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Re: virus: The words that limit our memes (was
=?iso-8859-1?Q?=22should=22)?=
« on: 2005-03-15 14:31:01 » |
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I am right there with you, Alex - and too bad, too, cause I was in Ann Arbor a couple of weeks ago!
Ah, well.
The word 'should' has inside it an implication that it is NOT.
I find, as I talk about the future, that much of the language includes criticisms of the past, if we attempt to talk about the future.
Here are the things that I am trying to cut out of my vocabulary:
"You"
"I"
"Should"
"Not"
"Don't"
"Didn't"
Anything framed negatively at all - it invites argument, linguistically.
"Just"
"BUT" - god I hate that one
"All I'm doing is..."
Any diminutives.
-b
> -----Original Message-----
> From: alexboko [mailto:alexboko@umich.edu]
> Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2005 02:47 PM
> To: virus@lucifer.com
> Subject: virus: The word "should" considered harmful.
>
> The other day I realized that one of my least favorite words in the
> English language is "should". Why is that?
>
> At best, "should" indicates lazy thinking-- "One litre should be
> enough". Either you think it is or isn't. Yes, it would be impossible to
> function without approximations, I prefer to take responsibility for
> mine-- "I think one liter is enough". Another, more global, example of
> lazy thinking is a statement like "People should be more environmentally
> responsible". Oh yeah? And how are you going to make them do what they
> "should"? Usually, people throwing around platitudes like that have no
> idea... they'll just make their observation about how things "should be"
> but aren't, and leave it at that, as if somehow magically it will be set
> right.
>
> "Should" does not get any better when it goes beyond vague platitudes
> and starts zeroing in on who "should" do what-- "The government should
> punish drug dealers more harshly"... "Companies should stop outsourcing
> jobs"... "You should stop smoking". The problem is not the that the
> goals in these examples are good or bad ones... the problem is that the
> person who makes these statements is implying that their personal values
> are universal, and also implying the existance of some kind of authority
> that is listening and might, on the strength of this argument, be
> influenced to force the subject of these arguments to do as they
> "should". If no such authority exists (or is listening), then such
> statements remain naive, lazy, and pointless. On the other hand, if such
> an authority does exist, then these statements are disingenuous because
> they cloak the nature, capabilities, and the speaker's degree of
> influence over this authority. This also conveniently sidesteps the
> discussion of this authority's legitimacy (how persuasive would it sound
> to say "I intend to cast my vote for a politician who will themselves
> vote for laws that will give government employees wider license to seize
> private property and detain citizens under threat of lethal force, in
> order to combat the problem of drug trafficking"?).
>
> So, what's better than "should"? What's more nuanced, principled, and
> pro-active? Here are a few.
> "is/are"
> "can"
> "will"
> "intend"
> "must" (but only following a phrase like "in order to")
>
> In short, if you can say how things "should" be, you are also capable of
> giving your best guess for what it is that's standing in the way of them
> being that way, so why not go that extra mile and actually verbalize
> that guess? Yes, it feels a little wierd. That wierdness is what it
> feels like when language is altering your thought patterns (in this
> case, toward pro-activeness and honesty).
>
> So "should" you stop using the word "should"? That's for you to decide.
> All I've done is lay out the case against using "should", and I will try
> to cut it out of my own vocabulary. If I'm right, then doing so will
> make me more credible, raise the quality of my thinking, and will help
> me get more done.
> ---
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>
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