Very much enjoyed watching Simon Schama’s History of Now on television recently. Realised it truly was my ‘now’ as well. I had lived through the Falklands War, the Russian tanks rolling into Wenceslas Square in Prague, the Berlin Wall going up…and down and the 1964 Civil Rights Act in the USA.
Amazing, now, to have lived so long that one can look back over half a century of history and remember the events actually happening.
Also, I can now see how language, the English language of which I am passionately fond, has changed within my lifetime. Language is dynamic, will always change and simply needs to communicate clearly. I don’t mind the changes but they are interesting to note.
When did a railway station become a train station?
How strange that we seem to have nearly lost ‘mine’ and ‘yours’ and instead we say ‘my one’ and ‘your one’. Sounds awkward to my ear but usage will always be the winner.
Inflection is disappearing too. Instead of one dish being ‘tastier’ than another, it is now ‘more tasty’. One star might be ‘more bright’ than another one rather than ‘brighter.’
Greetings have evolved! Cheerio is seldom heard and Good Morning or Good Afternoon are only used to say hello, not goodbye. An exception here is my favourite Radio 3 presenter, Petroch Trelawney, who always ends his breakfast programme by saying ‘Good Morning’. Maybe the ‘Good’ is on the way out too, sounding as it does rather formal.
Of course there is always: ‘See you later’ which used to confuse my mother no end!
If someone asks me how I am, I might well reply that ‘I’m good thank you.’ Nobody would have replied in that way a few decades ago. It wouldn’t have seemed to make sense.
There must be many more examples. Any thoughts?