George Orwell's 'Politics and the English Language' - Book Report/Review Example

Truth, as stated before, is one's own. How can truth be articulated effectively for everyone when we are unable to agree upon what each word means When we are given bits and pieces, sound bites if you will, of life, can we really know what the writer was meaning to convey A Communist pamphlet example in Orwell's essay illustrates this point, "All the 'best people' from the gentlemen's clubs, united in common hatred of Socialism and bestial horror at the rising tide of the mass revolutionary movement, have turned to acts of provocation, to legalize their own destruction of proletarian organizations, and rouse the agitated petty-bourgeoise to chauvinistic fervor on behalf of the fight against the revolutionary way out of the crisis.

" While this example is incomplete, the meaning is hidden of what else the writer was trying to say based upon the style of speech he is using. And is this true Have the gentlemen's clubs agitated themselves into a frenzy in order to keep society as it is to keep them comfortable According to this pamphlet, yes; but, the words used make it unbelievable to one who may come across just this passage. Individual style is constantly in the making, both in writing as well as in thoughts. With the world coming at us at nanoseconds, we are inundated with new ideas, thoughts, and especially words.

The world itself is getting smaller, and with that, our vocabulary is getting larger, more international, and confusing. My thoughts are my own, and while trying to convey them with ineffective words whose meaning I may or may not understand, you hear this word and based on your understanding, hear something else and take offense, thereby creating conflict because we have no truth between us, no understanding, and no common ground. We have become schizophrenic trying to keep up with what people are saying.

Even Orwell's essay is used as an example of how we overuse words to convolute our thoughts. We use empty nouns and verbs to explain our thoughts, and our ideas get lost in translation. But it is our truth we are telling, and the words used can either move people or confuse them. Choosing to use one word or many can make that difference. Can I make better sense using this word or that one Shall I use one word or twenty to tell you what I am trying to say Another example from the essay, is one Orwell uses from Ecclesiastes, "I returned and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.

" The meaning is clear with the writer showing us instead of telling us - drawing us a picture instead of using words. With our truth being personal and subject to perception and translation, our truth is also subjected to new ideas, thoughts, words, and can change. Words change us, as ours can change and influence others, and how we choose to integrate them into our truth will affect how we communicate in the future. Again, with the world closing in, we speak through email, write instant messages, and have shortened what we say for the sake of saving time.

What we have actually become is more lazy with each passing day, each email sent, and each quick message to a friend. We use emoticons to express how we