Most of you have taken or are taking a foreign language in school, presumably to communicate effectively with people from another country or countries. But what if there were a "language" that was designed to be used to communicate with people from around the world?
It turns out that there is one being developed. It's called Globish.
Click here to read an article from the New York Times about Globish, and then respond to one or more of the following writing prompts:
Why is globish emerging NOW, as opposed to 25 years ago, or 50 years ago, or 100 years ago?
Let's say globish catches on, and many people around the world learn to use it. What might be some positive consequences of this? Are there any possible negative consequences of it? If so, what might they be?
Do you think it might be important for you, as a young American and soon-to-be citizen of the world, to learn globish? Why or why not?
11 comments:
Globish should not indeed dominate the World, because this would be unethical.
Globish reminds me of a failed project called "Basic English" which failed, because native English speakers could not remember which words not to use :)
So it's time to move forward and adopt a neutral non-national language, taught universally in schools worldwide,in all nations.
As a native English speaker, I would prefer Esperanto
Your readers may be interested in the following video at http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=_YHALnLV9XU Professor Piron was a translator with the United Nations in Geneva.
A glimpse of Esperanto can be seen at http://www.lernu.net
It seems to me that creating a global language would have its pro's and con's, as all things seem too. One thing that comes to my attention is that the article states that there are about 6,800 different languages spoken in the modern world. It'd be very difficult to create a language that all people would understand.
However, I do see a way around this. We all are required to take 4years of English/Language Arts in high school (along with the other 9previous years) and at least 2 Foreign language classes. What if it also became mandatory for a student, in all countries where it was possible, to take a year, or two, of Globish. Then you'd have a basic understanding of the form of communication, right?
But what if you don't have the resources to take a full course of Globish and we're left alone, then what? You can't say it wouldn't happen. Children in third-world countries learn to speak through the langauge of thier parents, whom also would not be knowing of this new form of communication.
Would this be a useful tool if used correctly? Yes of course it would. It'd make tourism much easier. Let's be honest; when you go abroad for vacation, you don't need to know the entire natives langauge. Just the basics would be good. And if they could comprehend a common form of communication, this would only make things simpler.
Globish will not become the worldwide language. Yes, I do think everyone (who is able) should learn it and yes, I do think it is a good tool of communication. But it will not make it worldwide. 1,500 words isn't enough to become the International language. And no, I am not bias for the English langauge. Most Americans no longer speak English, we've curved it to suit our 21st Century lives and the tradional "English" has became a closely resembled slang version; American.
Having a language that everyone in the world would know could be extremely helpful. However, I don't think people would take time to learn it. Many students are required to take two years of a foreign languaguae high school. If these students weren't required to take it, would they take a foreign language?
I don't believe that many people would take the time to learn this willingly, however if it were required by their jobs, many more people would be interested, then many people would have the basic idea on what to say.
If it caught on and people were actually using this to communicate, it would be important for students to learn it. Given the oppertunity, everyone should learn this langauge, or at least the basics. Also this would take much time to teach to people and whether or not people have the patience to wait for all the changes to take place is questionable.
I understand that Nerrière had a dilemma, and this was his way of dealing with it, but this seems like just another attempt to create a more modernized sense of universiality. His problem is surely not as common as to create another language to accomodate it. I do respect Nerrière's perseverance as to try and make this a reality, but would Globish not too have to be learned, just like we would take a foreign language class in school? To what extent does Nerrière wish this to go? Just questions I had.
The make-up of Globish, should be considered obsolete in this era, for a couple of reasons. One being the size of it,1,500 words. Also, in a time when new words and coined phrases are added to our vocabulary every day, we should be seeking to further our comprehension of the English language. It is easy to keep trying to put our eyes on learning new things, but what about the more outdated aspects of our language?
I guess this kind of experimenting with the language has been going on for awhile, but is just now starting to surface since it may work.
If Globish caught on around the world, that would be great! Everyone in the world could communicate much easier. It would take awhile to clean out all the flukes, though.
A major negative of Globish is the chance of getting rid of a person's dominant language altogether. It would be great for everyone to communicate easier, but is that an expense someone is willing to take to maybe lose their first language? Globish could get to a point where everyone is just confused, this new language needs to really be thought out.
Right now, I'm afraid Globish still has to many kinks to start learning yet. It's good to know some other languages just in case, but I feel it's too soon for Globish to take over completely.
I think that Globish is starting to emerge now, as opposed to years ago because people are now more accepting of breaking away from old traditional culture ways. Today’s society prefers the “easy way” that one language would certainly pertain to. Positive aspects would include faster communication, time saving in business transactions, and better understanding between people. However if this language does catch on, there would still be parts of the world left out, such as undeveloped countries in Africa, which would put them at even more of a disadvantage. The other disadvantage of this is the literary aspect. All great works would become outdated and unread. Poetry would crumble, and the beautiful linguistics of Shakespeare and Dickinson would no longer be credited.
I think the reason that this discussion about Globish language has become so prevelent now is because of the accesibility of different cultures around the world. No other generations before us have had this type of availibility before. By taking the 6,800 languages that are spoken around the world and combining them into a single language, imagine all the oppertunities that could generate from that.
The main word here is cooperation, which is something the world has never been able to do. Sure, it would be great to be able to speak to everyone, but a language considered global isn't really global unless everyone cooperates. When foreigners come into our country, most of our citizens expect them to speak English, and vice versa. Our inability as a whole to simply tolerate is keeping me from even considering Globish. Although, when I think of the ginormous benefits this would have for our military, it seems like a great idea. But again, the refusal of cooperation between countries hinders the universal language greatly, making it nearly impossible to communicate through one medium.
It is a good idea, but for Globish to fully work in the world, it would require full cooperation from every country on the planet. Some people would say it is a waste of time, or some people would say its too complicated to learn.
But if Globish did catch on, and everyone knew how to speak it, it would create many more possibilities to interact with the world.
Brady has a good point though, Globish is a clever idea and could possibly work under the right circumstances, but the odds of everyone in the entire world learning an international language are slim to none
The idea of a universal language is ingenious but not very practical. In all reality creating a quote un quote global language is a pretty far fetched dream. What language can't be spoken globally? I've been to italy germany and jamaica and english is prominently spoken not only by the main tourist areas but by locals and people all around the world. I don't think there would be any negative consequences from creating this Globish but in all reality, installing Globish into the world is just going to add another version of language to the already 6,800 variations of speech already out there in the world. I don't see a big effect that having this language would have although it would go great strides in creating a more unified and cooperative globe as a whole.
I think the reason that this discussion about Globish language has become so prevelent now is because of the accesibility of different cultures around the world. No other generations before us have had this type of availibility before. By taking the 6,800 languages that are spoken around the world and combining them into a single language, imagine all the opportunities that could generate from such actions. Cultures on one end of the earth would be able to communicate with cultures opposite to them-without the hassle and trepedations of learning different languages.
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