Pollywogs!

I just had to comment that I found this to be an amazingly deep and facinating statement. It took a couple weeks for it to fully sink in, but suddenly in my head popped this concept touching upon language, ideas as mental structures and the buddhistic concept of shedding your preconceived notion how reality “is” and instead simply seeing without constantly pretending to “know”.

Language is a virus. It has infected our brains, a double edged sword that has allowed us to create this elaborate culture, this ‘piled high’ civilization composed of whatever ideas stuck over the past 10,000 to 50,000 years. On one hand, it has allowed us to pass on these ideas, these mental structures, these laws and rules, these inventions. god(s), the Rule of Law, the plow, the wheel, the nuclear bomb, bricks without straw…

On the other hand, it has allowed us to be flimflammed by any quick talker who comes along. To be spun around and deceived, to be convinced by others (and convince ourselves) quite deeply about things we’ve never seen, never known, and never will see. I am convinced I have an immortal soul and I will be ascending to Heaven when I die to sit with Baby Jesus at the feet of old man God. I know because some guy I met told me that was the way things are. Told me. Words…passed on.

Topics. Ideas. Concepts. Structure. Infected. At the mercy of this most basic of inventions…

What tipped this new mental structure over in my head, spilling these delicious little tidbits of things I think may be true since I can formulate, delineate them from other ideas, and describe them to fellow humans with words? A Tom Tomorrow comic (which are invariably EXCELLENT). The title was ‘Language is a Virus’, and it describes being swindled by fast talkers, flimflammed by someone ‘telling you’ how things are. About ideas infecting our group consciousness…

Facinating. Dunno why I never saw it quite like this. Not that it changes anything: I’m still a victim of my language, putting things I see in little labeled boxes as if I had a clue what is going on. Now I just have another perspective I can pull out of my thinking cap from time to time, and then forget again as I retreat into my familiar and comfortable reality I have created for myself.

If only I could hold onto clarity…

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I did a little digging and came up with the source of the phrase, and an examination of the matter in a little more depth.

Both Tom Tomorrow LIAV comics. Leading to: Concerning the idea of ‘viral’, touching upon language.