Book Review:
Baron, Naomi. Always On: Language in an Online and Mobile World. New York: Oxford
“Language in an Online and Mobile World” by Naomi Baron is a thought-provoking book on the way that language changes in the online and mobile world. It also tells us the ways in which the new technologies affect and influence our speaking and writing. She tells us that there many ways this could happen, but that it is not what we would expect. There is more to language and the online and mobile world than what we think and Naomi Baron writes about this well.
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This book is about the way that language is affected by the online and mobile world. Baron goes into an in-depth discussion of this subject and analyzes it through data, interviews, and anecdotes that best describe them. We might think that language is suddenly degrading because of what the online world is doing. Yes, it does, BUT Baron tells us why and that we can conclude that the online world is bad for us. She goes beyond what we know and explains that there is more than meets the eye. As the book progresses, we see that what she explains and analyzes makes more sense of what we think. At the end of the book, we may have a different perspective of how the online and mobile world affects language in terms of the way we speak and write.
The first two chapters of the book starts as in introduction where Baron discusses the tools that people have used through the years in terms of speaking and writing. She explains each of the tools through various ways such as their etymology, history, how people used them, how they are used now, their effect on language and speaking, and more. For instance, she explains the way that the telephone really started, its evolution through the years, and the way it was connected with the mobile phone. In terms of online comunications, she explained the way that email came about and the manner by which it in influence us greatly.
All in all, Baron puts meaning on the various terms used. She defines almost everything, which shows that she targets all audiences. On one hand, this is a weakness because it lengthens the chapter when it can be skipped or shortened. On the other hand, it is also a strength because it means that she is concerned about her readers who may not be familiar with the terms and that she wants them to understand clearly what she is writing about and wanting to say. Explaining a language for all audiences is difficult and challenging, but at the same time, it is fun and lets her explore all aspects of the subject matter. As Baron points out, “Some of the topics we deal with lend themselves to close reading, while the tone of others is more conversational” (Baron 10)
Chapter 3 is about “controlling the volume” when communicating with people, where we control who we talk to and the manner by which we talk to them. Controlling comes in many ways.Baron enumerates them one by one and explains the ways that different people use them.
The thing about online communication is that there are times when people prefer it over communicating in person. For one, it is easier to control the volume with the various features of online tools such as block, invisible, caller ID, and more. According to Baron, people have always developed ways for controlling their interactions with others. These include establishing zones of privacy, even in societies that offer little physical space for seclusion. She asserted that what shifted over time was the amount of control and the mechanisms for effecting it. These in turn reflect both the new technologies and the ways that they allow individuals to multitask. This means that there are different reasons that people adjust the volume and that these reasons contribute to the ways that people communicate with each other.
She explains further that controlling the volume applies to both the speaking and the written language where responses are delayed in order for communication to stop. Those on the receiving end of the email or chat might delay responding or just ignore the message entirely. I am guilty of this, especially when I am lazy or don’t want to prolong the conversation. For the speaking part, there are times when I’d rather not talk. I delay speaking by either distracting myself or showing people that I don’t want to talk at all. In this way, I am controlling the volume of communication.
In the next chapters, she talks about the online and mobile tools individually and the ways by which they had developed and evolved through the years. She also explains that a lot of Americans today are always online and would rather do that than see each other face-to-face and talk about what is happening in their lives. I remember her saying in the book that being online sometimes stops people from looking forward to seeing each other.
For example, when family members are far away from each other, making up for it is easy by posting photos on Facebook and other social networking sites. While other family members will see these photos and talk about them through chat, it stops the excitement of seeing each other and of talking about it in person. There is the possibility that when they finally see each other, they will not talk about the photos anymore; thus, lessening the amount and quality of personal communication as a whole. Always being online is good in a sense that it can let people from different places talk to each other. However, it is bad when personal and face-to-face communication is avoided or lessened and connectedness disappears slowly.
Baron showed this more through a warning in the final chapter where she tells her readers about the effects of always being online. She starts with an overview of many of the social, linguistic, and cultural consequences of always being online and gives this warning that although modern language technologies are invaluable in helping increase human productivity, relaxation, social connectedness, and safety, people may need to learn to use them more responsibly. I agree with this. While being online lets you communicate with a lot of people, using it irresponsibly leads to bad results. All of us must use it well and make sure it won’t bring harm to anyone.
While Baron says that these online and mobile tools do not affect our writing and speaking language, we should still use them with caution and make sure that they don’t affect the way we use language. These tools should be used for the betterment of our language so that we can communicate well---in and out of the online and mobile world. I believe this is why this book was written: for all of us to be aware of always being on and that we should use online communication responsibly.
Conclusion
Overall, the book was written well in that anybody can read it, especially those who are interested in how online and mobile tools contribute to our way of speaking and writing. The book is a worthwhile read because Baron explains all the underlying contexts well and doesn’t use jargons. Instead, she uses simple words, anecdotes, histories, and simple research to explain the social and linguistic impact of online and mobile communication. Moreover, even though the book was written from the US perspective, I am sure that even readers from different cultures, such as the Asian and European cultures, can easily relate to what Baron says.
Because the book is an easy read, it becomes accessible both to the readers in and out of the academic department. It is an insightful book that provides information on how US communication changes through the years, both in the speaking and writing aspects. It is an outstanding book that will make a lasting contribution to the field and that truly gives a comprehensive discussion on the online and mobile world and how it contributes to language.
Works Cited
Baron, Naomi. Always On: Language in an Online and Mobile World. New York: Oxford
