English and the Global Economy

After Mandarin, English is the second most spoken language in the world, and unlike mandarin which is predominantly only used in Asian countries, English is used in just about every corner of the world. Through political alliances, trading blocs, and technological innovations, it comes as no surprise that English is achieving a special status in being a global language and becoming recognized by almost every country. The prevalence of English is obvious. Just flick on the news, and we find that people in foreign nations reporting stories in fluent English. English is even the most taught second language in the world, and over 80 percent of what is on the internet is published in English, despite the fact that non-English speakers are the fastest group of growing internet users. Take a visit to a foreign country and you will instantly recognize the use of English. Billboards, street signs, and even dinner menus are written in both the native language and English.

With all this in consideration, it only makes since that English also has a significant impact on the global economy, and it is hard to imagine what incredible challenges nonnative speakers face when trying to compete in a global economy dominated by a single language. English is the language of many trade alliances including the Asian trade group ASEAN, who has established a free trade market area within several Asian countries. ASEAN is currently negotiating free trade agreement with the European Union where English is the official language of the European Central Bank, despite the fact that no predominantly English speaking nation is a member of the European monetary union. However without the common language of English, there would be many more barriers ultimately resulting in less international trade.

Even in the western side of the world, English has a great influence on the global economy. For example, the United States free trade agreement with Canada (where English and French are the official language) and Mexico (where Spanish is the official language), the use of English is required for it to survive. The united states is also actively involved in trade with many international countries including Central America, Israel, Jordan, Chile, Singapore, Bahrain, Peru, Morocco, and Oman to name a few. As a major developed nation, the United States economy and industry has relied heavily on the import of raw materials and the export of finished goods. It would come as a major deficit without the knowledge of English within these trade systems. Not only does English influence the global economy through the way of trade. But also English is the language of businesses and corporations through out the world. With the large numbers of multinational corporations, English has become important in the work place for employers and employees alike.

Because the importance of English in the global economy, many cultures are making moves to ensure that they can also compete. Many nations such as Mexico are actively implementing that English as a Second Language a requirement in schools. Many countries are also making the move to add English as an official language.

It goes without saying that English has a huge influence on the world, especially in our global economies. Because of this influence, I foretell that English will continue to grow even faster and continue to spread through out the world.

Saying Is Believing

The way a writer reaches out to the reader is the same way a speaker reaches out to its audience, and we as readers or listeners want clarity and understanding of the point trying to be conveyed. Saying is Believing by Patricia T. O’ Connor provided some great tips for me in improving and making my writing clearer. She puts it best when she says “A good writer is one you can read without breaking a sweat”. I could not agree more. In my opinion, a good writer is understandable and clear, and O’Connor provides some great insight on how to be a better writer. According to O’Connor, a good writer can directly express their point, avoids redundancy, and puts their ideas in an order that is easily understood. There are a couple of tips that O’Connor offered are particularly helpful for me. The first was not to belabor the obvious. In other words, the reader will understand the point better without extra prepositional phrases, something I do too often in my writing. The second tip was especially helpful for me, that is to just repeat a word that fits instead of using an ill fitted substitute. Often I tie myself in a knot trying to figure out different words to use instead of just repeating a word, when in fact it is often a lot easier for a reader to understand if I do just repeat the word. Lastly, but most importantly is to use an active voice by being direct. To be direct it is important to say what you have to say, and stop when you have said it. The active voice can help both readers and writers because it provides clarity. O’Conner also states that many people are brainwashed to believe that the more brilliant the writer, the tougher going. By this she means that people tend to believe that bigger of more confusing words and statements, the writer is smarter and the text is ultimately better. Often this is simply not the case. I agree that a good writer has the ability to take complex ideas and express them with clarity, instead of confusing the reader. If the reader is forced to use a dictionary just to understand every other word, or if statements are so complex that it is hard to comprehend, the writing may not be so great after all. I am very fortunate to have read these tips that O’Connor has provided, and look forward to using them in my future writings.

Language that Inspired Change:

Language, an emotion-filled sound that rolls of our tongues rooting from our deepest inner thoughts and subsequently stems out to those around us ultimately enables our fellow people to absorb our thoughts and ideas. The boundaries of language are the boundaries of this world, not only do we use it transmit and receive information, it is powerful beyond measure. It is filled with emotion, it gives us a passageway to expression, it appeals to our intellect, and it inspires us. One of the most inspirational examples where language has prevailed in moving the masses is in civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech. On the steps of the Lincoln memorial, during a time when the civil rights movement was becoming heated, King delivered a speech that still inspires change to this very moment. King won the hearts over of all those assembled there that day when he spoke. “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood." The language King uses appeals to our hearts, our emotions, and our intellect. It is sincere, emotion filled, and selfless. He inspires us to try our hardest make this beautiful dream come alive. Even the location of the speech could not have been better suited. The Lincoln Memorial, the very place that symbolizes the very dream that King spoke about was a perfect backdrop to a speech that inspired change and the advancement of human civil rights. Lincoln’s leadership and integrity is one that will for ever be forever remembered and looked up to as greatness. The memorial of President Lincoln, a man who stood up in the face of adversity and is immortalized for pushing for change and for the abolishment of oppression in slavery, greatly contributed to Kings speech. The location chosen was well suited and greatly symbolic.
The “I Have a Dream” speech will forever be a huge part of history. It inspired change and gave hope in hearts of everyone around this country.

On Indifference:

Indifferent:

Why are we plagued with the inability to choose a side and stand up for what we believe in? What fear do we have in challenging the status quo, especially in the face of adversity? Why is it that we remain indifferent? In a speech given by noble peace prize winner Elie Weisel it was put best, “indifference can be tempting -- more than that, seductive. It is so much easier to look away from victims. It is so much easier to avoid such rude interruptions to our work, our dreams, our hopes. It is, after all, awkward, troublesome, to be involved in another person's pain and despair. Yet, for the person who is indifferent, his or her neighbor are of no consequence. And, therefore, their lives are meaningless. Their hidden or even visible anguish is of no interest. Indifference reduces the other to an abstraction.” Weisel describes this indifference perfectly. We remain indifferent for fear of prosecution, fear of butting heads with adversity and fear of butting heads with others. We are tempted to remain indifferent to stick with the status quo, and to not stand out. But our fears that cause us to remain indifferent are only out of complete selfishness, for the protection of ourselves, and to take the easy road. It will be fate of man that takes the easy road and makes the decision to remain indifferent. To this very day, we must take action to make a change. If we disagree on a political situation, our voices can be heard through polls and protesting. We cannot let our voices be silenced because we think we are the minority, for if we speak up, we can be the majority. Similarly to Weisel, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. is a key example to us of the strides we can make if we choose not to be beleaguered by indifference. After being thrown into jail for peacefully protesting for human rights, King wrote letters to those criticizing his decision not to be indifferent. He responded in his Letter from Birmingham Jail, where he stated “We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people”, and King is absolutely correct. The silence of the good people can only contribute more to the bad people, for if your voice is not heard hen how will your opinion ever be advanced? If we remain silent and indifferent in our beliefs, we might as well not hold that belief at all. We must not give into the temptation and seduction of indifference that Weisel so accurately described, rather we must always surpass it. We can not just look away at the victims, we must stand up for them, for if we do not, who else will? To selflessly involve ourselves will bring us more good than selfishly avoiding the problem. If we as a people do not take charge and stand up for whatever we believe is right, even in the face of adversity, then we will never move forward. It is vital that we are not indifferent and choose a side, and for those of us who even still choose to remain indifferent, we will have to repent for your appalling silence.

Power of Language

Language plays a very important role in our lives. It empowers us to inform, to express, and to influence those around us. Most of us have experienced a defining moment in which the power of language has had a great effect in our lives. I also have had many experiences where I also have felt the power of language. I first realized the importance of language while traveling to Mexico. I speak very little Spanish and I learned that what they teach you in high school is completely different from what you actually need to understand and comprehend. Through a lack of being able to communicate verbally, I learned that non-verbal communication is very important in the presence of a language barrier. By using certain facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, posture, and even changing the tone of my voice, I was able to more effectively communicate. I found that non-verbal communication is also important in even when no language barrier exists.
By far, I would have to say that the use of language in developing relationships has greatly proven to me how important language is in communicating and expressing myself. The way I communicate to another person greatly effects the way the relationship will function. It is important to use language so each person in the relationship knows exactly how the other person feels.
Language also has a powerful affect with teams. It is an integral part of our success that my volleyball team uses language to effectively communicate with each other both on and off the court. It is important to know what plays our teammates want to run, who will pass the ball, and to communicate what the opposing team is doing. The only way to do this is by using effective language. I also realized that by using language on the court helps keep up the intensity of the game. By speaking to my teammates it helps everyone get into the zone and ultimately play better.
All in all, I have experienced language as being a mirror, a tool, and a weapon. If used correctly, it is a mirror that allows others to get a peak into your soul, a tool to help you inform people of what is going on, or a weapon to defend or even to offend.

Being Illiterate

It is hard for me to sit here and imagine being illiterate. If I was, I would not even be able to express the thoughts that I am writing at this very moment. I could not just pick up a novel and read it for pure enjoyment, I could not surf the web, chat online with my friends, or even read the instructions for a board game. I could barely have the pleasures of the world not to mention being lost in things that are completely necessary for survival in this world. How would I read driving directions to tell me how to get to my destination, how could I make since of any bus schedule? How would I be able to place a simple order at a restaurant? Not to mention the dangers of not being able to read things such as traffic warnings or alerts that are important to know.
If I was illiterate, I would feel like a mental prisoner unable to intellectually fin for myself. I imagine being a young person and being illiterate in this country. Here, where our literacy rate is about 99.8%, it is expected that everyone knows how to read or write or else be considered dumb, unintelligent, or outright stupid, which could be totally untrue. Because of this simple reason of not wanting to be judged, I would probably try to hide the fact that I am illiterate. I would probably be resistant to ask for help in situations where it was important for me and miss out on some vital information.
What about trying to get a job, how hard would that be? Employers today all require some sort of reading proficiency. From the very start of filling out a job application, to signing a contract to reading the employee manual are obstacles I would have to face on the work force. I would be stuck working mediocre jobs for mediocre salary because I simply cannot read or write. I would feel absolutely lost in this world.
I also imagine the challenges of being illiterate parent with young children that I would face. Imagine passing a sign and your little child calling out to you “mommy what’s this sign say?” I would feel completely belittled that I could not explain to my child the meaning of the sign. Or, in the same manner, what if your child asks you to read a story at bedtime, and you simply can not, again I would feel incompetent and useless. Ultimately I feel that being illiterate is a dreadful situation. Possessing the ability to read and write is crucial in the progression of life. Imagining what life would be like if I was illiterate is hard enough and I am so thankful that I am not in that situation.