THE AMERICANIZATION OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Quietly sipping my morning tea,
scanning the paper, THE MERCURY,
I was astounded to see
a request (more like a herald's flurry)
that Australians watch their p's and q's and u's.
The writer (named Anonymous)
chastised all word users
not to be brutal word abusers.
I recall there was an urgent note
and here from memory I quote
"Sanctify all words with the letter U
since the USA's undue influence
would create inequality
and a state of instability
in the language of Britain's nobility."
While obviously something deeply resented,
by the way it was presented
the issue was more about quantity than quality.
But I hereby vow that
I shall always savour flavour
and favour colour.
And you can be sure I will be tough
on those who think enuf is enough.
From my foreign shore
(Anonymous would have my return
or prefer in hell I burn)
I bring my message bold.
On this I take a stand and give no quarter
as I implore each Aussie son and daughter
to come along with me,
for built into my philosophy
I proudly confess I misspell words deliberately ...
Take the 'U' out of guilt
and cover yourself in gold.
(From: Out Of Love And Other Poems, by Kitty Madeson. (1993) Stone Soup Poets, Boston.)
|
