Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Extending Marshall McLuhan Ch. 8-33

One of the most interesting posts that I think Logan makes in these chapters is his comments on language. Of course it makes sense that with every new influential medium, spoken and/or written language has changed because of it. Growing up and going to school during this computer-based, digital age, I have heard time and time again how students’ spelling and grammar have suffered due to computer technology. However, as Logan points out, language also took a dramatic change with the invention of the printing press, so perhaps this is just another period of language transitioning. It is ironic, though, that this “digital era” language is almost undoing the structure and grammar of written language and moving backwards. 


Logan also mentions that new media may also be a key factor in the globalization of the English language. With the popularity of American music, television, and movies being streamed and viewed in other countries, I can definitely see the global spread of English being possible. America has a “soft cultural influence” on many other countries through movies, fashion, and music. Musical artists from other countries sing their songs in English even when their native language is something different, and American films are shown all over the world. These facts alone make it easy to see why one would believe that English would be the dominant language of the Internet. Not only are other countries learning the language from films and music, but they view it as universally accepted since these English films and music are streamed everywhere. 

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