Everything In This Blog Is A Lie

Branching off a little from Wednesday’s post, one of the reasons for the claim of intentional fallacy is the sign/signified split – that is, that the thing is not inherent in the word. I got into a conversation about this with my manager at the bike shop, revolving specifically around foul language. His argument was that, since our culture defines what a “foul” word is, he can reject that and use it; besides that, people don’t have a right to not be offended. Now, leaving aside the latter part of his argument for some other time (or, never might be fine too), let’s focus on this idea that “only culture gives meaning to words.”

Let me begin by saying I don’t disagree with him. To prove my point, just have a butcher’s around British colloquialisms. Or, just look at the one I used; in certain Brit circles, a “butcher’s” means a look around. I’m not sure specifically, but I know the full phrase is “butcher’s hook,” and that Cockneys have a neat little trait of taking a word, coming up with a rhyming phrase, and subsequently using that rhyming phrase instead of the word itself. So, I think, since butcher’s hook and look rhyme...maybe? Hopefully a Cockney friend can clear this up for me, or someone who has a Cockney friend.

That is a clear example of a certain culture assigning meaning to a word that no one else recognizes, without that meaning being expressed to them. My argument with my manager is that we shouldn’t then trivialize culture’s contribution to word meaning. As much as he worships science, his worship is a product of Western culture itself; everything gains “meaning,” at least by degree, from cultural construction. Does the fact that water boils at 212F matter to a tribe in the jungle that we haven’t found yet who are boiling water over a fire to cook meat? If we find them, figure out there language, and tell them; would they care?

If I say “bloody appalling” to you, do you care? You might wonder what is bloody appalling; but a Brit (at least at one time) sees that phrase the same way Americans see “f***ing appalling.” Is the F-word inherently foul? I would say, in certain uses, especially when used, culturally, to specifically denote sex – it is a very degrading word. But just because it matters less to someone does not mean it should not matter more to others.

So I completely reject this notion of “words have no meaning.” While technically true, it is nowhere near functionally true. We debase ourselves and language and culture when we try to live otherwise. Words are the only way we have to express ideas – something which many recognize as the only thing separating us from the rest of the animal kingdom. I have the added motive that God spoke creation into existence. So yes, words are very powerful, and they do have meaning; if they don’t, then I don’t know how you read this far because this is just a bunch of Calibri lines on a page.

In the middle of Chapter 14, now; had to quit to do some homework, in the middle of rewriting a scene. Frustrating. But, moving along. See you Monday.