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Musings on language
23 October 2009 01:35It occurs to me that there is language above language. There is language below language and to either side of language as well. These are all terms that I use for lack of a better word.
I am not just talking about tone of voice although that’s part of it. I am not just talking about eye contact although that’s part of it.
These other languages fill in the cracks of the paltry, upended, mish-mash of letters and animal sounds we use to communicate with our mouths.
There is the language of question. That is to one side of language. There is the language of defining. That is to the other side.
The language of the divine is above language. There is a base language below our vocabularies as well.
Again, these terms and directional identifiers are all for lack of a better word. No one is better than another and most languages outside of language involve a combination of one, two, or all four.
It’s there when you achieve an understanding, bone-deep, with someone that you barely know. You can feel the English or whatever language you speak being paltry, stupid, distancing, and primitive compared to the language you’re already speaking.
It’s there when someone you’ve just been introduced to causes feelings of mutual, strong, and instant hostility. The language your mouth forms, the manners and smiles you coat that instinctual feeling with to avoid non-sequitur confrontation, are just as hollow and transparent.
It’s there when one uses language to define something that’s never been defined before. Labored and clumsy sounding on the tongue. The translation of your search into boring, boring language is crushing. It leaves ones feeling stupid and without the proper tools.
It’s there in poetry when one attempts to use language to surpass language. It's the use of words and terms to smack the surface of the invisible oceans like skipping stones to ripple emotions through an audience. It's using the listener or reader's own experiences as resonators for the terms employed.
I am not referring to instinct although that’s part of it. I am not referring to religious experiences although that’s part of it. I am not referring to the fanatical, smiling, glinting eye or science’s doors to the future although that’s part of it.
There are languages underlying, overlaying, and racing our own. They are a sea in which we swim daily.
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I am not just talking about tone of voice although that’s part of it. I am not just talking about eye contact although that’s part of it.
These other languages fill in the cracks of the paltry, upended, mish-mash of letters and animal sounds we use to communicate with our mouths.
There is the language of question. That is to one side of language. There is the language of defining. That is to the other side.
The language of the divine is above language. There is a base language below our vocabularies as well.
Again, these terms and directional identifiers are all for lack of a better word. No one is better than another and most languages outside of language involve a combination of one, two, or all four.
It’s there when you achieve an understanding, bone-deep, with someone that you barely know. You can feel the English or whatever language you speak being paltry, stupid, distancing, and primitive compared to the language you’re already speaking.
It’s there when someone you’ve just been introduced to causes feelings of mutual, strong, and instant hostility. The language your mouth forms, the manners and smiles you coat that instinctual feeling with to avoid non-sequitur confrontation, are just as hollow and transparent.
It’s there when one uses language to define something that’s never been defined before. Labored and clumsy sounding on the tongue. The translation of your search into boring, boring language is crushing. It leaves ones feeling stupid and without the proper tools.
It’s there in poetry when one attempts to use language to surpass language. It's the use of words and terms to smack the surface of the invisible oceans like skipping stones to ripple emotions through an audience. It's using the listener or reader's own experiences as resonators for the terms employed.
I am not referring to instinct although that’s part of it. I am not referring to religious experiences although that’s part of it. I am not referring to the fanatical, smiling, glinting eye or science’s doors to the future although that’s part of it.
There are languages underlying, overlaying, and racing our own. They are a sea in which we swim daily.
tags