I was thinking about purchasing the software program ‘Dragonspeak’. I first came across it while at a specialist and during the appointment he dictated his findings. I thought how cool would that be for the days when the pain was too great to type. As I said, was thinking. I then started to wonder at the application of it.
The spoken word and written word are two different mediums of the language. How I dictated my story would be far removed from what is to be written, that it wouldn’t work. How many of us actually write exactly how we speak? Its difficult. For one thing, syntax is pretty much out the window, grammar and mechanics of a sentence gone. So the more I thought about it, the less appealing it became.
Learning to speak comes from firstly your parents, schooling, the wider community including the media in all its forms. Sometimes, as you hear on the television, diction and vernacular varies considerably and depends where you come from. How you learn also affects the way in which you understand the language and in turn express yourself. The use of colloquialism, idioms and local expressions are easy to get away with in the course of conversations. Yes, there are the right way to pronounce words and the context of use but it doesn’t always have to stick to the rules.
Writing, on the other hand, is a different ball game. Rules abound and honestly, they can drive you around the bend! English was not my first language and when I went to school, Italian was kicked right out of me. English was not my strongest subject, though I did learn to be competent. I still get my tenses mixed up but generally its okay. Writing is a formal language and though rules need to be adhered surely on some occasions they can be broken.
With regards to Dragonspeak, it would have created more work, turning the spoken word in a written language. I would have to speak like I was reading out loud and really, who talks like that?
Luciana Cavallaro 