Journal Entry #7 Orwell

1. Orwell tries to prove his point that the English language is in trouble by blaming our foolish thoughts and bad habits.
2. From the time Orwell wrote this essay I believe the English language has become worse. Many of my teachers will agree with me when I say this because they witness it first hand with the upcoming generations. They would always correct students and say, “Bobby and I not me and Bobby”. Today we have overused shorthand, instead of saying, “got to go, talk to you later” we say, “g2g, ttyl”. Also I receive many text messages with words put together, for example; the word out of combine and form outta. There are many forms of this shorthand which I consider to be a misuse of the English language.
3. I do not agree with all of Orwell’s rules. I think that if you can use a big and intelligent word in a sentence I think you should instead of replacing it with a word a five year old can understand. I think if need be you should also use a scientific word. I believe using words people are unfamiliar with is good for us, because if we don’t understand something we can look it up in the dictionary. I don’t think someone should have to scale down their writing skills or knowledge for someone else when they can simply look something up that they do not understand.
4. When Orwell says you should focus on pictures and sensations before you put words on paper, I think he wants the writer to know what they are describing and describe it in detail as if it were right in front of them and not in their brain. I have focused more on the details while writing a paper and I think that it makes an essay become more alive and realistic. Also I think it keeps the reader interested and makes them feel like they are experiencing it themselves.