Victims of Faulty Grammar

I was with my friends on a jeepney, and we were excitedly exchanging stories until something disturbing crossed my sight. 

The “No somoking” sign behind the driver’s seat amused all of us. I will be honest; the fact that the misspelled word proved illiteracy didn’t bother me at that time. It was pure entertainment for me.

After some time, I realized if someone noticed it and informed the driver. I’m guessing, no one is courageous enough to do it or people hardly notice it since it looks like it has been there for quite a long time considering the dirty-white color of what used to be a white cloth. 

Public advertisements and signage are some of the most common victims of faulty grammar.

Some people might notice these errors but some might not. Some might be too ignorant to think that these signs were approved by officials or anyone who has the power to do so that’s why their grammar is not flawed, or some might just ignore them; whatever the reason is, it all boils down to the minimal knowledge of the English language.

The Philippines is one of the leading English-speaking countries in Asia, yet some of us, Filipinos, still do not get proper training of the English language. Some are fortunate enough to be enrolled in schools that have regular english classes while others are not. 

Majority of the people who are not privileged to have proper training of the English language acquire knowledge of it through advertisements, public signage, and television shows; this being the reason why advertisers, actors and actresses, TV show hosts, others who post in public, and everyone should be cautious of their grammar. Also, correct grammar should be properly observed so as not to mislead the reader.  

 

Language - a barrier or not?

The emergence of English as the universal language in our society has a continuing effect on us. 

According to a columnist named James Soriano, Filipino was the language of the world outside the classroom. It was the language of the streets and not a language of the learned. It was how you spoke to the tindera when you went to the tindahan, what you used to tell your katulong that you had an utos, and how you texted manong when you needed sundo while English is the language for the learned.

Let us admit it. When an individual is good and fluent in speaking English, he or she can create an impression of being smart, more reliable and can make him or herself belong to a higher society. On the contrary, an individual who does not know how to speak English well can be typecast as a not clever and a dense person.

In my opinion, speaking in English does not make one resistant to idiocy. Language should not be the test of being classified as a learned person. Having English language as one’s mother tongue is a benefit. However, that does not imply that one is more intelligent than the other individual who does not speak the English language well.

A person can succeed regardless of his or her mother tongue; therefore, verbal communication should not be blamed. One can excel in life using any other languages. It is the fault of how the Filipino language is being taught to us; as a result, we are not competent to use it well in all aspects of our daily life.