Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Oh boy, 111 is over, 4 papers more to go! I'm supposed to be studying for biochem, but somehow my walking fingers led me to the forums of the todayonline paper, the place where you can find grouchy Singaporeans who have nothing better to do. Here's a classic:
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To go or not to go This seat isn't for you, okay?
As part of the current campaign to promote the proper use of English, the following question has been painted across the body of several SBS buses: "Where does this bus go?" While this certainly sounds much better than "this bus go where?", to be grammatically correct, the question should be: "Where does this bus go to?" It's of no use at all having notices in the MRT trains which state: "Please offer this seat to someone who needs it more than you do". This should be replaced with the following: "This seat is reserved for ladies in an advanced stage of pregnancy, or the handicapped, or someone who is 60 years old and above."
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Hello uncle, you think every Singaporean have fantastic English is it? How the hell you want my illiterate father to understand phrases such as "advanced stage of pregnancy". He will probably come back and ask me, "Eh girl, how advance is advance ah? Should I ask her whether she is more than 6 months or what?" And 60 years old and above? I can just imagine this conversation:
Auntie: Boy ah, can I have this seat? I'm carrying a lot of stuff as you can see.
Young man: Auntie you how old?
Auntie: I 59..
Young man: Sorry auntie the notice say that only 60 year old and above can sit.
I'll never understand why is there a need to complicate simple instructions for the sake of technicalities. Languages exist as a form of communication. Although good english is a plus point, Singlish also brings out the local flavour of the community. Of course, it also depends on your target audience. You don't write Singlish or IRC shorthand in your essays, neither do you speak in dialect to a foreigner. As for the writer of the above article, I hope that he was sarcastic, because my sarcasm meter is broken. If not, I think its bloody funny that he thinks his English is so "powerderful" that he feels compelled to write in to edit the notices on the MRT. Goes to show that tinkering with things doesn't always have positive effects.
;I CREATED A SHEEP!
2:27 PM
