Texting Controlled Assessment Essay

Analyse some short extracts from transcripts of people communicating using digital media. Explore the features that show these written communications are close to spoken language and the attitudes that different people have to the effects of these new hybrid languages.
Over the last two decades, with the explosive use of mobile phones, texting has developed into a multi-modal ‘language’ or ‘hybrid language’ in its own right, containing elements of spoken language. Such forms of communication act as a written down version of a spoken conversation: whilst written they maintain the overall spontaneity and creativity of spoken language due to the variety of features, and quite distinctive features, that only occur in multi-modal talk. Historically, writing has had a higher status in society than spoken language, but multi-modal language blurs the lines between speech and writing, containing commonly recognised features of both. This often causes criticism from purists who see it as damaging the English language, especially the written language, with the influences of ‘text talk’ affecting the way young people are able to use standard written English. On the other hand, descriptivists argue that it is simply part of the development of English which has been ongoing for centuries, and that ‘text talk’ should be recognised as another variety of English. In this essay, I will be analysing how features of multi-modal talk are very similar to that of spoken language on many occasions, and how they are found in a variety of different contexts as well as how ‘texters’ adapt to different circumstances to make what they say appropriate for who they are with and what they are trying to say. This adaptation of the English language causes controversy due to its nature as a non-standard form of written English, and I will be analysing the reasons behind this as well as the arguments that are used by descriptivists to counter claims that multi-modal talk is bad for the English