John Galsworthy shared his unease at the rise of two competing forms of national speech.
In his Presidential Address for 1924, entitled ‘Expression’, John Galsworthy reminded the English Association that London’s inner-city English was washing away all rivals, and becoming our national speech. Was this desirable? And would the talk of ‘cultured’ people be any better? It was a rather serious point, he said, though we must hope his solution was not meant seriously.
John Galsworthy urges the English to love their language as they love their country.
Novelist John Galsworthy was elected President of the English Association for 1924. He ended his address to the members with a call not to give up on the English language, but to keep on expecting to meet round every corner something new: not a mere novelty, but something worthy to follow the noble beauty of the best that has gone before.