negative impact on students – in this case, the use of it in formal assignments. However, to say that “text speak is eroding hard earned knowledge” and that “children are in danger of growing up with limited vocabularies” due to spending time on Facebook is an overstatement. In fact, I have heard that texting and spending time on social media can have a favorable effect on students. Of course, I agree that ‘text speak’ does not necessarily have a place in academics but it should have a place in student’s lives and can help develop their use of language. This is in part due to the wider newer range of vocabulary that they experience on social media sites and the short interesting articles that can be observed on Facebook. I have also heard that the word limit in twitter can help students use their language creatively and be more concise with their messages, which in turn causes them to lean to communicate thoughts accurately and more clearly. It is also a well-known fact that practice makes perfect, and according to David Crystal, a notable linguistic “technology provides great opportunities to use and practice language through texting and reading posts”. Another very important aspect of this topic to note brought forth by another linguistic, John Mcwhorter “texting is not writing at all” Texting can be considered fingered speech, it is very loose and you don’t focus on the spelling and complexity of the sentences in the same way that you wouldn’t when speaking. Overall I think that although students should be able to decipher when and where to use “text Speak” it should not be completely eradicated from their lives.

Omar Ismail ‘16

Abu Dhabi, UAE

Article: file:///C:/Users/hp/Downloads/Twtr__It_s_majorly_bad__Leading_headteacher_condemns__text_speak__for_eroding_schoolchildren_s_language_skills___Daily_Mail_Online.pdf 

Exclusive Interview With Tupac Shakur

Rolling Stone magazine caught up with Tupac Shakur after a great performance in L.A to talk about the influence of his music and what it represents.

Rolling Stone: Tupac that was an awesome performance man I really enjoyed it

Tupac: yea man , I ‘ppreciate it, ‘ppreciate, I was just glad to be a part of it. 

Rolling Stone: There was quite a variety of rapping styles and hip hop artist from different backgrounds, how do you feel about that. 

Tupac: well you know that’s what hip hop music….that’s what rap is all about, you know what I mean. This is real life music representin’ not only da music of certain places, everyone out there represents a culture; black culture, inner city life, you know what I'm sayin’. So this was a great way of representin’ dat. 

Rolling Stone: You’re a big part of the east coast vs west coast hip-hop rivalry, is that what your rap is about? 

Tupac: The west coast east coast rivalry is just a small part of what hip hop music is really about, like I always been loyal to da west coast, but it’s not about yelling “Brooklyn in the house” or “Hollywood” at every ****** show. That’s not what music is about. But let me tell you one thing, why ain’t nobody got a problem with biggie startin’ beef in his music or any of the other rappers out there that start wars talking about the different gangs and such, but when I do it its suddenly a problem. All im tryna say is like…. Is this what were gonna be doin’ talking about where were from and call it hip hop. 

Rolling Stone: How was it growing up in the inner city with a single mom, do you speak for this in your music? 

Tupac: Man, okay, so like usually when you’re born, you’re born into a family, into a legacy that you have to live up to whether it be a family profession or a family name, you know, following in your father’s footsteps. There’s none of that where I grew up, not just relating to me, this was da case wid all da guys in the “outer city” as I like to call it cuz we’re left out. That’s how it is in the black community, you know, you have to build your own future instead of fulfill it. But the truth is that its not easy on a 18 year old or a 21 year old to build their own future, it’s a lot to ask. And I try to embody dat in my music and in my lyrics, you know what I'm sayin’.

Rolling Stone: rap has often been criticized for the accounts of violence included in songs, some of the most notable examples being “My Block” do you feel its necessary, or is it a use of dysphemism?

Tupac: Look its not about necessary or not necessary its just like, if I start rapping like everything’s peaceful, put your guns down, no violence and all that, that’s hypocritical, you get what im sayin’. If I didn’t talk about the violence, everybody would be actin’ like theres nothin’ wrong there’s no violence, which is far from the truth. I’m just tellin’ the story how it is how my community and my people suffer. Yea definitely it is a use of dysphemism cuz I don’t want my lyrics to nudge some people, I want my words to sucker punch them in the face, you get what I mean…. wake them up from their dillusional lives. 

A Tale of Two Tongues

This is a short memoir I decided to write relating to the topic of bilingualism and identity which we just covered in class. I chose to talk about one of the interesting moments I had one time while visiting my home country of Egypt where they speak Arabic.
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As the plane landed; touching the hard concrete with stiff bumps and jolts – finally reaching the stable ground, I dreamt of the times I have had here and the great times to come. There was no pace like Egypt, the rich and sophisticated landscapes and high-rise buildings stood side by side with dusty desert dunes and the impoverished slums. Some might not perceive it attractively, but to me it was different, it was my country. I liked to believe that even though I had lived abroad most of my life, I had a strong acquaintance with my home. Finally, I could meet up with old friends and family, eat the food I love and walk through its busy streets.
The weather was a warm embrace compared to the scorching lash that I was familiar with in the UAE. But all of this was forgotten when I heard the voice of an airport official greeting me. The words danced on my eardrums briefly before allowing me to absorb them. The words were so simple but listening to the uniqueness of the Egyptian dialect gave me deep pleasure. Now I was home.

I spoke nothing but Arabic, with my cousins, my friends and with everyone I met, from street vendors to taxi drivers. After a few weeks had gone by, one of my cousins came to visit from Canada. It had been over a year since I last saw her and we immediately struck up a conversation, talking about what’s new in our lives, how it is living where we live and such. Suddenly I realized we had been talking in English, for the first time since being in Egypt I was talking in English. When the rest of my cousins came over to my house we sat down to play a popular card game in Egypt. Everyone spoke Arabic, the game was more of a heated exchange of jokes and laughter than a real game, but nonetheless, it was great.
An hour after midnight my Friends and cousins went back to their homes and the house was drenched in silence. The only person left was my cousin from Canada who sat with me watching TV. She was looking at me in the most peculiar way, I was so perplexed that I just had to ask what she was thinking. She told me that I was completely different when talking in Arabic than I am when talking English. “Really?” That’s all I could say as my mind backtracked through the times I spoke the two languages as I tried to decipher between them. At first, I didn’t think of it too much, but the more I spoke, the more I became self-conscious of my personality and how I interacted with others. Which personality of mine was better? was I funnier in Arabic or English? It was something I didn't really understand.

Then came the day when some friends and I were watching an Arabic movie it had gone to a commercial break. It was fun watching Arabic commercials as they were sure to make us laugh. One of the funniest ones was a coca cola commercial and caused us to all break out in laughter, well all of us except my cousin; she didn't seem to get it. I suddenly realized that English commercials are not seen as a form of entertainment as they are here in Egypt. I then noticed that my cousin mostly spoke English and was not acquainted with the Egyptian cultural markers and pop culture icons, which is most like;y why she didn't understand the commercial. Then it hit me, our culture and our language shapes who we are, so since I am exposed to different cultural markers and appropriations from tow different languages I am different when speaking each one. So in the same way that some words cannot be translated into other languages, some personal and cultural traits cannot be translated either.

After coming to this realization, I felt more content understanding a bit more about myself and I went back to enjoying the movie with my friends and family.