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Television standardized the language of nation-states. Now even the most backward of countrymen speaks or at least understands the common language used on TV, a

Television standardized the language of nation-states. Now even the most backward of countrymen speaks or at least understands the common language used on TV, and the local inflections get less and less prominent with each passing generation. (Granted, this was more of a problem in older countries.) The Internet will do the same on a global scale, in the long run, with English being that language, obviously. So what's the purpose of Esperanto, again?

briandear 9y ago
There isn’t a purpose. It’s a contrived language with the historical and cultural relevance of pig latin. The purpose is likely to provide its enthusiasts with a quirky hobby. It’s not any more serious a language as Klingon. Why Duolingo/etc wastes resources supporting such a useless language when they could perhaps support any of the number of dying languages that actually have cultural and historical significance (such as Yiddish, Navajo or any number of African or Asian languages) seems to be a waste.
- freehunter 9y ago
  You could almost say the same thing about those cultural languages though. If me, as a white American, wanted to learn Navajo... what's the point? I'm not Native American, I'm very unlikely to adopt their culture, and my knowing the language isn't really going to further the spread of their culture. So I'd just be learning it as an enthusiast with a quirky hobby and have no one to talk to. The problem with trying to save dying languages is that you need to save their dying culture, too. Otherwise the language is useless, just as useless as Esperanto. If there's no point in Esperanto because it's a language without a culture, there's no point in learning a language without learning their culture. And culture is often a very tricky, very closely guarded thing. What we have with Esperanto is a brand new culture that's been created, one that's a lot more relatable to a wider audience than Kasanga or Iñapari.

briandear 9y ago

There isn’t a purpose. It’s a contrived language with the historical and cultural relevance of pig latin. The purpose is likely to provide its enthusiasts with a quirky hobby. It’s not any more serious a language as Klingon. Why Duolingo/etc wastes resources supporting such a useless language when they could perhaps support any of the number of dying languages that actually have cultural and historical significance (such as Yiddish, Navajo or any number of African or Asian languages) seems to be a waste.

freehunter 9y ago
You could almost say the same thing about those cultural languages though. If me, as a white American, wanted to learn Navajo... what's the point? I'm not Native American, I'm very unlikely to adopt their culture, and my knowing the language isn't really going to further the spread of their culture. So I'd just be learning it as an enthusiast with a quirky hobby and have no one to talk to. The problem with trying to save dying languages is that you need to save their dying culture, too. Otherwise the language is useless, just as useless as Esperanto. If there's no point in Esperanto because it's a language without a culture, there's no point in learning a language without learning their culture. And culture is often a very tricky, very closely guarded thing. What we have with Esperanto is a brand new culture that's been created, one that's a lot more relatable to a wider audience than Kasanga or Iñapari.