GoKawiilDijkstra's 1978 essay argues against 'natural language programming'
In a short essay, computer scientist Edsger Dijkstra critiques the idea of programming computers using natural human language instead of formal symbolic languages. He traces the history of programming languages, noting how high-level languages improved error detection compared to machine code, but argues that the underlying machines remain literal and unforgiving 'slaves' regardless of the language used. Dijkstra contends that proposals to let people instruct machines in their native tongue misunderstand the fundamental nature of programming.