issue 08 // volume 41

Are your emoticons being miscommunicated? » Shapes and numbers may be ruining your relationships

Angela Espinoza "News Editor Minews @theotherpress.ca

n an age where people are

finding more opportunities to use fewer words, emoticons have triumphed as the millennial alphabet. But as young adults are finding basic communication more difficult—even daunting— could our emoticons become lost in translation as well?

Douglas College student

the Communications program, felt emoticons have provided easier ways to avoid answering difficult questions. “On my last quiz, our professor asked us to write a paragraph on the societal effects of advertising,” said Bellingham. “I’ve never thought about advertising before, and I wasn’t going to start now, so I just put a ‘sad face.”

her quiz back, she was neither surprised nor disappointed

: face, : ‘yes’ or ‘no, or even a ‘maybe. : Just a semicolon next to an

: end-bracket.” Ferdinand

: remained silent fora moment : and shook his head. “It

: was such a straightforward

When Bellingham received : Ly : question.

: by her lack of a grade. “I’m

: not going to pretend like I

: tried, but I certainly tried to

: try, or I wouldn't have written : anything.”

Another Douglas student,

: Greg Ferdinand, had stronger : opinions on the use of

: emoticons when tackling

: serious subjects.

“There’s this girl in my

: computer science class |

: was getting along with, so

: we traded numbers,” said

: Ferdinand. “We've been

: hanging out a lot the last

. . . : couple of weeks, so the other Mina Bellingham, a first-year in : day I texted her to see if she : wanted to go onan actual date.” : : : perhaps more bitter by the end : of our interview, had harsher

: opinions on the usage of a

: less-than symbol next to the

: number three.

Ferdinand was not

: emotionally prepared for the : emoticon he received.

“All she sent was a ‘winky ”” Ferdinand said. “Not a

Ferdinand, who is set to

: graduate from his Computer

: Science and Information

: Systems program in April

: 2015, felt traumatized by the

: experience. “] want to bea

: programmer; I work with

: keyboard keys like semicolons : and brackets everyday. How

: can I look at those keys the

: same way now?”

: and Ferdinand their opinions : of “heart” emoticons, their : views once again differed.

: said Bellingham. “They’re a

: great way to say ‘love’ in half : the letters—albeit with more : numbers and math symbols.”

: throw ‘hearts’ around,” said

: Ferdinand. “Things aren't

: like they were 10 years ago; it : used to be when you wrote, ‘I : less-than-three you, it meant : something. Now people just

: type that about anything.”

humour // 23

UES Ty

When I asked Bellingham

m9

“T love sending ‘hearts,

Ferdinand however,

“People today just

“These bricks are really symbolic. They make me think about... construction.”

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