ESL Pet Peeve
Anglophones like to claim their language is unique;
that English "beats up other languages
and rifles through their pocket for spare vocabulary."
As if it were exclusive in its formation.
As if this language were a rarity, exceptional.
In reality, it couldn't be further from the truth.
You wanna know the truth?
English is not unique.
English is not exceptional.
English is not different from other languages.
Borrowing is the key to the formation
of any language's vocabulary.
There's no exclusivity in borrowing vocabulary.
Like it or not, that's the truth.
Borrowing is what gives a language shape,
makes its history unique.
That's the case for every language -
what makes them ordinary makes them exceptional.
In their own way, each language is special,
each with their distinct vocabulary
that they "mugged" from other languages.
"If everyone is special then no one is" is a lie,
because regardless of others, you're still unique
and only you have the history that has given you shape.
Absorption in language formation
isn't what makes English exceptional.
What makes English unique
is which words were absorbed into its vocabulary
and when and why; which in truth
is the ordinary uniqueness of all languages.
People add to their language
and contribute to its formation
through their individual search for truth;
When they find a word that's exceptional,
that adds another dimension to their vocabulary,
that has a meaning that is unique.
All languages
are exceptional.
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