Our writing prompt states that psychologists believe our peers, rather than our parents, have a larger influence on our language. It presents this information as if we should be surprised.
When we're very young, our parents certainly have almost total influence on how we learn to speak. These are the people who gave us our first words. It becomes very clear, however, that the influence they exert can be eroded. The first time a child walks into a classroom, an entire new influence dominates the way they communicate, and it isn't the person in front of the chalkboard.
If you read a transcript of a conversation between my friends and I, in between the minutia of daily conversation and casual swearing, you're likely to find several phrases completely devoid of context to an outsider. If I read a transcript of a conversation between my friends and I from a few years ago, I'd be just as stumped as you. The language between friends is so fluid it becomes hard to keep track of. Phrases turn into memes, memes morph into something unrecognizable, and are promptly disposed of the next time we experience something new as a group, and find the humor in it.
It's said that when Batman puts on the mask, what he's actually doing is taking off the Bruce Wayne costume. When I walk into Year Up I have to take off the cape and ears from my language. If you catch me outside the building after school and hear me using the words 'banana sandwich' in a way not intended by Nature, just move on, safe in the knowledge that we can talk clearly tomorrow morning.
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