Across the Universe Saga: A Look into the Language

By Raphaelle

So now that we have given our review of the book, let's take a somewhat deeper dive into what makes Across the Universe stand out from other books. I'm going to talk about the use of language and its evolution. Don't worry, there are no spoilers in this post!

It's discussed a lot today about how the English language is being bastardized by the texting generation.  In simple cases it's using the letter 'U' to read 'You'.  Learning this shorthand from a young age might ingrain very bad habits.

Personally, as a book lover and prose enthusiast, I consciously try to write out all my words when texting, writing an e-mail, or exchanging any words electronically. Sometimes when I am in a hurry, I have taken the fast route and shorthanded a sentence from, "Meet you at 7:00" to "Meet u @ 7". The argument that it doesn't take that much longer to write it out properly is flawed, because yes - yes it does. Writing out the sentence fully allows for a higher risk of spelling errors and auto-correct errors (hello book #4: Damn You Autocorrect!) so it can take anywhere from 3 seconds longer to 30 seconds longer. Those precious 30 seconds? I could be reading!

I don't think as a generation we're in trouble, just yet. People don't talk like they text, not yet.

The author, Beth Revis, of the Across the Universe saga, goes one step further and explores the possible verbal evolution of some words. I found that very interesting, a small twist she puts in her writing to make it seem just that much closer to the realm of possibility. What IF we sent a sample of our population up in space, and it took them 300+ years to get to their destination? What IF we sent them with a small sample of our history? What IF they were reproducing in such a enclosed area? What IF they evolved a little? What would THEY change to make their own?

Here are some examples;

Victria - Victoria
Vid - Video
Frex - F***
Shite - S***
Med - Medicine, Medical
Chutz - I'm actually not sure, but I get the impression it's related to the family of calling someone a butt-head.
Loons - Crazy/Looney
...and more I can't remember off the top of my head.

I can easily see us in a couple decades using words like 'vid' and 'pic' in everyday language, so having Beth Revis use this in her writing made the book feel all that more real.