Every year several languages die out.

Some people think that it is not important

because life will be easier if there are fewer languages in the world.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?
It is argued that the annual extinction of many languages is not a problem because having just a few
languages leads to a more convenient life. It is disagreed that the convenience of using just a few key
languages makes the dying out of less spoken dialects acceptable. This essay will first discuss the
importance of language to culture and secondly the fact that learning a few common languages is
unrealistic, followed by a reasoned conclusion.
A language is not just a group of spoken words but the key to someone’s culture. Language has evolved
over thousands of years to reflect what it means to be from a particular place. For example, the Irish
language has one of the widest vocabularies in the world and reflects their tradition of storytelling.
Despite this, English has become the first language of the Irish, as many feel it makes it easier to
communicate with the world.
By speaking just a couple of languages, such as English and Chinese, you alienate billions of people
throughout the world. English may be common, but it is not the ‘lingua franca’ many people think it is
and it would take generations for everyone to learn it. Countries like Korea and Vietnam have been
trying to adopt English as a second language for a long time, but most of their people still can’t fully
grasp it. However, English has been the language of business for a long time and it should be
encouraged to help a country become more economically competitive.
To conclude, commonly spoken languages may make life more straightforward, but this should not be at
the expense of less prevalent languages, in order to avoid the erosion of culture and the alienation of
many countries.

Model Answer:

Over the last half-century, the pace of change in the life of human beings has increased beyond our
wildest expectations. This change has been driven by the booming breakthroughs in science and
technology. This has made the world seem like a small village. Therefore, the languages of the developed
countries have replaced many other languages in the developing and weaker countries. Although there
are some commentators who believe that this will ease communication between nations, I am strongly
inclined to the view that preserving the other languages is a crucial issue.

Firstly, language is an integral part of the cultural heritage of any nation, because language is not only a
method of communication but also it is the cornerstone of poem, literature, and art. For example, a
recent study has shown that the number of poems and literature in old languages is three times more
than that in the recent ones used in wealthier nations. In addition, language significantly influences the
identity of people, particularly youngsters. Therefore, losing our local language would weaken the bond
between youth and their nation and in turn affect the productivity and strength of the country.
Undoubtedly, maintaining the diversity of languages will enrich the culture and development of the
developing countries.

On the other hand, a strong argument can be made on the opposite side. Opponents believe that the
presence of fewer languages for communication will substantially strengthen the relationships between
countries. Thus the economy will flourish in both developed and developing countries. For instance, a
recent study has revealed that poorer countries where people can speak English or French fluently had
higher rates of development compared to those whose population spoke only local languages. Lastly,
most of the recent and updated knowledge in almost all life field is presented in English or French. So
fewer languages will facilitate faster knowledge and technology between nations.

To sum up, it can be clearly seen that the pros of maintaining different languages outweigh the cons. I do
recommend the government to emphasize on using the national language besides teaching people
foreign languages, Thus can be achieved through longer-term public education as well as specific
nationwide publicity campaigns.

Each year, several languages are in danger of extinction. Some argue that if the number of
languages decreased, life would be simpler, therefore, this is not a crucial issue. This essay
disagrees with this statement because language dying out would lead to a decrease in job
opportunities and learning common languages seem to be too difficult for residents of some nations.

Language extinction would result in a reduction in the number of employment opportunities. As there
are currently various languages in the world, numerous translation positions are needed to help the
locals to approach overseas media. If those languages became extinct, translators would lose their
jobs because citizens would be forced to learn common languages and be able to understand
foreign news and movies themselves. For instance, more than 15% of Vietnamese people making
money by writing subtitles for Western movies or translating English articles into Vietnamese would
need to look for other jobs if English became a mother tongue in Vietnam.

Another reason why life will be tougher with fewer languages is the fact that people may find it too
hard to study new languages. Because of the difference in sentences’ structures, vocabulary and
accents each language has, it would take ages to adopt other languages. To illustrate, the
government in South Korea failed to make English as an official language since Korean characters
are totally different from English words and people, especially the old ones, have struggled to learn it
although they have been trying for a long time.

In conclusion, the extinction of languages could be considered as a vital problem and life would be
more difficult when only a few languages exist because this would adversely affect job market and
learning global languages is not as easy as learning a native language.

Due to the globalization trend, the relentless changes of society have resulted in the loss of
several languages yearly. From an objective perspective, I disagree with the opinion that this
issue is not important because if there are fewer languages, the life would be easier.

Firstly, only when there has been the penetration of foreign culture has the mother tongue lost
its attention by youngsters. As the result, the generation gap between members in family has
been extended and it has become the serious malady that should be turned the deliberated
eyes. For example, because of the national application of English, the particular language of
Singapore has just been used by elders. Therefore, the declining tendency of relationship
between members in family has been increasing day by day and eventually, this conundrum has
decreasing the value of family connection and it could lead the loneliness of older generation as
the result.