Have you ever been in a situation where you’ve been made fun of, or heard someone else being made fun of? I am sure the answer to that question is yes. Or maybe, you’ve insulted someone else without realizing the true meaning behind it? Ultimately, this is because language is more powerful than we think. Words and language can be used as weapons, and it may be hard for people to understand that certain words can be thought of as insulting to someone else but may not seem that way towards you. Language comes naturally, and as time as passed, we have been more inclined to say whatever we want. Unfortunately, recently we have seen more offense being taken to words we say. This is because language can affect people in different ways. In other words, some …show more content…
On the one hand, some argue that language constructs our thoughts. From this perspective, Deborah Tannen, from the language constructs thought community, states that “This is how language works. It invisibly molds our way of thinking about people, actions, and the world around us” (Tannen 14). On the other hand, however, others such as Richard Selzer, might say that language is used to represent our thoughts, but it can fall short. One of his view’s main proponents are, “these extremes of sensation remain beyond the power of language to express” (Selzer 28). According to this view, he is expressing the idea that language, as powerful as it is, might not always be efficient enough to explain a sensation. In sum, then, the issue whether language constructs our thought or vice versa. My own view is that language does indeed construct thought. Though I concede that language shapes our thought, I still maintain a view that language might not always be powerful enough in certain situations. I have had several encounters where language has the potential to really hurt someone, or even me.
Normally people's first reaction is to freeze up. People think nothing they do or say will change the offender's behavior. However, if someone does not speak up these slurs and jokes can poison the atmosphere. If the atmosphere is poisoned people will begin to accept the slurs and jokes.
Language is used in many different ways in today’s world, with two examples being PC and political language. Both of these styles of speech are used to change the original word choice. PC language, also known as politically correct language, revolves around trying not to offend any group in society. It is a censorship of possibly offensive words or language that could disadvantage any group of people in society. People who employ this take out insults and slurs that are used to exclude others-like changing words such as retarded to mentally disabled-to get their point across.
Lera Boroditsky, a professor at Stanford, introduces readers to the question of whether a person’s language can shape their thought processes and views of the world around them through her research conducted at Stanford and MIT. Boroditsky explores further into the questioning about a language’s influence in her article “Lost in Translation”. Boroditsky proves to an audience of broad audience of scholars and people interested in cultural psychology that a person’s language not only influences the way a person thinks but can change a person’s perception of the world and media around them. Lera Boroditsky, through her use of rhetorical questions, comparisons, and addressing the counterargument achieves her purpose of proving that language does
This stems from society’s move towards political correctness. People are forced to use euphemistic, evasive language to beat about the bush whenever addressing even slightly sensitive topics. The shackles of political correctness should long since have been cast off. However,
There are roughly six thousand five hundred spoken languages in the world today. It is generally agreed that even though these different languages possess distinctive vocabularies, grammars, and pronunciations they can be expressed with the same meaning to a certain thing and do not affect how we see and understand the world. However, the widespread conception of language is wrong; instead language does, in fact, shape the way we think. People who disagree may argue the influence of our thinking comes from culture. It is correct, but we cannot forget that language also influences the way we think about culture it carries .Besides, Language is also used for estimation of intelligence and identification.
The same thing occurs in the real world. The media tries to make things sound better so people don't get offended. If
On the sidewalks of Rochester in the year 1942, Walter Chaplinsky was arrested for repeating ' You are a God damned racketeer' and 'a damned Fascist’ to a police officer. Chaplinsky’s statements violated a New Hampshire law prohibiting offensive, derisive, or annoying words or sounds said unto an individual or party in a public place. He appealed the decision of the District Court, and when it came to the Supreme Court, they came to a profound decision. Supreme Court Justice Murphy said there are certain words that could reasonably result in a fight or a breach of peace when uttered.
Television shows often speak to us. They entertain us. They make us laugh and make us cry. Often, the actors behind our beloved characters live in another world apart from our own. In the case of Supernatural, a show about the occult, myths, religion, and the monster of the week, the cast is far more than a group of actors.
Hate speech are comments that cause harm to individuals, and promotes division and intolerance. Individuals, who exercise their freedom of speech in this manner, must of course be aware of and face the consequences that may come with it. Although freedom of expression should be protected, it should not protect what happens to you after you say it. Calling someone a “nigger”, or a “faggot”, is the equivalent to spitting in someone’s face. As such, it is a form of assault, as you are causing pain and have no regard for an individuals well being.
Freedom of Speech Freedom of speech is the freedom all people have, to express what they consider and express any opinions. It is an ability to express our opinions freely without being punished or censored. All people throughout the world are entitled and must have right to freedom of speech. However, how much do we know about freedom of speech: when did it occur? Does every countries have it?
In the article, A Word Gone Wrong by Lawrence Downes, Lawrence Downes emphasizes, “people can be thoughtless and cruel, or well-meaning, and never know the damage their words can do (Downes).” This statement clarifies the conception that the voices of others separates humans into stereotypes. Lawrence Downes realizes as an American citizen, we are granted the ability to voice our opinions passionately. Those opinions do not take into consideration demeaning language. Demeaning language defines a misleading character; therefore, political correctness should become a principle of life.
In Lera Boroditsky 's "How Does Our Language Shape the Way We Think" the purpose of the essay is apparent from the second paragraph. "Language is a uniquely human gift central to our experience of being human" she explains, so that the reader understands how language affects ones thoughts and day to day lives (2). Boroditsky 's use of empirical evidence, factual information, organizational structure, understanding and construction upon thoughts that disprove her purpose, and light tone all aide in accomplishing her purpose. Each of these methods help convince the audience that, " Language is central to our experience of being human, and the languages we speak profoundly shapes the way we think, the way we see the world, the way we live our lives" (Boroditsky 10).
Persuasive Prose Analysis After carefully reading the text many times I say that the topic of the text “Think: The teen brain, drugs & psychosis” is health and it is about the effects that drugs have on the brain of teenagers. The genre of the text is article in a magazine that has as a purpose to advertise medical cover. The readers would possible be members of Momentum Health, magazine subscribers and parents as the text uses phrases as ‘protect your child’ referring to parents, and ‘benefit guide’ refers to the subscribers of the magazine that I imply that they might receive the monthly Magazine issue as well as the term ‘medical scheme cover’ is referring to the members of the medical aid that sponsor the magazine. The title “Think: The teen brain, drugs &
In this world, we have an infinite amount of words. These words can do so much or even have no affect at all. Words can break a person down or build them back up. Words can be the difference in having a good time or spoiling a state of bliss. A word also can have more than one meaning.
Introduction There are roughly 6500 spoken language in the world today. People mostly spend their life talking and destining and advanced society reading and writing. The use of language is an intrinsic part of being human. It is clear that language and abstract thought are very close to each other but many people think that these two characteristic distinguish human being from animals.