Differences between writing and speech
Written and spoken language differ
in many ways. However some forms of writing are closer to speech than others,
and vice versa. Below are some of the ways in which these two forms of language
differ:
- Writing is usually permanent and written texts cannot
usually be changed once they have been printed/written out.
Speech is
usually transient, unless recorded, and speakers can correct themselves and
change their utterances as they go along.
- A written text can communicate across time and space
for as long as the particular language and writing system is still
understood.
Speech is
usually used for immediate interactions.
- Written language tends to be more complex and intricate
than speech with longer sentences and many subordinate clauses. The
punctuation and layout of written texts also have no spoken equivalent.
However some forms of written language, such as instant messages and
email, are closer to spoken language.
Spoken
language tends to be full of repetitions, incomplete sentences, corrections and
interruptions, with the exception of formal speeches and other scripted forms
of speech, such as news reports and scripts for plays and films.
- Writers receive no immediate feedback from their
readers, except in computer-based communication. Therefore they cannot
rely on context to clarify things so there is more need to explain things
clearly and unambiguously than in speech, except in written correspondence
between people who know one another well.
Speech is
usually a dynamic interaction between two or more people. Context and shared
knowledge play a major role, so it is possible to leave much unsaid or
indirectly implied.
- Writers can make use of punctuation, headings, layout,
colours and other graphical effects in their written texts. Such things
are not available in speech
Speech can
use timing, tone, volume, and timbre to add emotional context.
- Written material can be read repeatedly and closely
analysed, and notes can be made on the writing surface. Only recorded
speech can be used in this way.
- Some grammatical constructions are only used in
writing, as are some kinds of vocabulary, such as some complex chemical
and legal terms.
What is writing?
Writing is a method of representing language in visual or tactile form.
Writing systems use sets of symbols to represent the sounds of speech, and may
also have symbols for such things as punctuation and numerals.
Definitions of writing systems
Here are a number of ways to define writing systems:
a system of more or less permanent marks used to represent
an utterance in such a way that it can be recovered more or less exactly
without the intervention of the utterer.
From The World's Writing Systems
a set of visible or tactile signs used to represent units of
language in a systematic way, with the purpose of recording messages which can
be retrieved by everyone who knows the language in question and the rules by
virtue of which its units are encoded in the writing system.
From the The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Writings Systems
All writing systems use visible signs with the exception of the raised
notation systems used by blind and visually impaired people, such as
Braille and
Moon. Hence the need to
include tactile signs in the above definition.
In
A History of Writing, Steven Roger Fischer argues that no one
definition of writing can cover all the writing systems that exist and have
ever existed. Instead he states that a 'complete writing' system should
fullfill all the following criteria:
- it must
have as its purpose communication;
- it must
consist of artificial graphic marks on a durable or electronic surface;
- it must
use marks that relate conventionally to articulate speech (the systematic
arrangement of significant vocal sounds) or electronic programing in such
a way that communication is achieved.
Writing systems are both functional, providing a visual way to represent
language, and also symbolic, in that they represent cultures and peoples. In
The
writing systems of the world, Florian Coulmas describes them as follows:
As the most visible items of a language, scripts and
orthographies are 'emotionally loaded', indicating as they do group loyalties
and identities. Rather than being mere instruments of a practical nature, they
are symbolic systems of great social significance which may, moreover, have
profound effect on the social structure of a speech community.
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