Some pictures taken in

Summer 2018

Words

This is a very serious subject: particularly because so many who work on tiny meanings of words allow them to be misused. Formal political and religious talk is a often glaring example of this. Many will recall how George Orwell wrote about the subject on many occasions, finishing with the immortal phrase “all animals are equal, but some more equal than others”.

At a yoga session recently the leader said “May the universe be filled with peace”. Eh? If the sun, for example, was at peace then it would emit no heat: and we would all rapidly freeze t o death! It wasn’t the universe which was meant but probably the human population. OK, it could be said that “universe” was being used in a poetic sense. In the same way that one uses “heart”. But the poetic meaning and the accepted meaning should surely be distinctly different.

Another example may be of the many Christians who regularly use the words “World without end”.

Now it might be said that the phrase is used in its historic context and to re-write would lose the important ties to previous centuries of tradition and literature.

It might be said the “World” in this context is, in fact what one should describe as “Heaven”.

But let’s consider the matter. In “Through the looking glass” we find this:

`When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, `it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less.'

`The question is,' said Alice, `whether you can make words mean so many different things.'

`The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, `which is to be master - - that's all.'

A great deal of philosophic thought has gone on the subject.of language and words. It is not our place to reiterate such here.  But we do ask whether we should be like Humpty Dumpty and use words only as we understand them:  or use them in the way in which those who hear such words would be willing to use the same to convey to us the same meaning.as we intended in the words we had used to communicate with them.. Sorry, this is convoluted but with repeated reading will I hope ,make sense.