"Eat, friend Sancho, and support life, and leave me to expire under my reflections, and the severity of my misfortunes." -Picture taken in San Jose, Costa Rica 2007.
I had an epiphany recently. It came after reading this article, then seeing someone post some obscure quote on Facebook that was most likely used completely out of context to fulfill some random occurrence. I made the effort to see who the author was and did a little research on him. Yep, sure enough, the person who posted it, not only misinterpreted what was said, but insulted the person who had said it. What makes it even worse is that they used the ubiquitous “u” for “you” in the post.
I’m not going to make this blog about how the youth of today appear to speak in short-hand or how, due to linguistic acclimation, we have a posteriori nearly created new languages (spanglish anyone?) But I did want to share some of my thoughts on why this is the case.
I’m not going to make this blog about how the youth of today appear to speak in short-hand or how, due to linguistic acclimation, we have a posteriori nearly created new languages (spanglish anyone?) But I did want to share some of my thoughts on why this is the case.
Enter the Digital Age
In our digital age, we have gotten into the habit of searching the internet for quotes that we think describe a situation. Usually, it comes from a classic source, or was somehow influenced by classic thought, but we’ve become so lazy that instead of reading the damned text itself, we use it to make ourselves feel better about ourselves. We abuse the words that come from texts by applying them prosaically.
We are Dumbing Down the Classics
Some may argue that, well, the book is boring, or hard to understand, or some other overused and tired excuse. This may be what’s coming out of their mouth, but what’s happening subconsciously is that they have openly embraced an attitude of using quotations like a disposable camera. Instead of understanding how that quote was used and appreciated, we just use them and forget them. We’ve taken the words that were carefully traced onto paper and have left them bereft of their true meaning and knowledge. In fact, because of the internet, we have so taken for granted the accessibility of thought-provoking texts that it would seem no longer important to read the book itself.
Truth
Truth is, it’s because of the internet that we should take the time to UNDERSTAND what the quotes mean. There’s an entire wealth of knowledge at your fingertips that could be used for a tremendous amount of good. Take advantage of it before it’s censored into non-existence.
I’m going to end this post with an example of a contextually wrong quote that I have seen before.
There’s a quote by Emerson that goes, “I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.” At first glance, you may think it has to do with the ire that Emerson has for people who randomly quote other works to create the illusion of knowledge. Ironically, this quote is a reflection on how writers digressed into quoting others when writing on the subject of immortality, not all quotes in general. In other words, Emerson doesn’t hate quotes. He just prefers first-hand knowledge and reflection, not just regurgitated material that requires no thought or experience. It’s easy to see how this could lose its context, but by going down the rabbit-hole, one can see that its meaning is much deeper.
Keep following the rabbit-holes. There’s no telling what wonderful place it may sweep you off to, and read a book! Preferably, one that’s more than a century old.
In our digital age, we have gotten into the habit of searching the internet for quotes that we think describe a situation. Usually, it comes from a classic source, or was somehow influenced by classic thought, but we’ve become so lazy that instead of reading the damned text itself, we use it to make ourselves feel better about ourselves. We abuse the words that come from texts by applying them prosaically.
We are Dumbing Down the Classics
Some may argue that, well, the book is boring, or hard to understand, or some other overused and tired excuse. This may be what’s coming out of their mouth, but what’s happening subconsciously is that they have openly embraced an attitude of using quotations like a disposable camera. Instead of understanding how that quote was used and appreciated, we just use them and forget them. We’ve taken the words that were carefully traced onto paper and have left them bereft of their true meaning and knowledge. In fact, because of the internet, we have so taken for granted the accessibility of thought-provoking texts that it would seem no longer important to read the book itself.
Truth
Truth is, it’s because of the internet that we should take the time to UNDERSTAND what the quotes mean. There’s an entire wealth of knowledge at your fingertips that could be used for a tremendous amount of good. Take advantage of it before it’s censored into non-existence.
I’m going to end this post with an example of a contextually wrong quote that I have seen before.
There’s a quote by Emerson that goes, “I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.” At first glance, you may think it has to do with the ire that Emerson has for people who randomly quote other works to create the illusion of knowledge. Ironically, this quote is a reflection on how writers digressed into quoting others when writing on the subject of immortality, not all quotes in general. In other words, Emerson doesn’t hate quotes. He just prefers first-hand knowledge and reflection, not just regurgitated material that requires no thought or experience. It’s easy to see how this could lose its context, but by going down the rabbit-hole, one can see that its meaning is much deeper.
Keep following the rabbit-holes. There’s no telling what wonderful place it may sweep you off to, and read a book! Preferably, one that’s more than a century old.
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