KOCHI: Thirty years have passed since software engineer Neil Papworth sent the world’s very first text message to the then-Vodafone executive Richard Jarvis. Seems like a long time, doesn’t it?
From there, we have seen a mobile communication revolution. From being able to send texts to only contacts within the same network, messaging has now become the primary means of communication, courtesy WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, Snapchat, Line, etc.
In fact, there are homes where family members communicate with each other via WhatsApp while in the same building. And, sometimes, all it takes is a click to convey a long message or one’s mood, thanks to emojis and ‘stickers’.
Notably, today, a trending topic of international discussion is the most widely used ‘thumbs-up’ emoticon. “Sending a thumbs-up can be seen as passive aggressive and even confrontational, according to Gen Z who claim they feel attacked whenever it is used,” cautions a Daily Mail report.
“Whether the chat is informal, between friends or at work the icon appears to have a very different, ‘rude’ meaning for the younger generation.”
A Reddit discussion over the icon has, in fact, gone viral. Reports note how some youngsters believe the ‘thumbs-up’ should “never be used in any situation”.
And, according to a recent survey, a considerable segment of youngsters aged between 16 and 29 believe people who use the ‘thumbs-up’ icon are “officially old”. Sadly, the love-filled ‘red heart’, too, is outdated.
Let’s get to the basics
According to a recent study by Meta, 80 per cent of adults (age 19-64) and 91 per cent of teens (13-18) across the globe message every day. The addition of slang, including No cap, Cheugy, bussin, and new terminologies have taken over the messaging world.
Lol for ‘laughing out loud’, IDK for ‘I don’t know’, IRL for ‘in real life’, TBH for ‘to be honest’, TMI for ‘too much information’, NGL for ‘not gonna lie’... the list goes on.
“Our lives are fast-paced, messages have been shortened; this is a matter of convenience,” says screenwriter Bipin Chandran. “Condensed messages are widely appreciated. In the film industry, the majority of the producers and actors prefer a brief version of the stories. Text messages are a medium to communicate our ideas. If they are concise, there shouldn’t be any problem.”
Author Anees Salim, however, believes the shortening of messages is uncouth communication. “Maybe, I’m slightly outdated,” he quips.
“Personally, a message has to be complete in every sense, including punctuation. I have been taunted for putting out my thoughts in a refined way. I believe abbreviations or poorly composed messages are a form of disrespect.”
Does mobile lingo affect language?
Kerala University’s linguistics department head, S Kunjamma of Thiruvananthapuram, says abbreviations, slang, or the elimination of punctuation do affect language in general. “When messaging became the norm, parents were worried about their children’s language or grammar getting affected,” she adds. “I believe it’s limited to the micro world of texting.”
Veteran journalist K Pradeep, however, has a different take. “Shortened messages and emojis are the norms these days. That’s the structure expected in mobile communication these days. And emojis are much more effective than words,” says the guest faculty (journalism) at Sacred Heart College in Kochi.
“What I have observed is that the present generation is hooked to this style of writing. Some seem to have lost the knack for long-form writing, often their answers are just bullet points. Most importantly, many of them find placing punctuations difficult.”
Kottayam-based B.Ed student Helen Mary S agrees. “Abbreviations and incorrect punctuation are an issue,” she says. “Also, there’s a tendency to place emojis at the end of each sentence instead of using a full stop. While going for training sessions as part of my B.Ed course, I’ve seen students using the mobile lingo while writing.”
An emoji is worth 1,000 words!
Emoticons, GIFs and stickers dominate mobile chats. They add tone and tenor to the message. They help set the mood for conversations. “I see emojis, stickers and GIFS as the new, creative way of communication. It is like an art,” says Kochi-based poet Aleena.
“While chatting with Gen Z, millennials like me and older generations will fail to connect with certain emojis and stickers they use. For laughing out loud, the emoji that is generally used is the ‘face with tears of joy’. But, GenZ uses the skull emoji, conveying that they died laughing.”
Aleena adds some get creative and use multiple emojis. “Usually, when one fails to understand something, the ‘confused face’ is used,” she says. “However Gen Z uses separate emoticons of eyes and a mouth to convey the same. This is, indeed, creative. We need to get an upgrade, that’s all. I have had to google to get a grip on Gen Z lingo, but it is fun.”
However, receiving new-gen texts and emojis has emerged as a task for the older generations. Add to that gaffes such as sending a ‘tears of joy’ emoji at the end of a condolence message, or the ‘middle finger’ instead of the pointing index finger. These are quite common in family WhatsApp groups.
How many stickers do you have?
Stickers are the rage now. Actors top the collections. Thilakan exclaiming “Prabhakara” (used to express shock), Lal saying ‘Oro duranthangale’ (to convey ridicule), Innocent flaunting his biceps, Phelomena saying “Kollallo nee” (used to express praise or sarcasm), etc., have become classics.
Politicians, including Narendra Modi and Pinarayi Vijayan, are also favourites of the sticker factory. Besides the fun aspect, stickers allow people caught up with work take part in a chat, without having to key in messages or appear curt by sending emojis.
“Stickers are cool additions to chats with friends,” says RJ Vinaya Fenn of Kochi. “At times, there would be chats using just stickers. When talking to superiors or strangers, stickers are a no-no.”