We discussed in class today how many of us tend to have favorite words that we unconsciously use over and over. As we know, Mr. Bradford's favorite word happened to be "sundry." However, I wonder, do the words we use reflect who we are? Some of us might tend to use "bigger" words than others, but aren't there some words out there that just "feel" right to you? When you're searching for the perfect word, all of your intensional, personal perceptions of the word and its connotations are taken into account, and perhaps the words you choose are symbols of your mental mindset and intensional map. After all, what leads one person to describe a problem as a "challenge" and another as an "opportunity"? Even in describing everyday events, what leads a person to choose, say, "gloomy" over "depressing"? Of course contexts play an important role, but perhaps we express a little of ourselves depending upon which words we choose.
According to the Oxford English Corpus (www.doiop.com/oxford), "work" is one of the top ninety words we use, but "play" and "rest" aren't even in the top 100. "War" is more commonly used than "peace," and the most commonly used noun is "time." Are those just coincidences, or do the words we use reveal anything about society? Can we learn anything by looking at a list of the words we use most? (Another interesting website is www.doiop.com/vocab.)
Thoughts?
PS: I notice that I tend to use the words "perhaps" and "regarding" a lot in my writing...What are your pet words?
(Eric Wei)
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6 comments:
We, as AP students, happen to be very fond of the words "work" (too much) and time (a lack thereof). But this is merely the lifestyle that we wish to lead. We work hard, and accordingly, our lives are altered. With these alterations come new perceptions of the world. With these new perceptions come new forms of self-expression which most commonly is language.
Language can be a pretty static thing, if a speaker makes it so. Connotations, however, make it dynamic and give each word a different shade of personal flavoring which stem from experiences that one has endured. We've learned all of this from Hayakawa. Even dictionaries are based on how WE have picked our words over the years.
"The writing of a dictionary, therefore, is not a task of setting up authoritative statements about the "true meanings" of words, but a task of recording, to the best of one's ability, what various words have meant to authors in the distant or immediate past" (Hayakawa 35).
I'm really curious to find out what my preferred words are; I shall find out soon enough. I think I like "merely".
(Sam Maliha)
I think that we can learn about something about society with these repeating words. We are probably most likely to use the same words when we experience similar situations in which we have used the word before. For example, once you get to a certain grade, you will have 'work' to do for the rest of your life. This leads to the amount of 'time' you have to do other things. Therefore, the common use of such words shows how in our society, work is something normal.
Concerning the words 'war' and 'peace,' I think that people talk about war more because it leaves more of an impression in people's thoughts. I mean, seriously, how many times have you heard someone rejoice about being in a peaceful time? (whether in a war situation or not) It's almost as if peace is a default sort of position. Many people don't express their thoughts about it because it's something normal.
In my writing, I think I tend to use a lot of qualifiers, specifically 'most' and 'probably.'
Hi,it's Jenn
I believe that the commonly used words do describe some aspects of the society;however, isn't it true that in other societies(such as the medieval period or may be even other countries) words such as 'work' or 'time' would be the most frequently used words as well? Aren't most commonly used words like mom, dad, work, or war present in other cultures too? Personally, I do feel that words reflect the society to certain extent; however, it would be hard to distinguish or categorize different societies by just comparing the individual words. We need the context in which the words are used to understand the topic better.
There is a clear distinction between words we like and words we use the most. May be a statistics on people's favorite words would help understand the society.
I use the word "different" a lot,
but my favorite words are garrulous, titilate, and amalgamate-although I rarely use them(they are so random!).
(Jennifer Park)
I agree with Sam's thoughts regarding connotations. I believe that rather than the actual meanings or definitions of words themselves, it is the connotations implied by the words we use that determine which words we choose to use. Eric noted that while one person may choose to describe a problem as a "challenge," another may describe it as an "opportunity." I think the primary reason for this is the difference in the connotations people wish to give their writing or speech.
I also agree with Mary's explanation for society's "top" or most-used words. Such words may be used more than others because they describe uncommon or special situations that catch people's attention. Words that are not used as often, such as "rest" or "peace," may describe what some people consider "usual" or "default," as Mary stated, and are thus not used as frequently.
However, I question the use of a list of frequently used words to make conclusions about society. This is because words have multiple definitions and differ from situation to situation. How could you describe society based solely on the list if you do not know what the words were being used to describe or how the words were used? Thus, I agree with Jenn that contexts would be needed to ensure more accuracy in this process.
My favorite words are clearly evident in my writing...I use them too often. They are "thus," "however," and "indeed."
(Janet Lee)
If language is the verbalization of our thoughts and is constructed with words, then words should show what is most often in our thoughts. None of those words surprise me as being the most used. EVERYONE thinks about them. They are all continuous. Time is ever present and ever changing, war is almost always going on somewhere, and work is always on our plate. With things so persistent, how can they not always be on someones mind?
I believe because of society's pressure on our mind's these words must definitely describe the world today. Especially because it is society that puts these words in our heads.
(Megan)
I certainly think the words we use are reflective of society. We are a society ruled by the clock, the rising and setting of the sun, the 365-day year, etc. Time certainly plays a large role in our lives, therefore, it makes sense that it plays a large role in our vocabulary.
War, too, is interesting to look at. It is hard to think of a time when war is not a part of the world's existence. Whether on international, national, or even personal levels, war is a part of our daily lives. Competition is a form of warfare, and we are surrounded by competition daily. It's a part of the human lifestyle.
The idea of having "favorite words" is certainly reflective of semantic environment, as much as "time" and "war" are reflective of our society, which is a more general form of semantic environment. I have oftentimes found that when I spend extensive periods of time with people, I not only subconsciously pick up words or phrases that they frequently use, but many times I purposefully add words that I like into my vocabulary. Now, I understand the first part of that, but I certainly don't understand why I like certain words and choose to adopt them... maybe it's the way they sound...
Emily T.
P.S. "This is because words have multiple definitions and differ from situation to situation. How could you describe society based solely on the list if you do not know what the words were being used to describe or how the words were used?" -Janet
I think Janet's question is interesting. The fact that words do have different meanings for each context, but we use them so generally, could this possibly be, almost, dangerous? We narrow the definition in our minds, so these once broadly-defined words become almost dreadful. For example, "time" is used very often, and I generally associate "time" with "not enough", even though time can be used, for example, "a good time". Because my definition is so narrow, I dread thinking about time, and I even take off my watch on vacation.
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