Erin askD bout d crrct sp of “tonight,” noting dat she’d seen sum graffiti announcing a ftbl gme “tonite.” You’ll C dis sortA In4ml sp n ads n In4ml settings such as pRsNL notes n txt msgs. u may also C (and hear) d logic of sp “tonight” “tonite,” rite?
Translation:
Erin asked about the correct spelling of “tonight,” noting that she’d seen some graffiti announcing a football game “tonite.” You’ll see this sort of informal spelling in advertisements and informal settings such as personal notes and text messages. You may also see (and hear) the logic of spelling “tonight” “tonite,” rite?
Languages are organic, and technological changes are primary instigators of linguistic change. For example, I’ve seen more and more student essays over the past years with “you” spelled “u,” “are” spelled “r,” “forever” spelled “4ever,” and so on: testimony to 1) the rise of text messaging, and 2) the value of expedience over “correctness” while texting. There are individuals and institutions that exert a lot of power over deciding what is correct grammar, but like a lot of things in life, the rules of language are largely determined by those who use it on a daily basis. In other words, your children’s children may be spelling “you are” “ur.” Is this "correct”? No. Is it intelligible? Yes.
There’s a lot to be said for correct spelling, but there’s also the question of style. As Strunk and White note in The Elements of Style (not The Elements of Grammar):
Style takes its final shape more from attitudes of mind than from principles of composition, for as an elderly practitioner once remarked, “Writing is an act of faith, not a trick of grammar.” This moral observation would have no place in a rulebook were it not that style is the writer, and therefore what a man is, rather than what he knows, will at last determine his style.
Being versus knowing . . .
And then there’s the question of intent. Imagine Lil Wayne (Little Wayne) rapping:
You see, the money shall come; if it does not, then I shall get it.
I must die with money for I was not born with it.*
*{You see the paper gon' come, if not im gon' get it
I gotta die with money cuz I wasn't born with it.}
Or imagine Jim Morrison singing:
I’m going to love you, until the stars fall from the sky (tree?)
for you and me.*
*{I’m gonna love ya, til the stars fall from the sky
for you and I.}
I think it’s important to understand and master so-called correct grammar, and then experiment with developing personal style based on—and departing from—that mastery. It’s also important to keep in mind your rhetorical situation: audience, intent, and so on. For the graffiti artist, I would argue that “tonite” is more effective than “tonight,” and therefore correct based on context. But unless you’re writing essays on bathroom walls, it’s best to use correct grammar.
Go Phightin’ Phils!
There’s a lot to be said for correct spelling, but there’s also the question of style. As Strunk and White note in The Elements of Style (not The Elements of Grammar):
Style takes its final shape more from attitudes of mind than from principles of composition, for as an elderly practitioner once remarked, “Writing is an act of faith, not a trick of grammar.” This moral observation would have no place in a rulebook were it not that style is the writer, and therefore what a man is, rather than what he knows, will at last determine his style.
Being versus knowing . . .
And then there’s the question of intent. Imagine Lil Wayne (Little Wayne) rapping:
You see, the money shall come; if it does not, then I shall get it.
I must die with money for I was not born with it.*
*{You see the paper gon' come, if not im gon' get it
I gotta die with money cuz I wasn't born with it.}
Or imagine Jim Morrison singing:
I’m going to love you, until the stars fall from the sky (tree?)
for you and me.*
*{I’m gonna love ya, til the stars fall from the sky
for you and I.}
I think it’s important to understand and master so-called correct grammar, and then experiment with developing personal style based on—and departing from—that mastery. It’s also important to keep in mind your rhetorical situation: audience, intent, and so on. For the graffiti artist, I would argue that “tonite” is more effective than “tonight,” and therefore correct based on context. But unless you’re writing essays on bathroom walls, it’s best to use correct grammar.
Go Phightin’ Phils!
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