Graphology, or the study of the written language is interesting since just like verbal languages, the written word varies as well. For example, English is written from left to right while Arabic is right to left, Japanese top to bottom and some Ancient Greek bottom to top. Not only does the physical direction of the lines change but always the way in which words and letters are written. This study is known as chirography, and breaks down the many ways in which meaning can be represented. From calligraphy to manuscripts meaning can be differentiated simply by the way it is written or drawn. Consider the English alphabet, we have a dual alphabet in which we use both capital and lower case letters. The way a letter is written can signify the beginning of a sentence or the placement of a proper noun.
It has been suggested that writing developed independently of each other for various reasons. The three basic types are pictographic writing, Logographic, Ideographic and cuneiform. Writing of these types are still used in today’s society and can include such symbols used for monetary purposes or mathematical expressions.
What I found the most interesting was the section on abbreviations since we have taken abbreviations to a whole new level with the English language. There are a myriad of words that now use acronyms instead of the actual speech. “Internet language” seems to be taking over!! LOL, JK, TTYL, what is the world coming to? If the rate at which acronyms increase there wont even be an English language left! Needless to say, I am not one for the excessive usage of the “Internet Language”.
The ear to eye approach can be helpful when first learning a language that is new to you. When I first started learning Turkish I needed to listen to the letters before I could effectively reproduce them myself. Therefore, simply seeing them did not do me any justice since I could fully comprehend them. Now, after a fair amount of practice I can understand the world fairly quickly from simply reading it. This being said, it is still very hard to spell the word from listening to it.
However, what is harder always turns out to be better for you. As it is discussed in our reading, there is no substitute for writing to remember something. Therefore, it seems important to be able to write the word that you are attempting to learn. Recently, I have been writing down words when on Rosetta stone to help myself remember them more and it most definitely has. Hearing the word and then writing it down has turned out to be extremely helpful.
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