achebe posting- Jon R September 16, 2007

Achebe’s thoughts on communication and relaying information i believe were revolutionary. he was a modest man for the most part and this is how he wanted people to view him. although his message may be strong for certain instances it is not solely his opinion that he is representing. he write for the ones he cares about and for his community. he is a noble messenger, without the prejudice of political pressure and writing for the sake of money. his intentions are entirely different. he truly write s for the people. this is the way it should be. you shouldn’t have to go searching for a paper that doesn’t only reflect what the government tells it to. writers need to be free.

Language separating man from beast September 16, 2007

Achebe presents some good points in this piece about language, its use and how it can be abused.  I found some of the content on page 597 to be intriguing , especially when he talks about our ancestors crossing the first threshold from bestiality to humanness using language.  He starts out this writing telling us about the caveman story and how a language could have been used as opposed to inflicting pain on another to get your point across.  What about his idea that language could maybe help solve a lot of our problems in the world?  This is an overlooked idea that really does make sense.  If us humans would take time more often to listen to what others have to say then maybe a lot of our problems could be solved using words and not physical force such as war, for example.

Another good point was using language abusively.  Some of us are very powerful with words.  I personally consider myself manipulative if I want to be simply by using words.  I have of course used this at times to hurt others.  Like Mariko brought up in her post, language can be manipulated by advertisers to “fool” society into thinking one thing when they mean another.  I think that we just oftentimes underestimate the power of language and words and Achebe brings up a good point in his writing if you really stop and think about what kind of chaos the world would be in without this median to help us communicate with each other.

Achebe and Ridge September 16, 2007

I feel that Achebe is right. Language helps define a social class. Language like education, separates the true man, from it’s polar opposite. Achebe tries to touch every one by implying that God, or a higher power, is based on language. He compares it to Judaism and Christianity’s belief system. For language is a means of sharing ideas, without it no-one really learns. Sure some people could learn the trial and error way, but Plato talks about a teacher figure. i feel that Plato is not totally correct in saying that we NEED a teacher figure, but I feel that this style is more true than the trial and error method.

This is something I plan to use in my paper, so feel free to comment on it, it would help alot. Thanks
Ridge.

Achebe by Mac September 16, 2007

Achabe says “language was crucial to the creation of society” (p.593) this is true on many levels.  without language we wouldnt exist and would not be able to advance in any way.  this would cause the human race to be extinct.  also without communication we are lost.  language has been abused and as achebe says “can be turned from its original purpose into something useless or even deadly.” (p.597)  i agree completely with this, language has been abused and this abuse has been the cause of many fights or wars through our time. 

Achebe September 16, 2007

Without language we would get no where in life. Actually, we may not even exist. “One does have a feeling that without language we should have long been extinct (page 593).” Achebe seems to believe that language has been abused. “Can be turned from its original purpose and into something useless or even deadly (page 597).” I agree with him. There are so many ways to say and interpret different words that it has become decieving.  

Achebe by Cam W September 16, 2007

Language is a very powerful tool. The toungue is said to be the strongest muscle in the body, figuratively and literally. Great leaders are great leaders because primarily they are influential speakers. It is not always by action but by words that sway people. Eventually the actions will expose the words, however language is still the greatest tool for human kind. Achebe makes a valid point when he says that although humans are the only specie that seeks violence, it also prevents violence and prevents quite possibly the extinction of the human race.

 So much good or bad can come from the mouth. Words that may have the same initial meaning can be taken badly in certain contexts. It is important, especially in this day and age, to be cautious of not offending anyone. Still words can do much good for humans and so what Achebe wrote was an extremely important and relavent topic for humanity and it could even be argued that is should be a required text at the highschool level.

Achebe September 16, 2007

Achebe basically says that educationa and society cannot exist without the other. Education needs language to express ones thoughts and also there would be no society without language. Achebe definitly knew what he was talking about when he said language has evolved over time. The problem is that we like everything else abuse it. Language can be used in very minipulative ways and is not always the best thing. As beneficial as it is, it can also cause many problems.

September 16, 2007

ok, i liked readin this. i was so into it that i was a bit disappointed when it had to end. a sudden stop for me. now i like to point out the communication of the infant and mother. i liked that. it hits home for me. right now i am looking at two pictures of when my 2nd son was an infant. the first picture (revenge pic, naked in the tub) he is crying so hard. in the 2nd picture (right after the first pic. was taken) he is not crying. i too tried the trial and error, guessing and what he needed, knowing he need tub time. it was in fact, that he needed this big washcloth drapped across his belly to forever hold his peace. he actually fell asleep during bath time. now, i wouldnt have gone thru about 5 minutes of pure stress trying to figure out what was wrong, if my child of 1 month, could tell me he felt safe with that washcloth against him. language is great. sometimes glorified. but not always the best. good for the people that are good, but what, if it falls into the “wrong hands”?

the doondari descended the second time.

and he took the five elements

and he shaped them into mand

but man was proud

then doondari created blindeness and blindness defeated man

but when blindness became too proud

doondari created sleep and sleep defeated blindness

but when sleep became too proud

doondari created worry and worry defeated sleep

but when worry became too proud

doondari created death and death defeated worry.

Man is destroyed by pride. (all of this on pg. 598) language is so creative, it can be used in anyway we want. poetry, riddles or flat out to the point. we use it, we abuse it. we make love with it, we make hate with it. without it, we might not exist. but somehow i doubt this. we are not entirely seperated by animals. we are animals the same, just with opposable thumbs and we can tell you “fuck you” a whole lot easier. (pardon the language). we merely proved we are some what more intelligent than animals. history repeats itself, does our language not? could we not be using the same words just different ways 10 thousand times over? as long as we listen to what we need to hear and not garbage, maybe we can save our language. (ok, i better end this, i am so super tired and i have no idea what i was gettin at anymore…..)

Tommy D. Thoughts on Achebe September 16, 2007

E.)  I thought is was interesting how Achebe says that language can be a good thing or a bad thing.  I like how he used the examples of a cave man in the wrong cave and a mother with a newborn to show that language is so benificial to people and how it can solve all sorts of problems.  Then to show that language could be bad he came up with the quote, ” crime rates are increasing at a decreasing rate of increase.”  The gift of language can be misused like all of man kinds creation.  Wars can be starts because of someone with a silver tongue and no brains.  Another way language can be a good thing according to Achebe is there would be no society if there was no language or communication, and Achebe means real societies not like a bee or ant coloney.  I liked this excerpt from Acherbe, he is so passionate about language and just the magnificents of human’s ability to communicate.  I agree with what he is saying we would not have much today if we could not converse with all people of the world.  I also liked this reading becuase it is the first time I have heard this argument, it is very interesting.

September 16, 2007

“It has long been known that language, like any other human invention, can be abused, can be turned from its origional purpose into something useless or even deadly.”(Achebe 597) Languages can be manipulated in many different ways including; sales piches, advertising, magazines, and many more. Achebe mentions “”Be progressive! Use ABC toothpaste!” or invites you to a “saving spree” in a department store;..” (Achebe 597) Linguistic abuse can lead to many unwanted things, including; confusion, underminding, violence, and worst, world corruption.

Achebe posting:: Marie September 16, 2007

I really agree with most of what Achebe is saying about how language has evolved over time and how lots of important details have been lost due to, for lack of a better word, miscommunication. I really liked the example of the baby crying, because that is exactly what it is like to not be able to communicate using verbal or coherent hand signals. You just guess what the baby needs and eventually hope to figure out thier problem. And also his ideas on world cooperation where he talks about nature being at peace. He writes, “Only a tree stood in the air and there was wind. This tree fed on the atmosphere and ants lived on it. Wind, tree, ants, and atmosphere were controlled by the power of the word, but the word was something that could not be seen.” (Achebe, 595) This is one of my favorite quotes in the reading because it represents a lot of what I believe in, such as the idea that the world seems to not be able to get along even though we have language, but the things that don’t are living in harmony and cooperation.

Caleb on Achebe September 16, 2007

Language is another luxury that we all are guilty of abusing and taking for granted sometimes. Achebe’s message is clear when he says “language, like any other human invention, can be abused, can be turned from its original purpose into something useless or even deadly.” He sees language abused when people deliberately manipulate words for their own ends. A good example he gives of this is the sales pitch on pg. 597 “Be progressive! Use ABC toothpaste!”, or when a department store invites you to a “savings spree” where you will inevitably spend money, not save it. The most powerful example I thought he gave was the one at the very end on pg. 599. This is a good example of how words can be interfered with in such a deceitful way and effects all of mankind. In this instance where men send a messenger to God with a plea for immortality and he does not grant their request, the damage linguistic abuse causes is the mortality of mankind forever.

language and education September 16, 2007

without language, education would not exist. the ability to communicate with one another is how education works. Achebe says that there could be no society without language. there could be no society without education either. education and language go hand in hand in the development and growth of man. part of being educated is knowing how to effectivly express your thoughts through language. without language, humans would be stuck in a primative exsitence like the one achebe describes about the man being hit with a rock after entering someones house. language is what separates us from animals because it gives us the ability to act by thinking not by insticnt. Achebe says,” without language we should have long been extinct.” this is becuase without the ablity to think logically and communicate we would be a violent animal race that would kill itself out in a short time.

Achebe by Mariko September 16, 2007

B: Language can be manipulated and abused in the following ways. 1,to sell and tempt people to buy something .2,to mystify academic world. 3, to hide the fact (p597) . Achebe mentioned sales ,like “Be progressive ! Use ABC toothpaste ! “(p597, l 11.) , academic word “Bilateral mastectomy was perfomed.”(p597,  l 14.)and politics “to the politician who employs government prose to keep you in the dark about affairs n which your life or the lives of your children may depend or the official statistician whoassures you that crime rates ‘are increasing at a decreasing rate of increase.’ “(p597 ,l 15.) as examples of this kind of abuse. In politics, language can lead violence since one political duty is to defend one’s language from corruption. Hence, the violence starts because people cannot trust politicians.(p597)