Although I may have chosen this topic simply to play devil’s
advocate for this question, I do not believe that makes the points I am going to
make any less valid.
As the question does not specify
throughout what time periods we should be discussing, I do believe that
language has evolved from the place it was centuries ago. I would like to draw
attention to, what Neil Postman would call, the “Age of Reason”, but instead
refer to this 17th century, post-Enlightenment period as the Age of Education.
Before the emphasis on a
print-based culture aroused, education was seen as a luxury, only available for
the rich and “worthy”. Because of this, not only is it fair to assume, but studies
have shown that illiteracy rates were fairly high in the common people. However,
around 1650, the Enlightenment began to spread across European nations, and, in
turn, began to spread to the European colonies in the New World. As men and
women boarded the Mayflower in 1620 in hopes to find a home for religious
freedom, they brought with them immense amounts of books, not only of religious
relevance, but also covering topics of math, science, and especially language
and literature. This is just one example of how European colonists began the spread
of education into America.
Nevertheless, it did not stop
there. Following the invention of the printing press, a print-based culture, as
Postman often mentions, began to form and spread across the world. Novels, newspapers,
and especially pamphlets made their way into the everyday life of America, catching the attention
of people of every social class. One majorly important piece of literature to
take note of is Thomas Paine’s Common
Sense.
Observe an excerpt from this pamphlet.
“But Britain is the parent country,
say some. Then the more shame upon her conduct. Even brutes do not devour their
young, nor savages make war upon their families . . .”
Said to be one of the most read works
of literature at the time, it is clear that Thomas Paine was able to address an
issue that appealed to all audiences, while also fancying the rules of proper
literature.
Considering this post revolves
around education, it is valid that I point out the multitude of universities
developing during this time. Some may sound a bit familiar.
·
Harvard University: founded 1636
·
Yale University: founded 1701
·
UPENN: founded 1740
·
Princeton University: founded 1746
·
Columbia University: founded 1754
·
Brown University: founded 1764
·
Dartmouth University: founded 1769
·
Cornell University: founded 1865
It therefore comes to no surprise
that not a single University we formally know as the “Ivy Leagues” was formed until
mid-17th century because, prior to the Enlightenment, there was no such
need for so many large universities. However, once a spark in interest towards
education was lit, it to this day has yet to burn out.
An interest in politics began to
arise far heavier than ever before, which is shown very prevalently in the
amount of lecture halls in colonial times or the nature of debates such as
those of Abraham Lincoln and Fredrick Douglas. One could argue that this
certain interest in long lectures and debates has begun to decrease in the past
century, but it would be foolish to argue that the emphasis on education has done
the same. For example, in 1965 a law was passed known as the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in order to ensure that a full educational opportunity
for every individual remained the priority of our nation. Therefore, I believe it
is fair to argue that, even if almost every person in our nation was to not get
an education higher than secondary school (which is not in any way the case
presently), they would still be more advanced in language as a whole than the
illiterate commoners that were so dominant in pre-Enlightenment times.
Which brings me to the conclusion
that, although there are many arguments stating language has devolved in the past
century, ones which I could not, in my right mind, disagree with, I must also
point out that it would be ignorant to ignore how language and education have
also improved immensely. In the past three or four centuries, we have
experienced such drastic evolving in language that, in my opinion, would take
more than a few “lol”s and “brb”s to justify its disregard.
Works Cited
Paine, Thomas. Common
Sense. Philadelphia: W. and T. Bradford, 1776. Print
