Introduction
In modern society, an increasing number of people develop a tendency to communicate with others online. This is due to the rapid improvement in modern technology especially digital media. Accordingly, language has been experiencing a significant change in its new evolvement in the process of digital media development. As a symbol of the combination between traditional linguistics and high-tech product, online language has become a specific network language with its distinctive expression behavior. This has been getting more and more attention from the public and some professionals in linguistics.
Inevitable disadvantages appear as online language brings obstacles to the communication of the whole society. More importantly, a series of its features need to be identified and rationally took advantage of. Baron discusses the phenomena of online language popularity, followed by the main shifts and responds in “Are Digital Media Changing Language?”. Basically, Baron develops a distinctively rational attitude towards the tendency of online language and public concerns about it. Personally, I believe Baron’s arguments for “Attitude Shift2: Control” are persuading and I would share my experience in language controlling as follows.
Interpretations of Baron’s main arguments in “Attitude Shift2: Control”
Baron (174) gives an overall explanation at the beginning of the part of “Attitude Shift2: Control”, who believes that people are able to control personal linguistic interactions with others to some extent. This is possible as computers and mobile phones are widely used in average people as a basic instrument for communication. Although many people are less aware of their dominant role in this process, a series of language controlling behavior actually occurs.
People are the main language users who have language ownership with controlling power in limited degree. People used to communicate and interact with others in a direct way through face to face. There are possibilities that one person is reluctant to communicate with the other when they happen to meet each other in a scene, in which the former needs to get away from being seen by the other. This means that people have a limited language controlling ability by deciding whether he or she is willing to be involved in a real conversation with others.
Phones then come into existence with the improvement in technology. This has created new ways for people to talk with others. Free from the limitations in space and time, one person is able to call another person anywhere and anytime. Another person, in this sense, holds the power to accept the call or to hang up based on personal willingness. Sending and receiving text messages indicate a similar language controlling ability. Apart from deciding whether to reply the text message, a mobile phone user can even set a block area for unwanted messages.
The emergence and popularity of social networking sites make it possible for people to control language differently. As has been indicated by Baron (25), “Social networking sites offer additional forms of control.” Situated in social network era, a wide range of social network users are able to initiatively become an information disseminator or information receiver benefited from the mutual interactive nature of modern social network. This is apparently different from traditional information spreading way. In terms of a social network account, a user is able to decide whether personal information and sharing are allowed to be seen by his or her online friends.
Personal Views and Experience Related to Interpretations of Baron’s Arguments
Language has been experience great changes in the process of its historical development. As the most important information carrier, language makes the thoughts between the sender and receiver communicate with each other. Online and mobile language can be classified as a new information carrier, which provides available possibilities for users to obtain controlling options (Baron, 25).
The function of the social network is becoming more and more powerful. Many people are accustomed to using social networks to understand the latest news of classmates, friends or family members. The controlling options mean that users can select the targeted friends in the list to interact with them and select the different ways of interaction. Actually, social network users in the digital media age are able to write blogs, post photos, share personal interests with others. It is also convenient for users to discuss social affair, political issues and make comments on these things together with others online. It can be concluded that the comprehensive functions of social network are powerful and create effective controlling options for users.
I preferred to write blogs three years ago. Personally, I would be reluctant to write diaries or reflective journals in study. There was a time when I grew an interest in feeding cats, thus I went through a series of blogs about how to feed cats. A good blog could bring unim