Without the benefit of paralinguistic cues such as gesture, emphasis, and intonation, it can be difficult to convey emotion and tone over electronic mail (e-mail)This is not specific to e-mail!
It has to do with the written word, which is not heard. This problem goes back to the invention of writing, And a great deal of what careful writers do is work to bridge that gap, to cultivate a "voice" so that the reader can fill in the emotional intention.
Because e-mail communicators “hear” a statement differently depending on whether they intend to be, say, sarcastic or funny, it can be difficult to appreciate that their electronic audience may not.Again, an old literary problem.
Which parts of Plato are meant as moral tonic,
and which parts are totally ironic?
How ever did they convey wit without throwing in a winky face or an "LOL" at every turn?
ReplyDeleteLanguage, I think, affords us the tools;
The trouble is insecure writers--or an audience of fools.
I do get driven mildly crazy by excessive winky faces and LOLs.
ReplyDelete