I grew up with a tremendous respect for language and its utility for both function and beauty. Both of my parents were voracious readers whose tastes were grounded in the classics of western civilization, running the gamut from the Greeks to Studs Terkel. (Note: Anyone who doesn’t think Mr. Terkel is a master of language and idiom should read either Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression or Terkel’s heartfelt anti-war screed Hope Dies Last which I do not agree with one iota politically but is a beautifully written book nonetheless).
My father in particular, loved poetry especially romantics like Emily Dickinson. If there is one thing about poets from that era I’ve always admired, it was the way they used the natural rhythms of the spoken word to draw pictures of ideas and emotions. Poetry in the 19th century was written largely to be read aloud. Hence, we have classics like Longfellow’s Midnight Ride of Paul Revere where you can hear the pounding hoof beats of the horse in the rhyme and meter of the language:A hurry of hoofs in a village street,
A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark,
And beneath, from the pebbles, in passing, a spark
Struck out by a steed flying fearless and fleet;
That was all! And yet, through the gloom and the light,
The fate of a nation was riding that night;
And the spark struck out by that steed, in his flight,
Kindled the land into flame with its heat.
I suppose all of this makes me something of an ethno-centric elitist. Ask me if I care. No one will be able to convince me that the English language in the hands of a master like Longfellow is anything but a thing of beauty, something to be loved and cherished forever. It is perhaps an outmoded concept that children should learn, memorize, and recite classic verse in that it gives them a confidence with language that many young people lack today. One need only listen to an interview with a typical 18 or 19 year old on MTV to be shocked by their inability to express themselves. And while it’s unlikely that the language skills of today’s youngsters has been anything but nominally affected by de-emphasizing the study of classic verse in high school, it nevertheless is indicative of a lack of concern regarding verbal and written communication skills among educators in general.
What brought on these reflections regarding poetry and language were two separate blog posts; one by the eclectic and enjoyable group of bloggers at Maggie’s Farm who, in addition to highlighting a “Bird of the Week” and writing of their experiences on a rural New England farm, also regularly post poetry on the site. No commentary or analysis; just good verse from excellent poets. Their most recent poetry post was Kipling’s “Tomlinson” which tells the story of a working class man confronting his life and mortality, told in Kipling’s inimitable style of plain, rollicking language and precise meter:
Now Tomlinson gave up the ghost in his house in Berkeley Square
And a Spirit came to his bedside and gripped him by the hair
A Spirit gripped him by the hair and carried him far away,
Till he heard as the roar of a rain-fed ford the roar of the Milky Way:
Till he heard the roar of the Milky Way die down and drone and cease,
And they came to the Gate within the Wall where Peter holds the keys.
“Stand up, stand up now, Tomlinson, and answer loud and high
The good that ye did for the sake of men or ever ye came to die
The good that ye did for the sake of men in little earth so lone!”
And the naked soul of Tomlinson grew white as a rain-washed bone.
“O I have a friend on earth,” he said, “that was my priest and guide,
And well would he answer all for me if he were by my side.”
The other blog post that started me thinking in this direction was an interesting piece from Jesse Taylor, proprietor of the center-left blog Pandagon. Taylor’s impassioned “In Defense of Cursing” echoes many of my own ideas about the proprietary nature of blogs and being able to publish whatever one pleases. In particular, Taylor takes on those who object to his use of language when he tries to refute what he sees as the idiocy of rightwing “nutjobbers:”
Why do I curse? One, because it’s my site. In my work for Jerry, in my work for eVote way back when, in any non-Pandagon work I do in the future, if the person writing my checks asks me not to curse, then I will not. But this is my site, which I pay for, on which I write what I want. More importantly, if you track my cursing, you’ll notice I often go several points without uttering anything stronger than “crap”. I have rules for this s**t, you know.
Now Taylor and I wouldn’t agree on what time the sun rises much less anything politically. And I find his hysterical rants against imagined conservative sins to be laughably shallow and desperately juvenile, full of the typical paranoia and hyper-exaggeration that passes for “analysis” on lefty blogs these days.
But when it comes to the scatological use of language, Taylor has few equals. My own past efforts in this regard degenerated into incoherence which is why I don’t try to use cursing to express myself anymore. I just don’t have the knack.
But in many ways, Taylor and I are two sides of the same mirror. He and I share a passion for politics as well as the driving necessity to use language in order to move, to provoke, to chastise (as opposed to simply criticize), to enlighten, and to poke fun at the opposition. For Taylor, the judicious use of obscenity is a calculated effort to shock his readers’ sensibilities and force them to confront language he sees as either imprecise or downright misleading:
For some reason, “You’re a f**king racist idiot” is a more offensive statement than “black people have less native intelligence than other races, and embrace poverty accordingly”. Even worse is the “the major goddamn drain on the budget is the tax cuts, as the federal budget has shown every f**king year since 2002”, which simply blows “the tax cuts have increased revenue, because that’s the power of fiscal conservatism” out of the water. A lie, an insult, a grossly racist imputation is afforded legitimacy because it’s said nicely.
Obviously, I believe Taylor is exaggerating the intent and dissembling the facts of the two statements he chose to highlight. But for his purposes, the obscenities served him well. Which brings me to my final point; does such language contribute positively to political discourse? Does it matter?
The short answer to both questions is no. It’s his blog and he can swear if he wants to. And as for political discourse, I’m sure Mr. Taylor would agree that neither he nor I are interested converting anyone. Polemicists are mostly about expressing their own opinion in as controversial and disputatious manner as possible and may the devil take moderation.
Even many conservative friends have taken me to task for being unyielding in this regard. “Can’t we all just get along” is a fine sentiment but hardly germane to politics as it is practiced today. Yes there are times when I bow to reason and logic to agree with Democrats and the left. But on The Really Big Issues of war and peace, the destruction of our culture versus the preservation of many of our values, and the best way to promote freedom and democracy at home and abroad, I stand as a man of the right and damn those who oppose me.
8:27 am
.. which is why we love you so dearly, Rick!
And speaking of beautiful language and Kipling, I grew up with the sound of my Daddy’s voice reading “Just So Stories” to me. Usually he’d read the shorter ones, but if I was sick, of had been especially good (or begged persistantly enough), he’d read the longer ones.
In my opinion, the absolute BEST Just So story is “the Butterfly that Stamped.”
My daughter (9) is now an addict, too. And, she has also asked me to read “Paul Revere’s Ride” to her as well. I cannot read it without choking up in the final third.
I LOVE beautiful writing like that!
Wonderful post, Rick – thanks so much!
—R’cat
8:32 am
What else is new, bottom-feeding political pundits living in the gutter see nothing else but the excrement dripped on their faces. It is only natural for such words to spew forth from their mouths. Like, hey man, how cool is ms Taylor or what, speaking her ‘truth to power’ and all…she smells so good.
I suppose I should qualify with ‘sorry’ BUT I no longer wish to get along with bottom-feeders, their stench is polluting the atmosphere of free people around the world.
9:02 am
I don’t think your failure to curse has to do with a lack of knack, Rick—it’s plain old weak language, chosen for shock-effect rather than expression. I have yet to find an expletive that more effectively expresses a point than a well-chosen non-expletive. If you have to lace your statements with sensationalist words to get people to “look at me,” well, then there probably isn’t much substance to look at. Of course it is Ms. Taylor’s right to curse on her blog if it makes her feel better, but she should give her celebration of the practice another thought. This language has become a counter-culture cliche, and like all cliches, has a pretty hollow ring to it. Why do we banish these words from academic discourse, let alone from conversations with children? Along these lines, why is a well-placed “unhelpful” from the Secretary of Defense more explosive than all the rants of Hugo Chavez? Because a whisper can be much more powerful than a screech, and rigorous, disciplined language is can be immediately and startling compelling to those now impervious to words that might have been shocking 50 years ago, but which, through rampant overuse, have become meaningless.
9:27 am
People curse for the same reasons they smoked in their youth.
Feel big yet?
9:51 am
When I see cursing on blogs I just figure the bloggers writing skills aren’t up to snuff and they’re trying to make up for it by sensationalizing.
Cursing does have its place however. A good string of curses afther hitting one’s finger with a hammer helps take the sting out.
10:25 am
I have had this debate with one of the other bloggers on Lifelike. Cursing to me is a sign that your arguments are weak. Note particularly that the places where Jesse uses the cursing are conservative arguments that she cannot rebut with fact, because the facts are on the other side. As somebody once said, when you have the facts on your side argue the facts, when you have the law on your side, argue the law. When you have neither, holler!
11:38 am
Shame.
“language and its utility”
Please.
it’s is an abbreviation for it is.
its is the possessive.
Coming from a house full of books, you should know better!
I still like your NO timeline.
2:47 pm
Commenters 3,4,5, and 6—get out of my head.
It’s disconcerting, reading my thoughts before I can post them.
6:17 pm
Hate to disagree with such a normally brilliant blogger but….
There’s no reason for it to be an outmoded concept to have children “learn, memorize, and recite classic verse.” My kids have been doing so for years, as do many homeschoolers.
Taylor has few equals if we’re talking quantity instead of quality. She can string them together. what she can’t do is substitute an astute vocabulary and thoughtful ideas for the steam.
Once upon a time it was widely understood that cursing was the resort of the ill educated, illiterate classes who had limited intellectual resources.
Some people still understand that.
Where I agree with you:
Pretty much everything you said about poetry.
It’s still Taylor’s blog and she can and should say what she wants. I’ve read it three times because somebody I liked linked to it, but that’s enough for me. She can write what she wants coz it is her blog, and I shall not be reading it because these are my eyes and this is my brain and I don’t want that language in it. Both of us are happier that way.
11:00 pm
“I grew up with a tremendous respect for language and it’s utility for both function and beauty. ”
That sentence would be more effective if it had its apostrophe in the correct place.
5:42 am
Your comment would have been more effective if you had seen that another commenter already pointed that out.
8:15 am
(Blushing bright red…) I often use “language”-not because I’m an uneducated dunce though. I write like I speak…it’s a habit and I can’t break it. I’ve tried.
I have experienced many colorful events in my life and I refuse to change who I am. I can be serious when I need to be without the four letter words. I can be critical as well, without that. I consider my “language” to be an extension of who I am…and others who judge me based upon my use of words are hollow and high and mighty. I respect almost everyone, no matter how they speak/write/think. I don’t respect those who judge others without first getting to know them.
Great thought provoking post Rick. Maybe I should try to stop using THOSE words.
LOL
8:24 am
I’m afraid I really didn’t make it clear that swearing isn’t wrong or bad necessarily. Anyone who has read James Joyce or even John Updike knows that swear words have a utility in literature.
And I think that when used the way Ms. Taylor uses cursing, it can be an effective way to communicate – not one I’d choose but nevertheless effective as shock value.
As some have suggested, she uses those words to hide holes in her arguments. Of that, I have no doubt. I guess to my mind, they are just words whose utility is extremely limited but when used in a proper context, are acceptable to many (not all, DHM and I agree with your arguments as they relate to the formal use of language…not to mention good manners and good taste.)
In sum, I think if I had this post to do over I would have been clearer about my intent – a hazard of blogging on the fly when I just put a “stream of consciousness” post like this together. I will try to be more careful in the future.
10:04 am
People tend to resort to swearing when they reach the limits of their intellectual capacity.
It’s like an emergency fuel tank. Unfortunately, with some the emergency fuel tank is much larger than the main tank.
10:13 am
I don’t think I misunderstood this post Rick, not at all. And I wouldn’t re-write this…it makes a good point.
Everyone is different and that’s a good thing. Like I said..I can turn off the language when I need to. Just a like a faucet. I think I tend to be more “mouthy” around those I am comfortable with. But when I need to make an important point, I can write and speak without the distraction of foul words and gesture. LOL
10:16 am
But Rick, I think what made the swearing effective in Joyce or even Updike was that when they did it (or started doing it) it was highly unusual, and so shocking. At this point, their imitators have made it a cliche for “authenticity”—and so Taylor’s language winds up not being shocking, but derivative and tired. We’re inured to it now—and so just skim over the *** words, which leaves very little.
12:02 pm
Strawman:
Try this from Human Rights Watch:
http://hrw.org/doc/?t=americas&c=venezu
Or this from Amnesty International:
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGAMR530052004?open&of=ENG-VEN
The fact that CEPR has 121,000 “hits” in a google search is idiotic. The Democratic Underground gets nearly 30,000 google hits and has posited the notion that the tsunami last December was the result of a secret US government experiment.
Google hits do not mean crap.
I am impressed with your defense of the “legitimately” elected Chavez. Too bad most of the rest of the free world disagrees with you. Only apologists like Carter and you didn’t pay attention as Chavez commandeered an estimated 50% of the ballot boxes and took the votes away so that they could be “protected.”
Been hearing the same crap about Castro for 50 years. Chavez is a thug.
12:28 pm
Oh – and the tsunami theory on Democratic Underground? Turns out that it was contributed by a poster to a message board.
By that logic, you should be held accountable for anything that I say.
Let’s try it: “the moon landing was a hoax!”
Wow, you really think that?
2:08 pm
How did Venezuela enter into this? But since it did, I have to share that my proudest internet moment occured yesterday when one of my anti-Chavez posts was picked up by VCRISIS. What’s going on in Latin America is utterly appalling and anyone who thinks otherwise (like most of my colleagues at work) has their heads stuck firmly in the sand.
2:15 pm
I do find it amusing that he (Crooks & Liars says “he” about Jesse) even admits that swearing discredits one’s own case: “A lie, an insult, a grossly racist imputation is afforded legitimacy because it’s said nicely.”
4:08 pm
Pat:
I had it right the first time as far as gender for Jesse. I then went to Pandagon and saw a post on “old clothes” and saw that the poster was throwing away lingerie. I then changed all the personal pronouns to feminine.
Today I found out that Jesse is indeed a man and changed them back.
Sheesh…good thing we humans only have two genders. Otherwise, it might get pretty confusing.
4:25 pm
Here’s a comment from a moonbat who insists I’m deleting his comments. I think I’ll just repeat the words of the title of this post: F**k him and the F**kin horse he rode in on.
*******************************************
Incidentally, it seems that my previous comments have mysteriously vanished from this board, so I won’t spend much time on this one.
Read the Amnesty International report. Here’s a sampling: “Amnesty International believes that the Venezuela government had a clear duty to guarantee public order in the face of frequently violent protests – which included the use of firearms by some protestors.”
The general tone of the report is that unrest in Venezuela is leading to violent abuses on both sides. The government is failing to enforce order, and has acted improperly in some cases. The unrest, according to the CEPR and many other reliable sources, has been caused in part by the Bush administration when they backed an un-democratic coup against Chavez.
According to Amnensty International, this is what Venezuela was like in the year before Chavez took office:
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGAMR530131997?open&of=ENG-VEN
It begins: “While Venezuela has increasingly come under the spotlight of international public attention for its appalling human rights record suffered by members of its adult population, one extraordinary fact has remained all but hidden: children in Venezuela are also at risk of serious human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings and torture, as well as ill-treatment and arbitrary detention ”
I have to conclude that conditions in Venezuela have improved under Chavez, and have only been faltering in response to conditions created by the Bush administration.
4:33 pm
Anyone who is an apologist for Chavez is so blinded by leftist stupidity that rational thought escapes them.
Chavez rigged the recount, has caused thousands to disappear, arrested and imprisoned more thousands where they’re tortured by his cuban friends, has supported the narco terrorists of FARC, and generally made an idiot of himself in his wild, exaggerated, unsubstantiated charges against the US.
He is a threat to the region. And if he’s so effing popular, how come the general strike last year brought the country to an absolute standstill?
Congratulations on defending a murderous thug so well.
6:40 pm
But when a long Train of Abuses and Usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object, evinces a Design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their Right, it is their Duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future Security.
The Declaration of Independence – 1776
*****************************************************
and…bye the bye…in your response to CHAVEZ If you change the name Chavez to BUSH (Sr. or Jr.) works too.
Sure is great to be an American.
11:57 pm
I cannot help myself sometimes. S**T often fits a situation so well, though I don’t use it on my blog. Like you, I grew up in a house of readers and I was often ridiculed for using “big words,” but you use the language you know whether it’s gutter or elitist.
10:17 am
Rick, I don’t think Raven was upset with you, I think Raven is upset with me (I don’t want to be too self-centered, but I am the one who said swearing was the result of a limited mind).
Raven’s right- I grossly overstated the case, and I apologize, and I wasn’t even accurate, because certainly not everybody who swears is a dunce.
I do not believe, though, that any human being who isn’t disabled truly cannot help it. Habits can be broken. Sometimes it hurts a lot to try (and I have several very bad habits of my own that I have yet to cure, but I figure that’s because my will is weak, not because it is humanly impossible). Since you say you can guard your language when it is necessary, obviously it is something you could control if it was a priority, just as I could control my bad habits if they were a high enough priority for me. It might be terribly difficult and the equivilant of climbing Mt. Everest in exercising self discipline, but it could be done.
Raven, it also seems to me that there are at least two internal contradicitions in this statement:
“I consider my “language†to be an extension of who I am…and others who judge me based upon my use of words are hollow and high and mighty. I respect almost everyone, no matter how they speak/write/think. I don’t respect those who judge others without first getting to know them.”
If your language is an extension of who you are, and I agree that it generally is, how is it ‘hollow and high and mighty’ to judge you based upon your use of words? You said yourself it is an extension of yourself.
When you say you do not respect those who judge others without first getting to know them, have you yourself really gotten to know those you’ve decided you do not respect?
Full disclosure: I have a relative who will not guard his language under any circumstances, not around our Christian parents, not around my young children, not around young children who might be sitting near him on the bus because he says he doesn’t believe in self-censorship. To me this translates as him not believing in self-control. And I am just a little bit tired of living in a world of people too much like this relative, who not only think nothing of using language once reserved for thugs or for private settings in front of my kids, but who defend it. Yeah, I’m cranky on the subject. But I’ve rarely (read, never) read or heard any swearing that truly enhanced a point as much as the swearer thought it did.
4:33 pm
It is my assumption, there are few Americans on this blog… In order to assist with education of linguistics as it pertains to social communication; it is largly agreed that poetry and fictitious literature is an invaluable resource with reference to ones recreational disposition. With reflection,
FACT is always more powerful than fiction. Language is a gift. It is much more gracious to use language/communication with respect for all.
“But when a long Train of Abuses and Usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object, evinces a Design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their Right, it is their Duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future Security.”
The Declaration of Independence – 1776
*****************************************************
! (many Peoples)
Welcome to EARTH - One World, One Future
8:16 pm
“I stand as a man of the right and damn those who oppose me.” Amen, Semper Fi,Halleluja,Molon Labe, and any other words of agreement and resolve. No great thing has ever been accomplished by a weather vane. Those who claim to be “Moderates” have no beliefs except the belief they can be persuaded. I grew up when the phrase “Better Red than dead” was popular and those who used it never realised they would end up both Red and dead. Some things are not negotiable and must be resisted. Only today would there be debates about the right or wrong of NAMBLA or loyalty to country or illegal aliens or “Freedom Fighters” (terrorists). As one of my favorite bits of bumpersticker wisdom states “A liberal is someone whose mind is so open his brain has fallen out. Thanks for the good work. MIKE
7:52 pm
Sometimes to ‘assume’ one tends to make an ass out of you and me (ass/u/me) however being 1/4 Native American, 1/2 French and 1/4 ‘sooner’ (sooner be one as the other) and educated through the works of Burroughs, Hubert, Doyle, Pasternak and others I am somewhat able to navigate the vagaries of the English/American language. This blog has delighted me with the various P.O.V’s it has presented. I doubly appreciate those that are able to make their point without resorting to vulgarities. I do not judge those that ‘seem’ to be linguistically challenged as that would require an ‘assumption’ on my part. Therefore ‘have at it’ my friends and the devil take the hind-most. This is wonderful