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Evolution of Language and Rise of Slang
The evolving technology has so much to offer in innovations, not only machines but also other human existence sectors such as language. The world is turning to a sphere slowly but entirely being dominated by the internet. Most of the social interactions are now influenced by the diverse social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram among others, memes shared from these platforms, the desire to be different from our peers or the idea to be like other people usually celebrities (Damaso et al., 19). People do this, especially teens, with the intention of appearing cool. Slangs happen to the best avenue to show peers how cool one is from the rest. Slangs are regarded as words or phrases that are informal, mainly used in speech as opposed to writing, and usually used by a particular group of people and in a particular context. In this paper, I evaluate the use of the word extra and how different people use it in separate contexts.
The word extra is used normally to mean addition to an existing or usual amount or number. This use denotes it as an adjective. The use in this context is as explained by the dictionary. The dictionary meaning can be used, for example, as the following sentences.
- Martin got a promotion in his place of work and was offered an extra hundred dollars an hour.
- The house required extra blocks for the extension meant for the garage.
In the first sentence, Martin was already earning a salary in his place of work. He got a promotion, which also made him receive a raise. The raise was an addition to the previous amount he was getting as his salary. In the second sentence, there existed blocks already for the building of the house, but more were needed to finish-up the part of the house with the garage on the side. Similar words that can be used in this context include additional, added, more supplemental, further, and supplementary.
The word extra can also be used as an adverb to mean to a greater extent in contrast to usual, also especially. When somebody does things and exceeds them usually more than they always do, we can use extra to describe the situation. Examples in sentences are as shown below:
- Since Jacy wronged her brother, she has been trying to be extra good to him.
- The teacher called for everyone to be extra careful when handling the equipment for the experiment.
The first sentence describes the extent to which Jacy is good to her brother, which is more than her level of goodness to him. The second sentence shows how the teacher is asking students to be careful to a greater extent in contrast to what they usually are. The word extra is also used to mean in addition to the previously said or agreed amount. Examples in sentences include:
- The car was going to cost her an extra $1000.
- She was required to put extra effort into her studies.
The word can also be used as a noun to call a substance that compliments what is necessary. For example, in a sentence, it will be as shown below:
- The school offers education will all the surplus.
Let us now look at the other meaning of the word that has been normalized by the teens and the youth. Teens have made it a habit to use words that make them appear as cool. As pointed out in the introduction, the internet is the source of all this as they struggle to keep at par with the trends and the artist and celebrities. Songs also have played a major role in ensuring that teens know all about the trending slangs and how to appear cool than their friends by using them. Over the years, the word has developed other meanings entirely different from the first use.
Teens have normalized the use of the word extra to men being unnecessarily dramatic and excessive. It implies that one is being over the average top and what is required of them. In other words, they are called drama queens (Smith, p. 43). Stacy has a birthday coming up on the coming weekend, and her parents have asked her to invite friends over for a small party. Stacy comes from a well off family, so she can afford to throw a party for her friends. She puts up posters all over the school and almost invites everyone in the school to the party. She even tells her classmates that there will be several artists who grace the pop scene. Most of the people are entertained by the invite and confirm their attendance on the said day. On the day of her birthday, her parents are overwhelmed by the number of kids that show up for the party. One of the group of girls in her class describes her as being extra for inviting the whole school for a mere birthday party. She is unnecessarily dramatic for doing that.
In one of his conversations with his friends, Andrew observes that the government is too extra with the Black Lives Matter movements and calls. He opines that he does not see why they should behave the way they are acting by deploying more police officers to deal with demonstrators while not addressing the exact problems that led the country to the demonstrations in the first place. He believes the government needs to implement policies that will deal with the systemic racism and all the black phobia in the country instead of turning a blind eye on it. There have been calls to stop funding the police because they perpetuate the violence on blacks and lead to many black people deaths in the US.
The term being extra might explain the need for this generation to seek relevance for being recognized as the coolest and need for attention. They will do things way above the normal and will not find any problems because of the need for validation from the media and strangers. The choice to follow whatever they want without looking at the consequences and the cost involved in achieving their selfish gains. It reveals a lack of confidence in teens about the way they want to lead their lives, and thus they feel they must always remain trendy to survive. The core values of humanity are no longer considered necessary, and people do not care at all. It will be important if teens are taught the importance of being content with what they have and not wanting more. That will help save future generations.
In conclusion, the change and evolution in technology have had many effects on the modern generation. They think they need to copy everything from the internet and social media to appear calm. One of the sectors, which has suffered that massive blow, is the language through the introduction of slangs, which give words new meaning or introduce new phrases thoroughly. The word extra has evolved over the years and is used by the teens all over to mean something else from the dictionary meaning. It is nowadays used to mean being overly dramatic by this generation who appear to be cool. However, the use of the word points to underlying issues and not just the phrase as used by this generation teens.
Works Cited
Damaso, John, et al. “UrbanDictionary. com.” English Today 23.2 (2007): 19.
Smith, Rachel E. “Urban dictionary: youth slanguage and the redefining of definition.” English Today 27.4 (2011): 43.