Martín Elorriaga
Vicente Jander
Language change
According to the dictionary language is a body of words and the systems for their use common to a people who are of the same community or nation, the same geographical area, or the same cultural tradition. Humanity has always dealt with language; since cavemen with gestures until now with facebook. Language is the tool that allows us to express ourselves and to understand others. Since the British Empire expanded the English language almost world-wide, there have been more frequent language changes around the world, changing with internal and external attitudes in dialogs. Language is in constant change because the society change and the people start having more needs. There are a lot of theories to explain language change, and for knowing more we want to interview an expert of this matter Mr. German Letelier.
“Language shapes the way we think, and determines what we can think about.” Benjamin Lee Whorf
Interviewee: Germán Letelier
Interview:
Question: 1- What comes to your when we say the word “language”?
Answer: Language is the world, its reality. Language is different to all people. For example, when we talk about the word “home”, people will give to it different meanings. Someone will think about a house, others a place where you can relax and sleep, others a relief; it depends on the experience. So in consequence LANGUAGE IS REALITY is experience and according to that it forms itself and transforms itself.
Question: 2- Is the language you speak part of your identity? Why? Why Not?
Answer: Yes, because the language I speak it’s the language that I have decided to speak; besides I understand that different “moments” of language exist. The language I use in the school is not the same that the one that I use in my house and the one that I use in my house is different with the one that I use with my friends. This action obviously identifies me as a person.
Question: 3- Do you agree with the claim that “The English Language is nobody’s special property”?
Answer: Of course, take another example: New Zealand. The English spoken there is not the same that the English spoken in England, or in the USA. All countries have the right of manipulating the English they speak, to give them their identities. A shared language is a better language.
Question: 4- Would you prefer the fact of having a multiple number of languages in the world or would you prefer English as the only language we should speak?
Answer: I think that the language, as experience, should exist in variation according to time and space. But, there must be a language that should be common world-wide so we can all understand it, and I consider that English is the language that should dominate in that sense.
Question: 5- Why do you think the language changes?
Answer: Because people change, because historical situations change, we change language because space changes. We must understand that the type and concept of language of our parents is different to ours, and that’s for a very simple reason: when our parents where young, for example, they didn’t know the word computer. Today is a universal word. That kind of concepts, concepts those 20 years ago didn’t exist. So ask yourself a question: How will language be in 10 years?
Question: 6- Do you think language reflects power?
Answer: In most cases, it can be a clear proof of power. For example, when Barack Obama established his political party with the phrase “Yes, we can.”, he is giving power to the people, encouraging them to change. I want you to consider that this kind of power is not always going from top to bottom, but sometimes from bottom to top.
Question: 7- According to you should we all know how to use creoles and learn them?
Answer: No, in my opinion learning other alphabets is useless; you just got to stick to your language. Maybe culture will be interesting to learn, but other languages no. I consider it a waste of time.
To conclude, language according to Mr. Letelier identifies people, gives them the particularity of the human being so they can manipulate it at will. Without language, the human species would be considered as any other animal: without intellect and stuck in the same stage. So language in consequence changes constantly, changes with society; following our needs (each time more and more) leading the human evolution and adapting to it. Language makes the man a man. As he said at the end: “Imagine human being without language, the answer is impossible because there would be no human being”.
