Hey, guys! What'cha doin' ta our language?

In literature, words are shown as they're spelled. We know what an author is trying to convey through his words, and the author introduces his ideas through syntax and diction and uses the correct grammar.

Today, a lot of English-speaking Americans have adopted a new way to use speech. We've reached a point in our society where shortened "slang" makes up our daily lives. Some very popular examples are as follows:

• Wa'sup? - What's up?
• What'cha - What are you...?
• Gotta - Got to
• Wanna - Want to
• Gonna - Going to

And these are just a few examples. One can also see the way we've shortened our words and conversations through text messages and emails.

Examples of the above include "u," "lol," "r," "brb," "g2g," "b4," "gr8," and "rotflshmsfoaidmt." (Kudos to you if you know what that last one stands for! And don't use Google to cheat!)

When people speak, some also skip the last syllable in many -ing words, such as "runnin'," "jumpin'," "nothin'," and other words of that nature. "You" becomes "ya," and "to" becomes "ta" when incorporated with the rest of this shortened language.

Speech like this is extremely informal, and it is most common among children and teens. This is mainly because these two groups were born into a world where texting and emails have become more and more popular over the years. With this kind of technology, it would seem optimal to shorten the messages for more efficiency and to save time.

Personally, I think we're just lazy.

Storytellers and Tailors

Telling a story is just like sewing.

A tailor (or seamstress) is able to weave the fabric and string at their disposal together in order to create something worthwhile and of use to others. Examples of this include clothing, fabric storage bags, and the like.

An author can do the same with his/her words. The words are arranged in such a way that a story is created, bringing a whole world to life. The imagery and other figurative language used in a story have the potential to create an entire world in your mind. (This makes it worthwhile and of use to others.)

The tailors provide the clothes on our backs, whereas the storytellers provide the "clothes" for our brains. The imagination and creativity brought to us through stories lets us express ourselves, like the clothes we wear on our bodies do when we wear them.