On the Decline of Language

This has been a difficult idea for me as I do love the proper use of language.  I found myself having to remember that we are talking about language and politics rather than language and literature.  I find it difficult to read a piece of work that is not well written and usually give up at some point and stop reading it.  But when we marry it with politics and having to get a message across to the American people, ALL the American people (this includes non-traditional American citizens), than yes, using what Orwell refers to as a "decline of language" is necessary.  Your neighbor, co-worker, or friend may not have had the opportunity to be educated to a degree where proper usage of the English language is easy for them to understand.  Is this their fault?  Maybe, maybe not.  Maybe it was just enough for them to learn English as a second, maybe even third or fourth language.  So would that mean that they should not be entitled to a form of speech that they would understand?  After all, this is their country also and they should not be discouraged to get involved because it is "above their heads".

I could understand Orwell's views, except concerning foriegn language, if it were a literary or scholarly speech.  But that is not what he was discussing.  He was focusing on politics, and politics are for everyone, the educated and the uneducated alike must know, and are absolutely entitled to know the current events of the country they live in.

History of Reading

I found an interesting point of the book that I had to keep reading over and over.  And that was how the very first books were created.  The papyrus that was made out of "dried and split stems of a reed-like plant", and parchment, or vellum, "both made from the skins of animals, through different procedures".   Parchment folded once became a folio, twice a quarto, three times on octavo.  I love the history of reading and how it came about, and including the history of the creation of books was such a thrill. 

The exactness ordered by a King was not only a necessity, but a law, and the production of papyrus was even considered a national secret.  The importance of books can be found in many aspects when looking back over their history.  Man has always wanted to communicate and has found the most imaginitive ways, from carving on sticks to drawing on cave walls.  It just amounts to the simple fact that written communication will continue in one form or another.

Imagination Lost

What I would have liked to see addressed in this article is the loss of imagination, individualism, and free thought.  In my experience I have enjoyed reading great works, sharing them with others, and then going to see the movie.  I have found it very interesting that the other people whom I have shared the book with, and the creators of the movie, all interpreted the literature with different views.  How fascinating that the layers of the story were revealed when we were left to our own means of understanding.  And when putting it all together it gains depth and richness that I would not have experienced on my own.  I don't want instant gratification of a good story seen through a director's eyes without me having the joy of first living through the tale myself.  Our world was built on ingenuity and imagination.  I wonder if that would slowly come to a halt if we allowed ourselves to only experience literature on  a screen. 

Hi everyone!  Hmmm, a little about me.  I have 3 grown children who are in different states going to college, and a 5 year old son, whose arrival in my world was a complete surprise, who lives with me.  We have an overgrown puppy, 1 cat, and 3 lizards.  When the weather is nice I like to take my son out for a ride on my Harley Sportster.  He swears it's a rocket Autobot and we seem to always be on the way to take down Megatron.