While I have my own qualms with some of Elbow’s statements,
I appreciate his overall approach towards writing: it is a tool for communication
that should be used in a way that aligns with how we speak. Writing should fit logically alongside
speech, rather than the two being at odds with one another. Elbow’s logical and
user-friendly approach to language is reflected in how he structures the book itself, too.
I like how he sets up the shaded boxes to help illustrate his argument and
prefaces the main text with the instructions that the boxes can be skipped
without disrupting the narrative. I
agree that the evolution of “standard” writing should keep up with the
ever-changing conventions of speech. What happens in reality, however, is that
the guidelines of “standard English” seem to change more slowly. Rather than
adapting to changes in speech, “standard English” fights against the natural
evolution of language. This perpetuates the attitude that new shifts in spoken
language are incorrect.
Writing in the English language is held as the “authority”
of language. I thought it was interesting to learn about Native Americans’
mistrust of the written word and preference for the spoken word, because the
importance of writing as the method of setting contracts and important statements, previously, seemed inherent to me. It seemed only natural that writing is set above spoken
language in the importance hierarchy. In reality, though, our culture has so
long-trusted the written word that we are only accustomed to thinking of
writing as setting the standards for “correct" language.
Another assumption I think many take for granted is that
“correct" writing should be different from how we speak most naturally. Elbow states on page 28, “Our culture, like
many others, has somehow come to insist on a dialect for correct writing that
is different from anyone’s mother tongue.” I have to ask, why is that? Also, how
does this standard work to the detriment of its speakers? Will this
misalignment between spoken language (also the “mother tongue”) and “correct” written
English continue? Will the adaptation of written standards to accommodate shifts
in spoken language always move at sloth-like speed?