W hat a pity that the classic writers of the past never made it to the 21st century. Shakespeare John Milton Dostoevsky Kafka Agnon and dozens of other literary icons could have preserved their creative juices if they had had at their disposal that which we have today: emoji which is a Japanese term for a picture character or pictograph. Those ubiquitous yellow Smiley Faces are emoji or emoticons.
Once upon a time those Smiley Faces monopolized the emoticon world. But people who never smiled felt left out so to the emoticon inventory was added a bright yellow Angry Face. But what about those who needed to express neither smiles nor anger but other sentiments? In response to the overwhelming demand the emoji faces multiplied like rabbits. There is today no limit to the available emojis: Tears of Joy Faces Flushed Faces Embarrassed Faces Pensive Faces Thinking Faces Confused Faces Worried Faces Weary Faces Excited Faces — whatever you wish to convey one click of a key will express it for you. Six billion are sent each day. There is even an “Emojipedia” to help you match the proper pictograph to your special mood.
When those old masters wished to express the angst confusion joy rage disappointment anxiety cruelty banality amusement hope or ecstasy of their literary characters they could have used emoticons. “To be or not to be ” for example is a wasted six-word phrase. It could have been expressed by one or two little emoticon faces that express doubt and confusion. Any of the memorable lines of history could have been reduced to a single keystroke: “Of the people by the people for the people” (Confidence Face with Hopeful Face); “We have nothing to fear but fear itself” (Determined Face); “Youth is wasted on the young” (Baby Face and Smiley Face). And if not literarily inclined one can say things like “Don’t cry over spilled milk” by punching in a Teary Face holding a milk container.
Just think of the tons of ink and forests of paper that might have been saved had emoticons been available. What a gift to the tree huggers the environmentalists and the save-the-planet fanatics!
