xepherys

It's my favorite book. But it also supports my points in some ways. It shows that language is more than just a facility of communication. Newspeak allows for perfect communication of ideas and would allow for society to progress. good, plus good and double plus good are no better or worse than good, great, excellent if you understand the attempted meaning. They convey the same thought. How does additional "wiggle room" in how you say somethign benefit society? That, against what you posted earlier, shows that meanings of words have less to do with formation of society. Yes, the rules can be played with, but who makes those decisions. When you hear someone say "Far out!" you think surfer boy. What if you caught that as a piece and they were tlaking about something far away. You ASSUMPTION may be that thay're some dumb beach bum talking about a killer wave. Allowing for great variances in language (as opposed to Newspeak) is both a blessing and a curse. It allows you to use a dozen different words to describe the same thing... but it also leaves any one word up for a dozen interpretations.

I'm intelligent and well-read. I swear often. It's not because I don't have anything better to say. It's not because I'm white trash. It's because often, those words convey the feeling I mean to get out. I'm not haughty, I'm not British, I'm not anything that's going to make me say "You, my good man, are truly inept and are making me quite agitated. Please move so that I may pass!" rather than saying "Look fuckstick, get the hell outta my way!" The first, though proper and saying the same thing would be less effective in most instances, and makes me sound like some snooty fool.