Applied English and Communications - Essay Example

In addition, if one checks manuals of gadgets or equipment even if it is not made in the United States of America, it is evident that there is always an instruction part of the manual written always in English for the fact, that manufacturers are aware that this language is generally used by many individuals all throughout the world, it is also a better marketing strategy for products to be accessible for the majority of the public. English though may not be originally rooted in the ancestors of the people living in the United States of America; it has been broadly used by Americans since majority of the American population can remember.

Baron termed English as the most powerful language on earth (440). It is fitting to make it the official language of the United States of America for as what Baron had stressed that English forms the glue that keeps Americans together (440). However, many still reject the idea of making English the official language of the United States for a variety of reasons; hence, others want to ban English entirely like what Baron (440-442) suggested in his work. First, Baron believes that a common language can often be the usual cause of conflict and argument (441).

He cited examples like what happened in Ireland and Northern Ireland, North and South Korea, the Union and the Confederacy where civil wars and conflicts are present. Baron further adds that banning English would avoid this type of partition in America at present (441). Contrary to this argument, I believe that misunderstanding can happen whether or not people use a common language or not, the popular conflicts in history involve persons of different cultures and beliefs; hence, people who use different languages and it is a fact that miscommunication is often the root of confusion.

How can one stop disagreement and encourage conversation and peace when people just cannot merely understand each other? Second, Baron emphasized that if English was banned, the United States of America would not have to worry what kind of English, i.e. the English of England or America, the English of New York or Chicago, the English of Ross Perot or William Buckley, will be its official language (441). This however was contradicted in a way by Lewis in his work that what should be utilized as the official language of the United States of America is the Standard English (436).

English should also be forbidden for the fact that no one barely reads it or even spell it, according to Baron, even English instructors have come to rely on computer spell checkers. He further adds that it is not a pure language anymore since most of its words were a product of the combination of different languages like French, Latin, Italian, Arabic, Sanskrit, Latin, Celtic, Yiddish, Chinese and Scandinavian. Moreover, English is becoming a world language. It is starting to be on everybody’s tongue and then one day people will just wake up that it is no longer existing just like what happened to the universal languages in world history such as Latin, Greek and Indo-European and to prevent this kind of future disappointment, it would be better to simply ban English (Baron 442).

I think that the said languages failed to continue its existence on every human being’s tongue for many different factors, such as probably another language was proven more effective; the real cause however, will still be unknown. In the end, Baron however, indirectly showed that English is irreplaceable and his statements