Friends, it's Monday and we all know you all are used to Monday blues. It could be due to long weekend or the first day of the week, many of us will have this pinch of pain to work on Monday. But then we escalate your moods on Monday with our Sahitya Wishesh, the Monday column that focuses on language, literature and their use in day to day lives. So, why late? Lets dig into today's topic - use of English in written and spoken.
Many people presume that those who have good oratory skills have good skills to play with words on the paper too! This is just an assumption indeed. Writing English is way ahead than speaking. A good speaker, yes can drive home ideas with force, but he/she definitely can't catch your five senses - eat, smell, touch, taste and hear. It's only good writer who can make a reader feel as if he's seeing the scene what's being written over there.
When it comes to use of language in speech, one is expected to use as simple words as possible to make conversation more clear. The same can be followed when it comes to writing to some extent but it may be limited just to one per cent. You simply cannot pen down a slang, which you might use in your speech to make your speech more attractive. When you literally use the same words that are used in the speech, people will not only find it awkward but will lose interest in reading such material.
Written piece should be as neat as possible and one should adhere to all the rules of written English that include writing anything below 10 in figures (nine instead of 9), not starting the sentence with number (such as '10 persons entered the room') and most importantly right punctuation. In speech a flow is not always necessary as one can break down at any point with simple jargons such as I mean, you know, ahh...hmmm or anything of this sort and bounce to any topic. But this is not the case when it comes to usage of English in writing. There should be a perfect flow. If you use the same words that you use in your speech when you are struck with ideas or words, you will absolutely leave no scope for the reader to understand what exactly you want to convey. Therefore, friends before you decide to pick up pen and paper to pen down a novella or a drama, make sure you are aware that usage of English is completely different when compared to spoken English.
Catch you all next week with another exciting topic. Till then have a great week friends!
(AW Phani)
