– If a friend who doesn’t normally use a period suddenly uses it, then it is a signal of something irritated or aggressive, says Angela Kleiven. Young people news has spoken to say that they avoid full stops when they write with their peers. The very worst is a short “OK” followed by a full stop, according to the young people. The friends say that instead of punctuation, they divide sentences with smiley faces, hearts or other colorful emojis. Or they only write one sentence in each message, and send several more. Haven’t forgotten spelling Sara Våje believes this way of writing is more relaxed and helps to create a clear distinction between free time and slightly more formal settings. – We know how to write correctly, but in social arenas it is perhaps a bit nice not to have that expectation, she says. This is what a message conversation might look like: short sentences sent one after the other. Emojis are used to break up the longer messages. There is not a period to see. Photo: Leif Dalen / news But it has something to do with who you text with. If your father writes OK with a period behind. How do you perceive it? – Then I don’t think too much about it, because he doesn’t know any better, says Våje and laughs. The girls are supported by the boys, who confirm that it is almost taboo to write periods in messages. – I almost never use periods. The full stop is rude to write, says Filip Ullestad. Filip Ullestad (left) and his friend Cornelius Steinum (right) say they do not use periods when writing to other young people. Photo: Leif Dalen / news – Young people use fewer full stops today Language researcher Jan Svennevig at the University of Agder confirms that young people who write messages or chat use fewer full stops. – Messages are a format with short messages, often just one word or a simple sentence. Then you don’t need a full stop to separate sentences. It simply becomes redundant. He says young people often use emojis instead. – Instead of marking a distinction between sentences, they mark how they are emotionally set. He believes the use of emojis is used to avoid misunderstandings. – “OK” does not in itself say anything about the mood the sender is in, while “OK” with a smiley face behind leaves no doubt. Language researcher Jan Svennevig at UiA confirms that there has been a change in the use of full stops among young people. Photo: Geir Ingar Egeland / news Svennevig also confirms that “OK” followed by a period is perceived as unpleasant and sour among young people. His theory is that when you no longer need a full stop to mark the difference between sentences, you start adding a different content to it. – “OK” is very short, and a period behind it can emphasize this brevity and give associations to how people express themselves when they are angry or offended. This is what a conversation between a father and daughter can look like: This is what a conversation between a father and daughter can look like. Doesn’t always go according to plan Børre Meinseth works at school and is concerned with both periods and commas, but admits that he has been influenced by the young. – I have three children in their twenties who send many more emojis than me. I’ve started throwing in three, four, five, six emojis myself, he says. He points out that sometimes he misses. – Sometimes it goes a little fast. Then my daughter or sons ask: “What the hell did you mean by that emoji?” Meinseth says that he is also influenced in his work. – When I write e-mails, I throw in an emoji at the end, he says. Børre Meinseth works in a school, but is influenced by the young people’s use of emojis. Photo: Leif Dalen / news Linguist Svennevig does not think young people will stop using full stops in other contexts, and sees no problems with this alternative use of punctuation. – It enriches communication with new possibilities of expression. The young lead the way, and those of us who are older can learn from them. Our somewhat sad OK communication can easily be misunderstood, he says.
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Young people drop the full stop because it can mean that you are angry – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
