OLD ENGLISH

I almost started this blog with the dreadful abbreviation, “OK” then had to stop myself as OK, wouldn’t be appropriate for this blog.

Today I am inspired to write about the good old English language and sadly, it is becoming old, as in words are not used now as they were some years ago, which prompted me to write to ask should words/grammar move on with the times?

 

Now my “Bloggets will know, oftern I have a language of my own and use it freely. I write most of my blogs as I speak on a daily bases. When I attend meetings/talks, one tries to use the correct grammar and when I have to write a formal paper, I also try to write in a correct manner, but in my blogs, I am the Fifi you all know.

 

Last night, my Husband and I were listening to Radio 4 just before midnight and were intrigued by a program on the English language. Alright, there was an American professor on there, whom in my opinion, spoke as though he really would rather not be there, though I felt what he had to say was interesting!

 

Featuring in the program was the famous speech from Churchill, known as “We shall fight on the beaches” Which he delivered to the House of Commons, of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.    

A conservative MP wrote in his Diary. “He was eloquent and oratorical and used magnificent English; some Labour members cried”

 

Well one word in that speech has been reported to become obstalete over the next generation. As soon as I heard this, I immediately panic. Really to think of our words never to be used again hurts my soul.  What word is it you may ask?

“Shall”

Churchill said we shall fight on the beaches. Now shall is already mass replaced by the word will, or a lessor word, May

 

How many times in your English language do you use or write the word shall?

 

To think of such a small word to leave the vocabulary in my lifetime is so sad.

 

Alright, some would say, it’s just a word, so what? Well, I’m a traditionalist and though my English is not perfect, I really have an illness, that illness is to hear English used in a grammatically in correct manner. Treatment or a cure for my illness is to hear beautiful spoken English, not in every day usage, but at least throughout the media and in education.

 

A pet hate for me is 

“Me and Emma”

 So is it really more difficult to say that rather than the correct way “Emma and I?”

 

The linguistics say we now talk in a less threatening manner. Rather than say for example “We shall, fight on the beaches” we would say we may wish to fight on the beaches.

 “You will do your home work, is replaced by

“Tommy, perhaps it would be a good idea to do some homework?

Got to and need to is vastly replacing shall, and must is also being replaced with may.

 

Oddly, we live in a much more aggressive world, and yet, we are choosing to use lesser forceful language.

 

Other words that are not used anymore are mightened and shan’t.

 

Should there be rules for usage of the English language?