Why I Dont Tweet By Adam Gopnik Summary

934 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Impact of social networking on human life

Dear Editor,

Your newspaper recently published an article titled “A Point of View: Why I don’t tweet” by Adam Gopnik. As a student of linguistics, I’ve written numerous essays on language in social media and text messaging, but am also part of the generation that uses it consistently in day-to-day life. Therefore, I feel my opinion is informed enough to offer a contrasting perspective, as I find Mr. Gopnik’s apparent ignorance on the matter alarming.

I simply cannot understand how Mr. Gopnik can say “the transformational effect they [technological devices and social media] have on our lives is … quite minimal”. On the contrary, I believe text messaging and social media have had tremendous effects not only on how we live, but also how we …show more content…

Unlike Mr. Gopnik, I would be lying if I referred to myself as “smartphone-loving” or claimed I have a Twitter account—I’m afraid merely checking my email and reading the news online are the upper limits of my internet capabilities. But what I do have is grandchildren, and as I have observed, Twitter and online chatting in general is simply destroying the beauty of the English language and replacing it with a multitude of abbreviations and slang. On the internet, a fast reply which makes you sound cool is more important than a well-written one with correct spelling and grammar. The issue has deteriorated so much that ‘textspeak’ has transferred from online to real life, and to my horror you may often hear young people today say “LOL” instead of actually laughing, or “hashtag YOLO” instead of something which sounds remotely …show more content…

Gopnik states, “it creates a dependency without ever actually addressing a need.” As a teacher, every year I realise more and more that students today have become reliant on using spell-check to write their essays—or rather to type them. A few taps into Google and they can find the answers they need without actually learning anything. Though these methods may seem faster and more convenient, I remember quite clearly writing every assignment, essay, and test by hand and getting up and flicking through a dictionary or textbook when I needed to; using technology in schoolwork is certainly not a need, but rather a shortcut. It is the habit created by reliance and overuse of technology which causes not only deterioration of spelling and penmanship in today’s youth, but also laziness and taking for granted having everything for by doing

Show More
Related

  • Does Im Make U Dum Summary

    733 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the article, “Does Im Make U dum”, the author states how instant messaging has made us become “dum”. The issue of using popular texting abbreviations like, “lol”, “brb”, or “gtg” can either be an effective or unproductive way of expression. Using abbreviations through texting are so commonly used by children, teenagers, and adults. Statistics show that children are younger than ever for when they are first exposed to mobile phones and text messaging. A 2005 ChildWise study that one-in-four children under the age of eight had a mobile phone.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Unplugged: The Myth of Computers in the Classroom, Article by David Gelernter

    755 Words  | 2 Pages

    While admitting the power of technology, he also points out the adverse effects of excessive use of technology in the education system. He states, “Computers make our worst educational nightmare come true” (279). According to him, improper or overuse of computers hinders learning ability. He reports that over the past few years, computers have been assumed to be a necessity in America’s classrooms and introduced to children from elementary levels. However, technology can be addictive, and students may overuse it, leading to a drop in educational standards.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Better Than Humans: Why Robots For The Better

    1380 Words  | 3 Pages

    We live in a time where technology is at the center of our society. We use technology on a daily basis, for the simplest tasks, or to aid us in our jobs, and don’t give a second thought to whether these tools are actually helping us. Writers such as Kevin Kelly and Clive Thompson argue that the use of technology actually helps us humans; whiles writers such as Nicholas Carr argue that technology affects people’s abilities to learn information negatively.

    Read More

  • Tia Bheri Analysis

    1248 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Your Ability to Can Even: A Defense of Internet Linguistics” by Tia Baheri, is a great read. The article focuses on the new language that has been created among Internet users and how some critics think it is a negative impact on the English language and how others, such as Baheri herself, think that there is nothing wrong with the change what so ever. After reading the article, I agree with Tia Baheri, I also think that language is as she states, “Supposed to flex and shape itself to convey what we mean to say as directly and efficiently as possible”. Yes, some who do not spend a lot of time on the Internet may not understand some of the newly used phrases but for others it is the best way to express themselves.

    Read More

  • Social Media Twitter Analysis

    1551 Words  | 4 Pages

    This is because the effects of the medium on a personal and social scale as the extension of us can result from a new scale that is introduced into our lives by the extension of ourselves and by any kind of new technology (McLuhan, 1964, p. 7). In this case, the medium could be twitter. Created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams, twitter has proven to be the largest source of breaking news and social networking site. Since its beginnings, twitter is the medium

    Read More

  • We Never Talk Anymore: The Problem with Text Messaging

    1354 Words  | 3 Pages

    Text messaging has become a norm in our generation, as technology rapidly advances and gives way to more efficient forms of communication in a fast-paced world; and many are skeptical about the influence this new form of interaction is having on our society, especially with our younger generation. David Crystal, a professor at the University of Wales, writes “2b or Not 2b?” in support of text messaging. He insists, despite those who underestimate or negate the beneficial influence text messaging has on language proficiency, that “there is increasing evidence that [texting] helps rather than hinders literacy” and that the fairly recent form of communication has actually been around for a while and “is merely the latest manifestation of the human ability to be linguistically creative and to adopt language to suit the demands of diverse settings. In contrast, Jeffery Kluger argues in “We Never Talk Anymore: The Problem with Text Messaging” that text messaging is rapidly becoming a substitute for more genuine forms of communication and is resulting in difficulty among young peoples of our generation to hold a face-to-face conversation, engage in significant nonverbal expression, and ultimately build effective relationships with family, friends and co-workers. Both writers’ present valid arguments, however, my personal experience with text messaging has led me to agree more with Crystal’s view on the matter. Text messaging is indeed having a positive effect on society by making frequent texters primarily aware of the need to be understood, as well as offering betterment of spelling and writing through practice, and reinventing and expanding on a bygone dimension of our language through the use of rebuses and abbreviations.

    Read More

  • Text Messaging: 2b or not 2b? by David Crystal

    1010 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Our generation doesn't ring the doorbell. They text or call to say they're outside,” this line is from one of the well-known social networks, Tweeter, which shows how the way of communication has change in this modern life. According to 2013 statistics by Business Insider, in United States alone, smartphone owners aged 18 to 24 send 2,022 texts per month on average — 67 texts on a daily basis — and receive another 1,831 texts (Cocotas). Nowadays, technology such as text messaging has practically replaced traditional face to face communication among the society primarily in young generations because texting allows messages to be sent fast and effortless. In order to quickly type what they are trying to say in text messaging, people are frequently using textspeak; the language created by using abbreviation rather than complete words. Based on this phenomenon, David Crystal, an honorary professor of linguistics at the University of Wales has published an article entitled ‘2b or not 2b?’ in the Guardian on July 5, 2008 comes out with the research and studies that state texting can actually improve the literacy of children and create creativity of writing. However, by observing more critically, texting do decrease a person’s ability to switch between textspeak and the normal rules of grammar and adversely affect formal writing and conversational skills.

    Read More

  • Technology Dbq

    1161 Words  | 3 Pages

    In this day and age, the century of rapid technological growth unmatched by any other generation where phones have replaced books, emails, and handwritten letters, technology can be viewed in a multitude of ways. Some claim that students who use electronic resources and devices both in and out of the classroom are providing themselves with a shortcut in their academic experience which further prevents them from actively participating and thinking independently. While some who are absorbing of the new inventions see it as a way to hasten and add ease to their everyday lifestyle. Despite the potential advantages that have been seen over the years, on the whole, electronic devices make the human mind more ignorant, in fact, they act as an escape

    Read More

  • Digital Immigrants By Marc Prensky: Theme Analysis

    600 Words  | 2 Pages

    The impact on society article said “It may have seemed like the Facebook fridge, the 3D printer, and the mobile advancements had little in common, but they all have forced us into a lazy-minded state” (Technology’s Impact on Society in Today’s Generation). In the digital essay, they mention that some students may not be able to learn the traditional way, which is without technology and writing out everything. That is a sign of laziness because there are plenty of students who learn well and makes good grades without technology. They put in work to earn those good grades. Students have gotten use to the technology doing to work for

    Read More

  • 1984 Has Come True Today Essay

    436 Words  | 1 Pages

    It isn’t too far off to say that today’s society, through use of slang and emoticons, is resorting to the blind conformity of 1984 as Orwell warned. The majority of people today own a smartphone, which in a way becomes one’s own personal telescreen like the ones present in every room in Orwell’s 1984. Similarly to the idea of never being out of sight of a telescreen, it is a rare sighting to spot a millennial without a

    Read More

  • Technology's Impact on the English Language

    1193 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since the Industrial Revolution, technology has permeated and become an integral part of our everyday lives. In fact, a life without technology seems almost impossible to imagine. Almost everyone, around the globe, has access to technology in one form or another. Consequently this type of technology has become ingrained into our culture. Its roots are so deep that it is now peculiar to see someone without a smartphone than with one. Consequently, smartphones and the Internet have radically changed the manner in which we communicate and how we communicate with one another. Our speech has metamorphosed so much from that of our grandparents that it almost seems like a foreign language due to the incorporation of slang and “text talk.” With the sudden surge of email, blogs, and instant messaging that occurred within the last couple of decades, the impact that technology has on our linguistics has become more pronounced. Technology has helped to bridge the gap between people by allowing us to communicate as easily as we breathe. On this note, one would think that the dawn of the Era of Technology would give birth to a renaissance of the English language but, instead, the converse is taking place. With such widespread prevalence of technology such as smartphones and computers, the degradation of the English language is a problem now more than ever.

    Read More

  • Benefits of Technology in the Classroom

    1820 Words  | 4 Pages

    Do you ever think about how much technology has changed the way we work, learn, play, and even think? Technology is a major beneficiary to society; especially in the classroom where we get the opportunity to learn and grow. In recent years, schools have begun implementing tablets and other devices in the classroom to better student’s education. The use of technology in the classroom provides more of a personalized learning experience and gives students a widespread availability to engage in learning. Technology is necessary in today’s modern globe, it is basically “the pen and paper of our time and the lens through which we experience much of our world” (Warlick, 2013). Technology is not just considered the “internet”, it is so much greater than that. Overall, it enhances the quality of education and engages students deeper than ever before. With all the significant gains, why would people argue that technology hinders students more than it helps? Critics may try to repute the use of technology in the classroom but I believe what really matters “is the way we use it, the context that we use it in, and the learners who we use it for” (Chong, 2012).

    Read More

  • Technology Brings People Together

    1899 Words  | 4 Pages

    It is difficult to escape the influence of technology on modern life. It lurks behind every door: the classroom, home, office, and store. There are many who are resistant to new technology, saying that technology causes harm to society. These claims are often made without the realization that technology also includes important and indispensable parts in their life such as writing and the tools for writing. Writing was one of the first technologies invented. Technology has now become so entrenched in the majority of cultures around the world that it is hard to imagine a life or society without writing. For those that maintain a majority of technology beyond writing is harmful, imagine the difficulty in writing without the help of other technologies, which includes pencils, paper, computers, printing presses, and a number of other technological aids.

    Read More

  • Society's Dependence on Computers

    934 Words  | 2 Pages

    In spite of the many benefits of computers, there are also quite a few arguments about them, one of which is the bad effect some believe they are having on children's education and learning. Before computers became really popular where almost every household had one students did research papers manually and used a type writer to type papers or hand write their papers, illiteracy is a big issue, and many people say that computers are the reason for that. Younger students these days are asked to type papers which may not be a problem for older students but for younger students they need to do assignments that are hand written to develop their writing skills. If a younger student is typing all their assignments it can have a great affect on their grammar because they are using the comp...

    Read More

  • Technology and Today's Youth

    2334 Words  | 5 Pages

    Socializing is not just talking face to face, it’s our ability to interact, learn, and create original thoughts. Technology is hindering today’s youth and their ability to socialize is affecting their capacity to read, write, and communicate. Today’s youth depend on careful considerations for the implementation of technology. Our youth do not have the capability to convey their emotions through the use of technology, understand sadness, happiness or joy through simple text or emails. Communicating through the use of text, chat, and social network sites is lost using abbreviations and slang, inhibiting the use of the Standard English language.

    Read More

More about Why I Dont Tweet By Adam Gopnik Summary

Open Document