Hear and Listen: Easy confusion

Posted on February 13, 2008 by admin

Question from Khadija in Morocco:

What is the difference between ‘hear’ and ‘listen’?

Answer:

Hi, Khadija. Thank’s for your question, I’m sure that the difference between ‘listen‘ and ‘hear‘ is not clear for a lot of English language learners.
Let’s have a look at them:

Listen is used to talk about or describe sounds that are being made around you and which you are making an active effort to focus on. For example:

Did you listen to the news last night on television?
She was listening to music on her iPod when I walked in.
Mike listened to his teacher and then repeated what she had said.
‘Just listen to yourself! You talk such rubbish!’, she said angrily.

Note that ‘listen‘ is nearly always followed by ‘to‘ – you listen to some sound.

Just to repeat an important point; listening is active – that is you are making an active effort to listen to the sound.

Hear is used for sounds that come to our ears, but we do not, unlike listen, need to be actively engaged in trying to listen to the sound – it can just come to your ears! For example:

Mike heard a bang in the night which woke him up.
She heard someone screaming and called the police.
I heard a loud explosion and then the building collapsed.

Note that ‘hear’ is not followed by ‘to’. But, to make it a little more complicated let’s look at this conversation:

‘Did you hear what I said’, asked John’s father.
‘No, I wasn’t listening‘, replied John.
‘Well, if you don’t listen you will never hear what I am telling you!’.

Now, that last sentence seems a little confused but also shows cleary how the two verbs are used – in this case, if John does not make an active effort to listen he will not hear his father’s advice (even if he may have heard sounds his father was making!)

Where hear and listen may seem very close is when you hear something like:

Did you hear about Jane? She got married!
I heard about the accident but I didn’t see it.

This is when information is passed to you from another source without you necessarily seeking it – in this case note that ‘hear’ is followed by ‘about’ – ‘to hear about’ something, someone or some action or event.

So, you can hear something without wanting to, but you can only listen to something intentionally.

Accepting with no regrets

Posted on February 1, 2008 by admin

Question from English4Today member Gireesh in the United Arab Emirates:

Which one of the following sentences is correct having the meaning like “cannot accept…” ?
1) We regret to accept your letter…..
2) We regret not to accept your letter……

Hi Gireesh, I’m afraid neither one of your examples is correct. The verb ‘regret‘ is not followed by the infinitive form of the verb (e.g. ‘to accept’) but more usually by the gerund form (-ing) or by a relative pronoun such as ‘that‘. Of course, another problem here is that the verb for ‘regret accepting‘ does not mean the same as ‘cannot accept‘. Let’s look at how we can use regret + accept to give the sense you want – we’ll have to add a little more to your sentences to do this:

We regret not being able to accept your letter …

Now, we are using an equivalent of can (meaning having the ability to do something) which is ‘to be able to‘. We then need to make that negative not being able to and then follow that with the verb accept. Of course, you may find it easier to use this variation with the relative pronoun ‘that’ :

We regret that we can’t accept your letter.

Or, try changing the verb ‘regret‘ into an adverb:

Regrettably, we cannot accept your letter.

So you can see Gireesh, there’s more than one way to approach this but you have to know how to put the pieces together. I’d suggest that you login to the members’ section of English4Today and go through some of the exercise in the grammar section and also take a look at the relative pronoun, verb formation and sentence structure sections of the English4Today Online Grammar.

‘How about’ vs ‘what about’ : same difference?

Posted on February 1, 2008 by admin

Question from English4Today member Khadija in Morocco

When can we use “how about” and when can we use “what about”?

Hi Khadija. This is another one of those situations, and we’ve discussed quite a few of them here, where you can use the two phrases interchangeably:

Both can be used to make suggestions.

How about going to see a movie tonight?
What about going to see a movie tonight?

Or, in the case of a non-suggestive question:

Is Mike going with you? How about Pete?
Is Mike going with you? What about Pete?
Have you finished cleaning your room? How about your homework?
Have you finished cleaning your room? What about your homework?

So, use either and the earth won’t open up and swallow you!

Acronyms : OMG they are everywhere!

Posted on January 24, 2008 by admin

Question from English4Today member Vin in the USA:

What is it called when letters are substituted for words, i.e., LOL stands for Laugh out loud.

Hi Vin, they are everywhere and they are called ‘acronyms‘!

An acronym was originally a pronounceable word made from the initial letters of other words. For example, NATO for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

As acronyms have invaded our lives more and more we have started to coin other shorthand versions such as TV for Television, USA for United States of America, IOU for I Owe You (a debt), MD for Medical Doctor, or CEO for Chief Executive Officer which are not acronyms in the original sense of being a ‘new pronounceable word’ made up of the first letters but which we still pull into our bulging bag of acronyms.

Acronyms are often used as mnemonics, a device for helping you remember something. You’ll often see this sort of usage in training manuals and self-help manuals. An illustration of this sort of acronym would be one that I found on a quick trawl of the Internet; taking the word ‘HOPE’ as an acronym for ‘Hanging Onto Positive Expectations’. You may remember other similar acronyms from your school days designed to help you remember a spelling rule, historical event or math equation. I remember, for example, ROYGBIV, a mnemonic acronym for remembering the colors of the rainbow – Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet – a pretty senseless sounding acronym but one that has stuck in my mind since I was around seven years old!

But where acronyms have really exploded and become a sub-language of their own is through text messaging, the Internet and email where the ‘need for speed’ has led to the creation of hundreds of new acronyms that are used globally by millions of people. Your example, LOL for ‘Laugh Out Loud’ is one of the most used of these Internet acronyms. Here is a list of some of the other common Internet acronyms used in emails, SMS and text messaging. Hope it helps, CU!

Common Acronyms Used in SMS, Text and Internet Chat:

A
AFAIK	As far as I know
AFK	Away from keyboard
AKA	Also known as
AOL	America Online
ASAP	As soon as possible
ASL	Age, sex, location
ATM	At the moment
B
B/C	Because
B4	Before
BBIAB	Be back in a bit
BBL	Be back later
BCC	Blind carbon copy
BF	Boyfriend
BFF	Best friends forever
BFN	Bye for now
BOT	Back on topic
BRB	Be right back
BTW	By the way
C
CC	Carbon copy
CTN	Can’t talk now
CU	See you
CUL	See you later
CYA	See ya
CYE	Check your e-mail
D
DIY	Do it yourself
DL	Download
DW	Don’t worry
E
EG	Exempli gratia (Latin: For example)
EOD	End of discussion
ETA	Estimated time of arrival
F
F	Female
FAQ	Frequently Asked Questions
FOFL	Falling on the floor laughing
FUBAR	Fouled up beyond all recognition
FWIW	For what it’s worth
FYI	For your information
G
G2G	Gotta go
GB	Goodbye
GF	Girlfriend
GG	Good game
GJ	Good job
GL	Good luck
GM	Good match
GR8	Great
H
H/O	Hold on
HH	Ha-ha
HOAS	Hold on a second
HTH	Hope this helps
I
IAC	In any case
IC	I see
IDK	I don’t know
IE	Id est (Latin: That is)
IIRC	If I remember correctly
IK	I know
IM	Instant Message
IMHO	In my humble opinion
IMO	In my opinion
IOW	In other words
IRT	In reply to
J
J/K	Just kidding
JC	Just curious
JK	Just kidding
K
K	OK
KIT	Keep in touch
KWIM	Know what I mean
L
L8	Late
L8R	Later
LMAO	Laughing my a** off
LOL	Laugh out loud
M
M	Male
MMA	Meet me at
MMB	Message me back
MSG	Message
MYOB	Mind your own business
N
N/A	Not Available
NC	No comment
NE1	Anyone
NM	Not much
NP	No problem
NRN	No reply necessary
NW	No way
O
OMG	Oh my gosh
OT	Off topic
OTOH	On the other hand
P
PDA	Public display of affection
PHAT	Pretty hot and tempting
PIR	People in room
PK	Player Killing
PLZ	Please
POS	Parent over shoulder
PPL	People
Q
QT	Cutie
R
RE	Regarding
ROFL	Rolling on the floor laughing
ROTFL	Rolling on the floor laughing
RPG	Role Playing Game
RT	Real-time
RTFM	Read the flippin’ manual
S
SMH	Shaking my head
SOS	Someone over shoulder
SOSO	Same old, same old
SP?	Spelling?
STR8	Straight
SUP	What’s up
T
TBC	To be continued
TBH	To be honest
TC	Take care
TGIF	Thank goodness it’s Friday
THX	Thanks
TIA	Thanks in advance
TIC	Tongue in cheek
TISNF	That is so not fair
TLC	Tender love and care
TMI	Too much information
TOH	Typing one-handed
TTFN	Ta-ta for now
TTYL	Talk to you later
TY	Thank you
U
U2	You too
UR	You are
V
VBG	Very big grin
W
W/	With
W/E	Whatever
W/O	Without
W8	Wait
WB	Write back (e-mail)
WOOT	Way out of topic
WTG	Way to go
X
XOXO	Hugs and kisses
Y
Y	Why
YRG	You are good
YW	You’re welcome
Z
ZZZ	Sleeping

Insure or Ensure : As long as you’re covered!

Posted on January 2, 2008 by admin

Question from English4Today member, Irene in Canada:

Using the services of my company ENSURES the task is completed correctly, on time & on budget!
OR
2) Using the services of my company INSURES the task is completed correctly, on time & on budget!

Also please explain how I can make this determination on my own in the future.

Hi Irene and thanks for your question as this seems to be a set of those easily confused words that we have not included in our list on the English4Today Grammar Pages. We’ll make sure it is there soon though as assure, insure,ensure are, as you’ve pointed out, a group of words that we often confuse.

To assure something is to make certain that it will happen or has happened or to promise that something will be done as said:

I assure you that I will be on time for work tomorrow.
Economic prosperity is assured by the Presidential candidate if he is elected.
The Presidential candidate assured his listeners that there would be no more poverty once she was elected
They assured me that there was no danger swimming with the crocodiles.
She assured me that she loved me even though she had forgotten my name.

To ensure something is to take steps to make sure that something happens:

He ensured his own defeat in the election by failing to argue convincingly on any topic.
Including air bags in cars ensures that you are protected when your car crashes.
The captain ensured the safety of all of his passengers by double-checking the aircraft before takeoff.

To insure something is to take precautions against something undesirable happening and, of course, is best remembered when you think of an ‘insurance policy‘:

You can insure yourself against losing your home by taking out a home insurance policy.
The hostages were held by the terrorists as insurance against government attacks.

Now for the complications!

Ensure and insure are often used interchangeably to mean ‘to make sure of something‘. Practically, this means that as long as the meaning is ‘making sure of something‘ you can get away with using either one. Which means, of course, that both of your sentences would be correct. However, there are people who will insist upon using only ensure in this sense, using insure for talking about legal and financial protection and if you decided to follow this (rather small!) group then only your first sentence would be correct.

Insure is always used when referring to matters of legal and financial protection (e.g., insurance) :

Insuring your car against theft is important if you live in a big city.
I have insured myself against accidental death so that my children have some money if I die.

In terms of remembering all of this, Irene, I don’t know of any handy memory trick or mnemonic for this group but what I will do is put together an exercise for you over the next few days and post it to the members’ web with the link to it here so that you can do that a few times to reinforce your understanding of the words.

View Also:

Happy New Year! But where does it come from?

Posted on January 1, 2008 by admin

Donuts! You might be wondering what that has to do with New Year or the English language – well read on and you’ll find out why Homer Simpson’s love of donuts may be his personal ‘lucky charm‘.

First, Happy New Year to all of our listeners, readers, members of English4Today and English4Today students.

When you’ve grown up in a Western culture, you probably think that New Year’s Day on January 1st is a pretty universal festival. After all, January 1st is the same all over the world so the new year starts at the same time everywhere. Well, in one sense this is true as the Gregorian Calendar (the 12 month calendar we now use) is used all over the world for commercial, transport and communications purposes. But a lot of cultures still keep a place for their own calendar and most of us know that Chinese New Year, for example, does not fall on the same day as the Gregorian Calendar proscribes and that the Chinese New Year festival is a party worth getting an invitation to.

Celebration of the new year is probably one of the oldest festivals around dating back to around 2000 BC when the Babylonians celebrated the new year at the start of Spring (the Vernal equinox). Spring seems a good time to start a new year but the Romans clearly didn’t feel that this worked for them and in 153 BC the Roman Senate set January 1st as the start of a New Year where it has stayed ever since.

The Romans changed the time of year when the new year started but they hung on to some important traditions that we still continue with today. The New Year’s resolution – an undertaking to do something positive in the coming year – dates back to the Babylonians. Typically, we now make resolutions to do things like give up smoking, lose weight or become better people and typically these resolutions are pretty much forgotten about by the start of February when we fall back into our habitual patterns of behaviour.

Wishing others good luck, or wishing it for yourself is also part of the New Year tradition and we’ve carried through to the present some of the symbols of luck, usually in the form of a ring or circle as it symbolizes ‘coming full circle‘, that is, completing a year’s cycle. The Dutch believe that eating donuts on New Year’s Day will bring good fortune and the French have a special King’s Cake which is in the form of a circle and that has a small lucky token baked into it. It was also once believed that the first visitor on New Year’s Day would bring either good luck or bad luck the rest of the year.

So, that said, grab a few lucky donuts, have a Happy New Year, and I’m looking forward to sharing another great 12 months with you.

New Year’s Words and Words used in this posting:

resolution : an undertaking or promise (usually to oneself) to do something positive in the coming year
luck : good fortune arriving by chance
Gregorian Calendar : The modern calendar adapted from the Julian Calendar, conceived by the Roman’s, which fixes New Year’s day on the 1st January
Happy New Year! : traditional saying during the New Year holiday
donut : round, sweet bun usually deep-fried and coated with sugar
Homer Simpson : famous television cartoon character
lucky charm : a small object that the owner believes will bring them good luck

Scrooge : A mean piece of vocabulary

Posted on December 20, 2007 by admin

‘Scrooge‘ – not a word in everyday use, unless we have a very mean relative or friend, and a word that is perhaps drifting to the sidelines of the language a little. But at this time of the year you see the word a lot more. Firstly, it is the name of the main character in our recently published version of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol … more about that story in a minute. But Forbes magazine has also just made ‘scrooge‘ a word that more people will be seeing at the moment. They have voted Scrooge McDuck in at the 6th place on their list of the top 15 wealthiest fictional characters. Here’s his profile in the Forbes magazine:

No 6 McDuck, Scrooge

Net Worth: $8.2 billion
Source: Mining
Age: 80
Marital Status: Single
Hometown: Duckburg, U.S.A.
Education: Cluck U dropout.

Planet’s wealthiest poultry in hiding due to fear of bird flu. Thought to be in “money bin,” five-story tower in Duckburg that is world’s largest repository of gold coins. As adolescent, moved to American West from native Scotland and amassed fortune in gold and copper. Keeps most of his money in bullion. Known to enjoy swimming in money. Literally. Likely heirs Huey, Dewey and Louie (grand-nephews) now living alone in Duckburg mansion. Absent Scrooge’s supervision, Dewey spotted canoodling with Parrot Hilton. Reportedly wrote nephew Donald, a deckhand in U.S. Navy, back into his will. Member since 1947. — Matthew Herper Excerpted from Forbes Magazine Website

You might notice that Forbes has set Scrooge’s wealth at $8.2 billion but that a little research (see the cartoon left) sets it at one multiplujillion nine obsquatumatillion, six hundred and twenty-three dollars and sixty-two cents. Perhaps Forbes couldn’t track all of the assets kept in Scrooge’s Swiss bank accounts. And they’ve left out of their short bio his most important characteristic and the one that gives him his name – he is a very, very mean duck with his money and prefers to hang on to it and watch it accumulate rather than spend it.

Scrooge gets his name from Ebenezer Scrooge, the main character in A Christmas Story, which you can read, of course, free of charge, by downloading our audio e-book, and has much of the original Scrooge’s personality but has been perhaps ‘disneyfied‘ into someone a bit more lovable than the Dickens character.

But Ebenezer Scrooge didn’t just pass his name to a wealthy cartoon duck he also gave English a new noun:

Scrooge

noun

A stingy person: miser, niggard, skinflint.
Informal penny pincher.
Slang cheapskate, stiff, tightwad.
See give/take/reciprocity.

So you could say, ‘My father is a real scrooge, he never spends a cent and keeps it all in the bank.’ or ‘Don’t be such a scrooge! I’m only asking you to lend me 50 cents!‘

Not perhaps the most useful word to learn but still, at this time of the year, you wouldn’t really want to hear it directed at you. So, give a little and avoid being called a scrooge!

Christmas Vocabulary : What’s behind the holiday?

Posted on December 14, 2007 by admin

Yes, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! And if you are in a country where Christianity is the dominant religion you will certainly see signs of it everywhere you go! Now, I don’t want to take the fun out of what is a really good holiday but Christmas is not everything that it seems to be.

You may know it as one of the most important Christian festivals celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ but, like a lot of other festivals, there is a healthy influence from pre-Christian pagan festivals and a very good injection of pure capitalism into the mix that we now know as Christmas.

Firstly, although December 25th is marked as the day that Jesus Christ was born it is also the day when the most important gods in the religions of Ishtar and Mithra had their birthdays. The Romans also had important winter festivals including the Saturnalia – apparently, when the Romans were being converted to Christianity they were not keen to give up their winter festivals and carried them through into the new religion.

And how about the christmas tree found in nearly every English speaking home during the Christmas period – apparently this is a Christianization of a pagan tradition celebrated during the Winter Solstice. The rituals included the use of evergreen boughs and of pagan tree worship.

Christmas cards and Christmas decorations, which now give the holiday its distinctive character, were only invented in the 19th century and seem to have kicked off the commercialization of Christmas. Which brings me pretty much to the dominant, and perhaps least attractive, aspect of Christmas which is that it has become very big business and there is now a lot more business in Christmas and perhaps a lot less of the original celebration of giving, generosity, sharing and hope than was originally the case.

And talk of ‘sharing and giving‘ brings me to our Christmas present to you… our readers and listeners, members and students. English4Today has produced an audio and text e-book of Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol for you to use online or download, free of charge, in a Windows desktop software version. What I personally like about Dickens’ Christmas story is that it reminds us in a very positive way of what we should be celebrating at this time of the year – all of us, no matter what religious faith we follow or don’t follow – the spirit of caring, sharing and giving.

If you’d like to use the online version or download the software come back to this blog on Monday when the download links will be published.

I’ll try and keep my own words in mind when my family meets for the traditional Christmas dinner which, as many listeners will know, is not always a moment of Peace and Goodwill Amongst Men and often veers dangerously close to open warfare.

All of that said, it’s a great time of year and any holiday has to be a good holiday! Here’s a list of vocabulary items associated with Christmas for any of you who are breaking into it for the first time.

Christmas Vocabulary

Advent	The month leading up to Christmas
angel	A messenger of God. Often depicted as a beautiful human-like being with wings and white robes.
Bethlehem	The small town in the Middle East believed to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ
christmas stocking	In some countries children hand stockings (long socks) at the end of their bed or in front of the fire for Santa to fill with presents.
chimney	A vertical opening in a house from the fireplace that allows smoke to escape. Santa or Father Christmas is said to come down the chimney with gifts for the children.
Christ	The title of Jesus – Jesus Christ, the Christian messiah
Christian	A person who believes in Christianity; also an adjective
Christianity	The religion based on the teachings and person of Jesus Christ
Christmas	The annual Christian festival celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ . Originally meaning Christ’s Mass – a special religious service for the birth of Christ. Christmas Day is on 25 December.
Christmas cake	A rich fruit cake covered with white icing, eaten during the Christmas holiday period
Christmas card	A greetings card that people send to friends and family at Christmas – the first Christmas cards were sent in the 19th Century
Christmas carol	A religious or popular song sung at Christmas
Christmas Day	25 December, the date that Jesus Christ was said to be born
Christmas Eve	The evening or day before Christmas Day (24 December) – often the day that Europeans have their main Christmas meal
Christmas holidays	The holiday before and after Christmas Day extending up until New Year’s Day (1st January)
Christmas present	a gift or present given at Christmas
Christmas tree	a pine or fir tree which is decorated with ornaments and lights during the Christmas period
cracker	a decorated paper tube that makes a sharp noise (“crack!”) and releases a small toy when two people pull it apart – more usual in English speaking countries than in other countries that celebrate Christmas.
Christmas Sale	Just after the Christmas holiday many shops sell their products at greatly discounted prices – these are the Christmas Sales.
Santa’s Helpers	Elves (small mythical people with pointed ears) who help Santa (Father Christmas) make toys for the children.
Father Christmas	an imaginary being who brings presents for children on the night before Christmas Day (also known as Santa Claus and Santa) – traditionally an old man with a red suit and white beard
fireplace	a partly enclosed space in a house where people light a fire for warmth
Mince Pies	Mince is usually ground meat but at Christmas small pies are made from rich, mixed fruit which are know as mince pies
holly	an evergreen plant with prickly dark green leaves and red berries
Jesus	the name of Christ, the central figure of Christianity (believed by Christians to be the Son of God)
Joseph	the husband of Mary (the mother of Jesus)
magi	the wise men from the East who brought gifts for the baby Jesus – in the Bible there are 3 wise men who visit Jesus each carrying a different gift
manger	a trough for food for horses or cattle (used by Mary as a cradle or bed for Jesus)
Mary	the mother of Jesus
mistletoe	a parasitic plant with white berries, traditionally used as a Christmas decoration
myrrh	a gum used for perfume or incense, one of the gifts that the three wise men gave to Jesus
nativity	the birth of a person (not used in modern English)
the Nativity	the birth of Jesus Christ
nativity play	a play that people perform at Christmas based on the birth of Jesus – often performed in schools by the school children
new year	the start of a new year – the period starting on the 1st January and extending for a few days after that date
New Year’s Day	1 January
New Year’s Eve	31 December
ornament	an object that adds beauty to something; a decoration
present	a thing given to somebody as a gift.
reindeer	a deer with large antlers found in some Northern cold climates. Reindeers are said to pull the sleigh for Santa Claus or Father Christmas and have names such as Rudolph, Dasher, Prancer etc.
Santa Claus	an imaginary being who brings presents for children on the night before Christmas Day (also known as Father Christmas) – traditionally an old man with a red suit and white beard
shepherd	someone who looks after sheep
sleigh	a sledge or light cart on runners pulled by horses or reindeer over snow and ice
snow	water vapour from the sky that falls as white flakes and covers the ground
star	a bright point in the night sky which is a large, distant incandescent body like the sun
the star of Bethlehem	the star that announced the birth of Jesus and guided the wise men to find Him
tinsel	a decoration consisting of thin strips of shiny metal foil, traditionally used at Christmas
turkey	a bird like a large chicken, traditionally eaten at Christmas
white Christmas	a Christmas with snow on the ground
Xmas	abbreviation or informal term for Christmas

Christmas Expressions

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Merry Christmas!
Wishing you a prosperous New Year!
Seasons Greetings!
Happy Christmas!
Happy New Year!

Is the phonetic alphabet really that powerful?

Posted on December 2, 2007 by English4Today

[display_podcast]
Alphabet In an earlier post I talked a little about how an understanding of English grammar can take you a long way to being a better communicator and a better learner. In this post I want to take a quick look at some ideas that push the way we use language, or perhaps language uses us, to shape the world around us in very specific ways.

A little while ago I was re-reading Marshal McLuhan’s Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man and came across his thoughts on the influence of the building ‘blocks’ of English – the phonetic alphabet. I thought I’d throw some of these in here even if you may feel they take the case for the power of the alphabet a bit too far!

Our alphabet, according to McLuhan, where ‘semantically meaningless letters are used to correspond to semantically meaningless sounds‘ (unlike, for example, Chinese ideograms) is the ‘secret of Western power over man and nature alike‘.

McLuhan’s argument is that the phonetic alphabet breaks up into a linear and progressive mode experience that is, of its nature, not at all linear or progressive and that this is why:

‘ Western industrial programs have quite involuntarily been so militant,
and our military programs been so industrial. Both are shaped by the alphabet
in their technique of transformation and control by making all situations
uniform and continuous.’

His argument is that our language is at the very heart of how and why we do things the way we do. It constantly shapes and dictates our actions and perceptions. It’s a bit of a knock against the argument that we have much of a free will , that we really have much control over the way that we perceive and develop the world outside of ourselves.

But is he right? There is a powerful collection of English poetry and literature that argues that despite being saddled with a phonetic alphabet that ties us to the linear and progressive we are able to use language to convey the timeless, the non-linear, and the deeply experiential and to express that more holistic universe that, according to McLuhan, our language stops us from fully perceiving.

McLuhan’s world where we have carefully constructed our complex reality around ‘semantically meaningless letters … used to correspond to semantically meaningless sounds‘ is a place where language has to find a way to describe and organize reality as we currently know it – rich in species, objects and ideas and for which we have developed an extensive vocabulary to describe it along with other linguistic tools such as metaphor and allusion to reach into those areas that the linear and progressive can’t get into.

Later in the week I want to have a look at another book, The Road by Cormac McCarthy, where language, in the face of a post-apocalyptic world devoid of this rich diversity and variety, is stripped back to its bones and where most of the vocabulary that we use with such confidence is rendered meaningless or impotent. In many ways, this second book, redeems, language, our language, if only by showing what we would lose should it no longer be able or required to describe the complex fragile, world that we live in – linear and progressive or not!

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