Politics and English Language
POLITICS AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
George Orwell in his essay 'Politics and the English Language' discusses the flaws and degeneration of English language. He believes that since the language is clearly losing its focus and direction, it is rapidly becoming unclear and vague giving rise to literary pieces that make little or no sense at all. Many people share Orwell's observation and feel that for some odd reason, English language is bringing on its own decline by making some common mistakes repeatedly and persistently. It has been noticed that with frequent use of words and phrases that sound fancy enough but actually lack meaning, English writing is becoming unclear and unfocused. The author has cited some examples of how the so-called learned people make clear mistakes in English writing and the vocabulary they use simply is mind-boggling. Readers are left in a sate of confusion and they wonder whether their own standards have declined or have they suddenly lost command over this language for what they read certainly doesn't sound like English to them. This modern English is very different from what we call Standard English and we notice that modern English is guilty of four very common mistakes or blunders. These errors are as follows:
Orwell believes that the first terrible mistake made by modern writers is the use of old and almost dead metaphors. He is of the view that since writers no longer try to build their vocabulary or invent new and better phrases for themselves, they often use similes or metaphors that have become so dry and dull, that they do not serve their purpose and fail to excite the readers. He writes, "there is a huge dump of worn-out metaphors which have lost all evocative power and are merely used...
Orwell Discussion on George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair, who is better remembered by his pen name, George Orwell, was one of the most influential authors of the twentieth century. He is one of the few modern day individuals who has fostered the creation of a new word -- "Orwellian." This word itself could be the subject of an entire book with many modern day examples. This has led many people to believe
Politics and the English Language" by George Orwell George Orwell's discourse on the political and social significance of the modern English writing is the primary theme shown in his essay, "Politics and the English Language," written in 1945. In this discourse, Orwell discusses the faults of modern English language regarding the gradual spread of vagueness and "insincerity" in the meaning of prose text. Furthermore, Orwell analyzes how certain writers of
It is a work that seems to be eerily familiar to what is happening in many areas of society today, and that is one aspect of the novel that makes it exceedingly frightening to read. References Abdolian, Lisa Finnegan, and Harold Takooshian. "The U.S.A. PATRIOT Act: Civil Liberties, the Media, and Public Opinion." Fordham Urban Law Journal 30.4 (2003): 1429+. A secondary source that gives useful information on the U.S.A. Patriot Act.
Just as foolish thinking produces sloppy language, orthodoxy in thinking produces dull and unoriginal language. 13) Political leader defend the indefensible by making vague and cliche connections between the indefensible event/practice/policy and some far vaguer principle or goal. Though the situation has become almost cliche itself, the invasion and occupation of Iraq as a mean of bringing freedom to the region is a solid modern example. 14) No answer. 15) Insincerity by definition creates a
Language Deliberately deceptive language manipulates the audience. This is as true for the use of propaganda for nefarious political purposes, such as voter manipulation, as it is for good old-fashioned maintenance of prejudices via the proliferation of stereotypes. Advertising is replete with manipulative language constructed to sell products and services. Language can be used to distract, impress, persuade, and achieve goals other than the direct communication of thoughts and ideas. Specific
Lying: Deceit in Language Tools, such as hammers, have no inherent intent to deceive or malign. Only in the hands of its users do morals come into play. Lying is relative and in some instances the best of choices. Introspection accompanied with reasoning skills will help those receiving language signals to properly classify, and then act upon or ignore, these relations. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relative
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now