August 2, 2014

The original meaning of emojis.

NPR discusses whether an emoji means what it was originally intended to mean... in the context of some hands that might be praying:
When we think about emojis and what they mean, we have to consider how these symbols have evolved into their own language. Emojis aren't quite a universal form of communication; their meanings are malleable and often develop in unique ways as we build relationships with the people we're texting or tweeting. I assign different meanings to the same emojis based on inside jokes with friends, moods and specific situations.
When things get too simple, they get complex.

8 comments:

traditionalguy said...

It appears to be Freudian ink blots. It reveals something in a responder's "unconscious mind."

Anonymous said...

Terrible Reading Comprehension Guy says:

Althouse states that "When things get too simple, they get complex." This is simply argle-bargle.
When things get too simple they just become simpler, that's all. To believe the Professor's writing is to say that someone is so dumb that they are now smart, or that Scarlett Johansson is so pretty that she is now ugly: it doesn't work that way. Scarlett Johansson IS pretty. I hesitate to ask Althouse what 2 + 2 equals.

The Crack Emcee said...

I've rarely ever used them - they seem immature to the extreme - but, then, lots of internet stuff does, so whatever.

I'd definitely have no use for praying hands,...

Anonymous said...

That's suppose to be prayer? It looks like applause to me.

A lot of people seem to use emoticons in their e-mail. I've never used them, and I tend to skip over them when other people use them, rather than spend the time and effort to try to figure out what expression they're supposed to represent; in fact by now I usually don't even consciously see them. Emoji (is it supposed to be Japanese? if so, it wouldn't take a plural ending) don't seem to be the same thing exactly, but I suppose I'd have similar difficulties with them.

richard mcenroe said...

And 'namaste' to you, too, cow eater.

Sam L. said...

Some people just looooooooove complicating the simple. Must be leftists.

tim maguire said...

This particular one has a whiff of goatse about it.

I suppose I have to follow the lnk to find out what an emoji is.

chillblaine said...

One thing is certain: language continues to evolve. Words have meter and resonance which convey our oral history. Impossible to make a catchy song or deep, meaningful poem using emoji.

The emoticon tag did lead me to an interesting destination. I wonder how long it has been since the moderator called someone a sourpuss?