When the first digital emoticon “:-)” was posted on Sept 19, 1982, by professor Scott Fahlman at Carnegie Mellon University, US, internet history was made. Now, there are more than 3,600 emojis available for us, noted CNN.
“They offer things that words aren’t saying. They clarify that when you say ‘okay’, what kind of okay that is.” Jennifer Daniel—head of the Emoji Subcommittee for the Unicode Consortium, an organization in charge of choosing official emojis—told CNN. Daniel went on to say that emojis add natural elements of face-to-face communication to conversations, such as body language, intonation, volume and eye contact.
But the meanings of emojis are quite different geographically. For example, people in the West prefer to express their feelings through the mouth and chin; so, to show happiness, they often put great emphasis on the corners of the mouth turning up. But in the East, people are more emotionally restrained and their emotions are shown through the eyes instead.
Emojis can be used differently even within the same country. A smiley face with a waving hand is one such example. For most people, this kind of emoji is friendly while some young people use it to show the breakup of a relationship.
Just as language develops, so do emojis. The Unicode Consortium brings out new emojis every year, showing care when it comes to race, gender and other sensitive aspects in new emoji sets. In 2015, it released different skin tones. In 2016, different job emojis were added, such as teacher and firefighter—along with female versions for these jobs. In 2019, emojis of disabled people were added, including emojis of blind people and people in wheelchairs.
What is the future for emojis? They are already shaping social media as existing and new platforms evolve to respond to their expanding uses. Will the emoji evolve to become an international language with the growth of digitalization (数字化)? Or is technology changing so fast that emojis could go the way of the emoticon and fade in popularity after the next big thing comes along? It is hard to predict—even technology and language experts are divided on the subject.
8. Why do we use emojis, according to Daniel?
A.To replace body language. | B.To fully express ourselves. |
C.To add fun to the conversation. | D.To stress what we want to say. |
9. Which emoji is most likely to be used by people in the West to express happiness?
A.A face with a hand over the mouth. | B.A face with a raised eyebrow. |
C.A smiley face with a waving hand. | D.A face with an upward curving of the mouth. |
10. What does the underlined word “restrained” mean in the third paragraph?
A.Recognized. | B.Remained. | C.Controlled. | D.Influenced. |
11. What does the author think about the future of emojis?
A.It remains to be seen. |
B.They will lose favor sooner or later. |
C.They will become even more popular. |
D.They will develop into a universal language. |