Seeing what isn’t, Language and Thought Change

Posted on April 13, 2008
Filed Under Fake Culture |

It still surprises me how often I look at things in terms of what they are not. I think quite a lot of us do this - but even still I feel it can be a bit of an oddity. Obvious examples are when looking at art, or reading a book - I quite often say, “Well that isn’t put together very well.”, or “The character shouldn’t have done this!”. It can go to further extremes when applied to our life; “He shouldn’t think like that!”.

We are all guilty of this manner of thinking I am sure…

It all comes down to how we use language doesn’t it? There are a number of words and phrases which have a mighty influence over how we think, and by extension affect how we perceive the world. The above examples basically are heavily influenced by the word “shouldn’t”. Words like that can play a sublime and seemingly subtle game with the mind - but it also appears as a game of monumentally ridiculous proportions. In short those words are Ego boosters.

When we say something “Shouldn’t” be this, or I “wouldn’t” have done it that way…we are forcing our own perspective onto the world. One of the most damning words in this style surely has to be “Is”. Perhaps this has been one of the most destructive words in our language. After all what are we really saying when we use that word? “Iran is a very bad country full of very bad people!” Sentences like that appear as a statement full of provocation. In the end such a statement can only be ‘opinion’ yet we tend to package these opinions in ways that make them appear like fact.

How about removing the word “is” from that sentence? “Iran seems to be a very bad country, full of very bad people!”…or…”I feel Iran is a very bad country!” suddenly the sentence takes on a very different tone.

But most of us don’t tend to talk in that manner. I feel reason for that appears very clear; we are frightened of claiming responsibility for our own beliefs. And thus we force our beliefs into ‘facts’ which we can use in an attempt to dominate all other opinions or beliefs.

If find it amazing how deeply this sort of language can affect our thinking. Try not using the word “is” for a week - it really can be a very difficult thing to do! Consider how often the context of that word may be used in your thinking. I believe the word ‘is’ grants a great deal of power to that part of us which dictates our personal vision of the world. This of course forms the basis of our “Ego”.

When we remove the word ‘is’ from our vocabulary we slowly learn just how much of our Ego can be built upon the concepts of ‘is’ and ‘is not’. Removing that word puts us out on the edge slightly - it highlights what we say may merely be opinion.

I wrote this piece without using that word, limiting myself to simply referencing it. In the end it makes this piece for easier reading because it clearly shows I am expressing opinion rather than statement. In many ways when we try and release our use of that world, it can show us a great deal about our fear of always needing to be in the ‘right’.

Comments

3 Responses to “Seeing what isn’t, Language and Thought Change”

johnblend on April 16th, 2008 4:48 pm

Check out the concept of E-prime, pretty interesting. Also check out Robert Anton Wilson if you haven’t already done so, I think he did write a couple of articles in E prime.

Be well, unfold and have fun
//j
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Marcus on April 16th, 2008 7:20 pm

I was wondering if anyone would mention e-prime, glad that you did!

Yeah, I have read a fair amount of Robert Anton Wilson’s work - he truly was great! I haven’t read any of his articles that were written in e-prime though…do you have the titles of those pieces?
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johnblend on April 17th, 2008 8:49 am

Listened last night to RAW explains everything. the language and semantics part, there Robert tells that he wrote 3 or 2 and 1/2 books using E-prime, one of those books is “Coincidance : A Head Test”
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