01.15.10
Languag-ing
What if we all spoke the same language? The Sapir-Whorf Theory says that the language you speak will influence the way you see the world: http://www.angelfire.com/journal/worldtour99/sapirwhorf.html
From the book, “Outliers” I read that the stereotype about Asians being good at math is not a stereotype, really. They are good at math because the names they give to their numbers make numbers easy to say, to think about, and to work with. While we say numbers like, “five-hundred-fifty-five,” Asian languages have an easier way to name their numbers, something like 5 adds to 5.
Humboldt wrote that we live in the world around us as language presents that world to us. Both Sapir and Whorf agreed that it is our culture that determines our language, which in turn determines the way that we categorize our thoughts about the world and our experiences in it.
What if we all spoke the language of humor–we would see the world in a different way, our thoughts would reflect our new language, and our actions would follow.
How will YOU see the world today? What language do YOU speak?
