Reading Response

Reading John Gage has caused me to realize that from the moment I learned my ABC’s, I’ve been being trained to string concepts together in hopes of someday articulating my thoughts.
Personally, when I begin to contemplate language and the important role it plays in a person’s conscious thoughts, words begin to turn into a vaguely visible gas, rather that the solid clay I had always imagined them as. Just the concept of these beautiful organs inside our heads being able to churn and process these words into tangible ideas and opinions puts me in a state of awe.
Not only that, but now we’ve moved into an area where we are studying the difference between saying, “commercial television threatens to diminish the intellectual standards of American society because most people would rather watch television than read” and “commercial television threatens to diminish the intellectual standards of American society because it demands no thought from the viewer.” (Page 94, The Shape of Reason) Far beyond just the words, we are studying the conceptual meaning of the different implications and how they could be translated by a person’s individual intellect.
It’s shocking how quickly we mature from using words to demand basic needs, to using words in a manner that’s intended to change someone psychologically. Obviously language meets more than the basic requirement of receiving necessities such as food and water. It makes me question the drive behind the use of language, and contemplate what would happen if we were somehow incapable of articulating our thoughts. It reminds me of the frustration that can be seen in a small child who is beginning to learn this creative nature of speaking, and is having a hard time communicating their meaning to others. What is it in a child’s psyche that causes them to believe in advanced communication being so important? What is it that causes anyone to rely on it?

This I believe

Perhaps more than anything, I believe in this; accidents happen. Fundamentally, we all know and accept this. However, we are quick to prosecute each other for mistakes. We’ve all made mistakes, committed accidents and experienced the hot burn of shame and regret that goes along with them. We have all requested forgiveness from another human and yet, it’s utterly disturbing how quick we are to point our fingers and how slow we are to give that very forgiveness we once desired.

It’s easy to see this trend in a country overflowing with petty lawsuits. People walking away from courthouses with hundreds of thousands of dollars because they spilled coffee in their lap and failed to recognize it was hot. These lawsuits are an insult to our human intelligence and common sense.

We need to stop accusing and searching for a shoulder to place regret and responsibility on, and begin exercising our empathetic nature. I have no doubt of our ability to apologize in an attempt to clear our own names, but I do worry about our ability to move on.