Wednesday, April 21, 2010 @ 10:29 PM
Having spent almost 4months with practically no contact or outlets to speak proper English with, I found my verbal aptitude in the language slipping by a landslide. To that I have only myself to blame, for there is no need for a reason to speak proper English, only a lack of resilience to which my current lifestyle entails. Too often I am faced with this predicament, in which the behaviour of one of my friends whom I would prefer not to mention names has elucidated - formal language tends to create formal ties. To be so 'clean and cropped' on my languange usage would be potentially damaging to the bridge of communication that I employ daily with my peers. This is simply a case of the bolt not fitting the socket. Not wishing to shake the group dynamics seem like a valid enough reason to discard any ideas to ramp up on my spoken English. Here on I face a catch-22 that is unique to my situation: Maintain a high standard of oral English and risk being 'out of the circle' or Be an 'insider' and watch my standards slide. Some would say that, as like many things in life, a balance should be struck. But to which cord should it be struck at, I ask? The reality is this, things are always easier said than done; though I do see the rationale behind the balancing act and to that end, I shall sought to find the cord to strike or die trying.
In another case, I had a friend question the authenticity of my writing only because I do not speak the way I write. No offense was taken but here I would like to mention that to speak this way would be to shut out all who do not and as part of a self-persevering species, I can only pick my fights where it can be won.

Now I do hope no one bears any ill feelings for what I have said but if you do take away some, then lets just say it's a case in point.

On the topic of written and spoken English, I do like to point out that though I have had one or two compliments on my written English, which I am extremely grateful for, I would like to illuminate the fact that though some of my writings might have come off the right way, the majority are beautiful nothings. I do sincerely wish I could weave a beautiful essay out of a single statement but the truth is, put me in an examination desk and set me a time constraint and I would have come out with a mediocre essay at best. The 'C' positioned snugly next to the GP in my cert would tell you so. I wish I knew the solution around this problem but right now I can only settle for improving a step at a time. But till then, I find that a friend of mine(yes you Mr Lim Jun Yong) does offer a pretty good gauge to a commendable utility in all facets of the English Language; thought, speech and writing. A couple of minutes at his blog would prove my point.

A friend popped me a message quite recently which got me thinking of the elitism in our society. Incidentally, I chanced upon a relevant straits times article by a former Rafflesian which egged my thought process along its way. When one talks about an elite school, some names would invariably come up; Raffles, Hwa Chong, NJ to name a few, then there is the holy trinity, H-Y-P in the USA and OxBridge in the UK. These are the promised lands of academia. Yes, the prevalence of elitism is in the evidence that brews in the thought processes of our society. They are the elites because we, as a common body, place them there because they are undeniably the best. But to what extent should we rever at their feet? Elitism isn't a bad thing if it promotes healthy competition, albeit its extremity. While at the other end of the spectrum we also know for a fact that elite schools are well known, or should I say notorious, for being a breeding ground for snobs and a sense of superiority amongst their people though lets not hasten to stereotype. I do know of examples who fall outside the cookie-cutter. My point is this, elites or not, everyone has room for improvement and the first step towards that improvement is to accept that exact fact. After that, if you manage to keep improving everytime even if they are baby-steps, the only way you can go is up.