Lombrozo's Use Of Ambiguous Language

Orwell begins his essay claiming that the “English language is in a bad way” which he continuously gives examples of throughout the rest of the essay. From the start, it is clear that Orwell believes that the English language is on a continuous downward spiral that is not caused by one person, but by the collection of everyone. Language has become ugly and inaccurate, which engages no imagery and makes the people look foolish, making the idea worthless. People have stopped trying to make their statements precise and as clear to the audience as possible, which is spreading to the next generations. They also are more concerned with how the sentence looks with big vocabulary, often using those words or phrases incorrectly, than about the big

Initially, Orwell clearly states in his essay that imagery as-well as the conciseness that is needed for clear writing remains lacking. In “Politics and the English Language,” Orwell states that writing consists of “vagueness and sheer incompetence” (par 9). To clarify, writers can obtain superior writing when they utilize the art of precision and provoke the reader, not confuse him or her. In addition, when using the English language, the writer should stimulate a sensory image in the reader’s mind. Using metaphors that are not outdated and being clear that the metaphor makes sense exists as an ideal in altering the way society uses the English language.

George Orwell’s first rule is “never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print” (Orwell 412). Authors have a lack of creativity in their writing. They are continuously writing a mashed up version of what others have already said. Orwell states the English language is becoming “inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish” (402). Because people do not give the proper attention to writing as needed, it is becoming nonsense. Writings become less meaningful because writers rephrase and reuse other’s words rather than develop their own creative thoughts. He also says that writing “consists of gumming together long strips of words which have already been set in order by someone else” (Orwell 407). People are working harder on finding ways around plagiarism rather than creating their own words. The lack of personal influence in their writing causes readers to wonder whether or not the author really has something worth saying.

Those are a few of the criteria that the media looks for when broadcasting a story as it creates a shock value that draws in viewers and can create a better visual. For the Las Vegas attack, the media showed diagrams of where the “sniper” was when he began shooting (BBC, 2017), and videos quickly went viral of the concert right when the shooting began. Greer (2007) argues that with the rapid development of technology it has changed how media produces their stories, and picks crimes more on a visual bases to create a media spectacle. This could explain why those mass shootings were so widely covered.

Orwell doesn’t just make this comment, his entire paper is littered with snide comments towards Modern English. He never fails to make a comment about how mindless the language has become. Not just that but he literally lists out the issues that Modern English faces. The major lists he conforms to can be found italicized in the beginning of certain paragraphs, and in paragraph eighteen. When it comes to the first list it contains things such as, “Dying Metaphors”, “Meaningless Words”, and “Pretentious Diction” (Orwell 519). It is clear to tell that Orwell isn’t being the kindest with these issues. He is basically telling the leader to remember all of their prior essays and realize the mistakes they. For me, I thought immediately of the most recent essay I wrote and how I broke a majority of these rules (also my awful comma usage). However, Orwell is taking less the role of an angry classmate and more the role of a scornful father. Much like a father he is telling his children, modern writers, their mistake and how they can fix them so they don’t do it again. Much like my father he isn’t mad just disappointed. This disappointment never dissipates throughout the entire essay and it is evident when he says, “Since you

George Orwell, in an essay from Shooting an Elephant and Other Essays titled “Politics and the English Language” (1950), argues that the English language, through a cyclical process of sloven language and foolish thought, has become “ugly and inaccurate.” He supports his argument by using expert opinion, metaphors, and historical context. Orwell’s purpose is to demonstrate the debasement of the English language in order to prompt writers to make a conscious change in their writing . He adopts an informal tone (“Look back throughout this essay, and for certain you will find that I have again and again committed the very faults I am protesting against”) for writers in a time of political turnover and rising superpowers.

Media coverage of news events can be disseminated to the general public in any number of different ways and media biases often “reflects certain organizational and/or professional preferences or values” (Bennett 2011, 173). In fact, Lundman (2003) points out “that journalists assess the newsworthiness of homicides occurrences using the relative frequency of particular types of murders and how well specific murder occurrences mesh with stereotypical race and gender typifications (357).” In addition, Johnson (2012) felt that the real job of media was to “create a message that…grabs public attention (62).” In other words, can the media grab the public’s attention and hold it?

Two particular types of figurative language known as similes and metaphor contribute to Orwell’s goal in creating the dark and grim atmosphere. By using similes and metaphors Orwell compares elements of the atmosphere to other dark or deep things creating the grim atmosphere used to depict the harm of totalitarian governments.

George Orwell’s essay, Politics and the English Language, first published in 1946, talks about some “bad habits”, which have driven the English language in the wrong direction, that is, away from communicating ideas. In his essay he quotes five passages, each from a different author, which embody the faults he is talking about. He lists dying metaphors, operators, pretentious diction, and meaningless words as things to look out for in your own writing and the writing of others (593-595). He talks about political uses of the English language. Our language has become ugly and the ugliness impedes upon communication. Ugly uses of language have been reinforced and passed down in the population “even among people who should and do know

George Orwell, the writer of many highly regarded literary works, is extremely interested in the power of language, mainly how it is abused. By analyzing two of his works, 1984 and Politics and The English Language, it is clear that Orwell is using his writing to bring awareness to the dangers of the manipulation, misuse, and decline of language. In 1984 he demonstrates how language can be used to control thought and manipulate the past. This is proven throughout the novel by examining the language of Newspeak and how it is key to controlling the totalitarian state, and how using language to alter and manipulate history can shape reality. In his essay Politics and the English Language Orwell

“When the official reaction to a person, group of persons or series of events is out of all proportions to the actual threat offered, when “experts” perceive the threat in all but identical terms, and appear to talk “with one voice” of rates, diagnoses, prognoses, and solutions, when the media representations universally stress “sudden and dramatic” increases (in numbers involved or events) and “novelty”, above and beyond which a sober, realistic appraisal could sustain.” (page 86)

Using the English language effectively can be difficult at times. You must consider many factors: who your audience is, what kind of tone you wish to convey, the message you are attempting to get across, and any kind of lasting effect wished upon a reader’s mind. After reading through two essays, Orwell’s “Politics and the English Language” and Brockenbrough’s “Does IM Make U Dum?” each reveals different mindsets about the advancement and usage of the English language. On one hand, Orwell seems to advocate the simplification of speech and writing. Rather than seemingly sagacious phrases, useless terms, and

Language is all around us, it is how we communicate with one another, it brings meaning to literature, and is cemented into our culture. Walt Whitman, a famous American novelist from the 19 century, highlights the effects of language on the American population in his essay, Slang in America. He focuses on positive aspect of slang, how we adapt slang into the english language, as if it is second nature to use, giving a deeper meaning to everyday phrases and words. By contrast, Politics and the English Language, by George Orwell, does not highlight the positive side to slang, instead looking at how authors have started to write with no purpose, no meaning in their texts. George Orwell, in Politics and the English Language, creates an connotation between ideas and an appeal to logos to convince the reader that writers have started to write meaningless pieces of work and could have potentially negative effects on the American people. Compared to Walt Whitman’s use of an unifying tone and an appeal to pathos in Slang in America, that highlights the positive effects of the English language on the American people.

In 1984, Orwell talks about how language can be misused to deceive the people. Today, political precision and euphemism are equally inescapable and ridiculed. The novel also discussed the corruption of verbal progression under the direction of Big Brother. The formation of the Newspeak dictionary is mentioned very often in the book. The purpose of Newspeak was not only to provide a moderate form of expression for Oceania but to make sure that all additional methods of thought impossible. This is shown today by many public figures who speak on behave of the United States. For example, “Politically correct” language is a form of speech that stumps thought. Autocorrect and autocomplete functions frequently command our phrasing and the language of texting is a skill that has become increasingly more

“Newspeak was designed to. . .diminish the range of thought. . .by cutting the choice of words down to a minimum” explains George Orwell, the author of a dystopian fiction novel, 1984 (Orwell 300). Orwell designs a society in which a totalitarian government rules, depriving people of their thoughts. The story gives us a look into the life of the main character, Winston, who seems to face issues with reality control. Today, we will delve into the depths of this novel and explore Orwell’s views on the nature of language. In simple terms, Orwell suggests that language, if used in a certain way, has the ability to influence people and compel them to alter their thoughts. With this statement and supporting evidence, it can be concluded that the effective use of language can give individuals power to modify or reshape opinions that will allow for change in society.