When is an emoticon inappropriate?
The New York Times ran a lengthy article on emoticons this weekend. It's a must read for anyone who can decipher this symbol ~(_8^(I), or for anyone who can't but would like to.While the Times gives a brief history of the emoticon, with the first modern usage traced back to 1982, the juicy bits involve the creep of emoticons from casual conversations into the professional arena. For example, if you're writing someone to let them know that a business deal worth thousands or millions of dollars is about to fall through, a frowny face just isn't going to have the same impact as a phone call.
We're betting that a lot of Download Squad readers grew up with emoticons and don't have to turn their head sideways to decipher any but the most complex smileys. But have you noticed yourself wanting to type a quick smiley, wink, or frown into a message to your boss?
Given that sarcasm and other nuances are hard to get across using nothing but text, emoticons offer a sort of shortcut. And when you're typing a note to a friend in a hurry, that's probably OK. But sometimes it's worth taking the long way to say something that's worth saying.
What do you think? Are emoticons the downfall of human civilization as we know it, an evolutionary step in written communication, or something in between?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Gavin said 8:57PM on 7-31-2007
"When is an emoticon inappropriate?"
Obituaries stand out as one potential answer....
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Michael Rose said 9:51PM on 7-31-2007
I'm finding it harder and harder to tell when emoticons are inappropriate. They seem to be showing up in business correspondence and in Word files nowadays.
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mark said 8:31AM on 8-01-2007
language is a living and breathing entity. Whether oral or written, users of every language most adopt new ways to communicate based on the time. Emoticons, leet speak, cell phone text messaging, and any other widely used form of modern communication must start to be accepted by "proper" society lest they fall behind and out of touch. Besides, it's mostly old farts that have issues with this "improper" stuff and they'll all be dead soon anyway... =) FTW...
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chromepoet said 8:40AM on 8-01-2007
Use of emoticons depends on the reader. It would be wonderful if people could accept the convenience of emoticons to communicate, through text, some small portion of what is lost when body language is not available. It would be nice.
Emoticons are not the only taboo medium. In business writing poetics would often help to enhance communication but poetics too are taboo.
Perhaps it is not so that readers feel emoticons are unprofessional as they feel the message sent by emoticons is unprofessional in a "just give me the facts Jack" sort of way.
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James said 12:27PM on 8-01-2007
I think there's a continuum of formality, sort of like:
(formal)
watch for run-on sentences
you may use contractions
you may use "tongue-in-cheek" speech like "ain't"
you may use emoticons sparingly
you may use colloquialisms like "ain't" seriously
you may use emoticons extensively
you may use "IM speak" like 2 for "to" or U for "you" (because you are an 8-year-old, or because you wish to be shot repeatedly in the face)
(informal)
Depending on the recipient, you pick an appropriate point on the continuum. At least, that's how I approach it.
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Jay said 2:59PM on 8-09-2007
I've developed the habit of using emoticons extensively in online communication. I also believe that that is because the emoticon helps add the emotion and tone that is lost in plain text.
I don't see much of a place for emoticons in formal prose or most serious, preofessional communications. However, I see it becoming widely accepted as email and text messaging replace face-to-face interactions and phone calls.
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cocodogsbark said 6:59AM on 9-21-2007
DUDE!!! the emoticon is Homer Simpson! Man, i'm good! XDDD
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