--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Text messaging is just the most recent…" description: "\"Text messaging is just the most recent focus of people's anxiety; what people are really worried about is a new generation gaining control of what they..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/david-crystal-8647_anxiety_text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-f_1254006.png" --- # Text messaging is just the most recent focus of people's… ![“Text messaging is just the most recent focus of people's anxiety; what people are really worried about is a new generation gaining control of what they see as their language.” quote by David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/david-crystal-8647_anxiety_text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-f_1254006.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/david-crystal-8647_anxiety_text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-f_1254006.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/david-crystal-8647_anxiety_text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-f_1254006.png) > “Text messaging is just the most recent focus of people's anxiety; what people are really worried about is a new generation gaining control of what they see as their language.” [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People fear that new communication tools will reshape language control and identity. **In simple terms:** Anxiety about language change. Key Takeaway Recognize and adapt to evolving language. Themes communication anxiety technology identity Mood concerned reflective Type observational critical When to use this quote - online messaging - social media - education - policy making Key Concepts sociolinguistics media influence cultural shift Questions to Reflect On - How does new media affect language ownership? - What can preserve linguistic diversity? A Different Perspective Change may empower some while marginalizing others. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anxiety](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anxiety/) [Control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/control/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Generation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generation/) [Generations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generations/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [New generation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-generation/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Text messaging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/text-messaging/) ## Related quotes > [There's nothing wrong with sending a quick note if you're busy or just want to flirt, but it's hard to have any real interaction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-behrendt/there-s-nothing-wrong-with-sending-a-quick-note-if-you-re-busy-or/) [Greg Behrendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-behrendt/) > [In 1978, there was a 14-year-old boy working in Newark. He did in fact create the inter-office mail system and called it email. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shiva-ayyadurai/in-1978-there-was-a-14-year-old-boy-working-in-newark-he-did-in-fact/) [Shiva Ayyadurai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shiva-ayyadurai/) > [When text messaging first came out, you could only text within your network, whatever operator you had. It seems silly now, but once those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-johnson/when-text-messaging-first-came-out-you-could-only-text-within-your/) [Peggy Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-johnson/) > [People will now go to films with subtitles, you know. They're not afraid of them. 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When you start getting into relationships,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-vasi/dating-is-fun-it-s-light-there-s-courting-there-s-the-interesting/) Denise Vasi > [Wagamama. Text messaging aficionados might like to note that this is one of the most satisfying words you can possibly type.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-wallace/wagamama-text-messaging-aficionados-might-like-to-note-that-this-is/) [Danny Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-wallace/) > [I think people tend to be worried about every new technology that comes along.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-zuckerberg/i-think-people-tend-to-be-worried-about-every-new-technology-that/) [Mark Zuckerberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-zuckerberg/) > [People say that text messaging is a new language and that people are filling texts with abbreviations - but when you actually analyse it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/people-say-that-text-messaging-is-a-new-language-and-that-people-are/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [With social media, so many people have anxiety and depression because of it. Of course technology is somewhat good, but it can present so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-phelps/with-social-media-so-many-people-have-anxiety-and-depression-because/) [Michael Phelps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-phelps/) > [I don't know if it's irrational, and I would never say this before, but I think I'm a little bit agoraphobic when I'm in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hanson/i-don-t-know-if-it-s-irrational-and-i-would-never-say-this-before-but/) [Taylor Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hanson/) ## More by David Crystal > [I don't have any particular desire to see words making a comeback. They are of their era, after all, and that is their identity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/i-don-t-have-any-particular-desire-to-see-words-making-a-comeback/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [In effect we are, bending and breaking the rules of the language. And if someone were to ask why we do it, the answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/in-effect-we-are-bending-and-breaking-the-rules-of-the-language-and/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [There's an old little jingle: 'The chief use of slang is to show that you're one of the gang.' What that means is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/there-s-an-old-little-jingle-the-chief-use-of-slang-is-to-show-that/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [The death of a language. The word has the same kind of reluctant resonance as it has when we talk about the death of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/the-death-of-a-language-the-word-has-the-same-kind-of-reluctant/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [One of the places the full stop is really being revised in a really fundamental way is on the Internet. 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The keypad isn't linguistically sensible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/sending-a-message-on-a-mobile-phone-is-not-the-most-natural-of-ways/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [It took three years to put Shakespeare's words together, there were a lot of words to be studied and a lot of words to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/it-took-three-years-to-put-shakespeare-s-words-together-there-were-a/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [Likewise, there is no evidence that texting teaches people to spell badly: rather, research shows that those kids who text frequently are more likely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/likewise-there-is-no-evidence-that-texting-teaches-people-to-spell/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [“Here are three elements we often see in town names: If a town ends in “-by”, it was originally a farmstead or a small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/here-are-three-elements-we-often-see-in-town-names-if-a-town-ends-in/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [There's nothing unusual about a single language dying. But what's going on today is extraordinary when we compare the situation to what has happened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/there-s-nothing-unusual-about-a-single-language-dying-but-what-s/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [Enshrined in a language is the whole of a community's history and a large part of its cultural identity. The world is a mosaic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/enshrined-in-a-language-is-the-whole-of-a-community-s-history-and-a/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [You don't usually get a compound word where the first part is a slang thing and the second part is a rather ordinary or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/you-don-t-usually-get-a-compound-word-where-the-first-part-is-a-slang/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [Swearing makes an excellent relief mechanism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/swearing-makes-an-excellent-relief-mechanism/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) [Explore all 79 David Crystal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) ## More Anxiety quotes > [“Anything that you find yourself worrying about regularly may find you suddenly wanting unrealistic changes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nagisa-tatsumi/anything-that-you-find-yourself-worrying-about-regularly-may-find-you/) Nagisa Tatsumi > [Bein Crazy is the least of my worries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/bein-crazy-is-the-least-of-my-worries/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [The answer to deep anxiety is the deep adoration of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-answer-to-deep-anxiety-is-the-deep-adoration-of-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [“Fear of seeing a police car pull into the drive. Fear of falling asleep at night. Fear of not falling asleep. Fear of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-carver/fear-of-seeing-a-police-car-pull-into-the-drive-fear-of-falling/) [Raymond Carver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-carver/) > [I get nervous when I don't get nervous. If I'm nervous I know I'm going to have a good show.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beyonce-knowles/i-get-nervous-when-i-don-t-get-nervous-if-i-m-nervous-i-know-i-m/) [Beyonce Knowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beyonce-knowles/) > [“Every invention comes through anxiousness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakesh-wadhwani/every-invention-comes-through-anxiousness/) [Rakesh Wadhwani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakesh-wadhwani/) > [“Do Not Be Anxious 25 e “Therefore I tell you,  f do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-not-be-anxious-25-e-therefore-i-tell-you-f-do-not-be-anxious-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Nothing happens on its own, you have to make things happen. If you really want to come out of your stressful situation than you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subodh-gupta/nothing-happens-on-its-own-you-have-to-make-things-happen-if-you/) [Subodh Gupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subodh-gupta/) > [“I guess if we're talking about my anxiety, the even truthier truth is it started way before that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-winfrey/i-guess-if-we-re-talking-about-my-anxiety-the-even-truthier-truth-is/) [Kerry Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-winfrey/) > [I was a very good student. Procrastinating gives me anxiety, and getting a B really ticked me off. Sure, I didn't always want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josie-loren/i-was-a-very-good-student-procrastinating-gives-me-anxiety-and/) [Josie Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josie-loren/) > [“The suspense: the fearful, acute suspense: of standing idly by while the life of one we dearly love, is trembling in the balance; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/the-suspense-the-fearful-acute-suspense-of-standing-idly-by-while-the/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [The party in Alobar’s head, which agitation and anxiety were throwing, now was crashed by a notion: existence can be rearranged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-party-in-alobar-s-head-which-agitation-and-anxiety-were-throwing/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [As you know, I have been very open about my struggle with social anxiety.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/summer-walker/as-you-know-i-have-been-very-open-about-my-struggle-with-social/) [Summer Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/summer-walker/) > [Anxiety is not to be managed it is a sin that needs to be repented of](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-driscoll/anxiety-is-not-to-be-managed-it-is-a-sin-that-needs-to-be-repented-of/) [Mark Driscoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-driscoll/) > [“I’ve always seen this in you, ever since you were a little girl — this hunger to love other people into their highest selves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-elisabeth/i-ve-always-seen-this-in-you-ever-since-you-were-a-little-girl-this/) [Jennifer Elisabeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-elisabeth/) [Browse all 4,944 Anxiety quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anxiety/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Text messaging is just the most recent focus of people's anxiety; what people are really worried about is a new generation gaining control of what they see as their language.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Crystal" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-focus-of-people-s-anxiety-what/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Anxiety" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-focus-of-people-s-anxiety-what/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/david-crystal-8647_anxiety_text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-f_1254006.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/david-crystal-8647_anxiety_text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-f_1254006.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/david-crystal-8647_anxiety_text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-f_1254006.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Text messaging is just the most recent focus of people's anxiety; what people are really worried about is a…” — David Crystal", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "David Crystal", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Text messaging is just the most...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-focus-of-people-s-anxiety-what/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/text-messaging-is-just-the-most-recent-focus-of-people-s-anxiety-what/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```