PL
Contemporary visual culture believes in presentation and appearance. They are an important source of information used in forming opinions about others today. Language, however, is an important element of self-presentation and an abundant source of knowledge about people. It is a tool of communication – also with oneself; a sign of identity; a manner of self-presentation; a key to participation in culture; finally – a representation of the picture of reality in the mind of its user, with particular messages playing diverse functions. The ability to communicate through language makes man a symbolic being, capable of deliberating on abstract problems, not directly related to “the here and now”. One of the groups whose language lends itself particularly well to analysis is youth. Their style of communication constructs personalities, while at the same time expressing their dilemmas concerning identity, their choices and decisions on belonging to a particular group, and the degree to which they identify with it. By studying such aspects as the willingness to participate in communication, the linguistic image of the world, linguistic and communicative competences and the related ability to appreciate cultural artifacts, as well as the incorporation of new phenomena characteristic of the contemporary Polish language in one’s own linguistic behaviour, we can draw conclusions about the way young people think and perceive reality.