The Technology of Language

Did you realize that, as you are reading this, you are using one of the oldest and most sophisticated technologies on Earth?  Language has transported humanity in ways that nothing else ever has. 

Calvin's cardboard box aside.

       At its most basic, it’s a way to tell each other such things as “I’d like a bagel, please” or “Your hair’s on fire”.  But it’s also the way in which we explore the world together, and make sense of the things around us.  Imagine how lonely life would be if you never communicated with another individual, or how awkward it would be to express your love to someone without language in any of its forms.  

We often take language for granted, as it has essentially always been a part of us.  When we speak or read, many of us are no longer aware of the process behind it.  But when it comes to writing, that transparency has to be stripped away, and we need to think critically.  There is a lot of minutiae in writing, like buttons on a spaceship.  Grammar, formatting, poetic structures–all of these were designed to make things better for the reader, but they can bring despair and torment to a writer.

Don’t be fooled by their happy faces.  Those giant grammar blocks are about to crush them.

       As writers, we tend to want to overlook the minutiae in favour of the meaning of things and the emotion, but a reader can’t get to that meaning if they are busy stumbling over misused commas or misspelled words.  It’s the role of the pilot to know everything about the plane; the passengers get to enjoy the ride.  Writers need to be aware of how words function, and this takes practice.  Language serves a distinct purpose, and if we choose to use it, we must aim at accomplishing something specific.  When people buy your work, they are going to expect it to do something, just as we expect calculators to calculate, and washing machines to wash.  

Language is a well-built technology, but it is also a complicated one, and learning to use it can sometimes be an agonizing process.  As with any technology, it is unwieldy at first, but, at some point, it becomes familiar.  With a little patience and perseverance, we can all skillfully operate this wonderful contraption.