Sunday, September 16, 2007
Assignment #3: Symbols, words, and reality
Read the article titled “PG-13 Warnings” by Kenton Whitman. It’s located on his Web site at http://kentonwhitman.com/blog/2007/09/10/pg-13-warnings/ As you read it, think about how we’ve been looking at the way the meaning of language resides in people, not the words themselves. After you’ve read Whitman’s article, write 1-2 paragraphs describing your reaction to the article, and thoughts you had as a result of reading it.
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31 comments:
I believe that when someone reads the label for a movie and it reads 'Language' people know that its more adult language, otherwise why would they put it on there for kids language. I read this article not knowing where in the flying hell it was going, but with teaching kids right from wrong language yes thats right. But also, where ever you go, people are going to question language, question meanings, which I can't find one person who can give me a meaning for stuff I don't understand. There are always going to be problems, no matter what. Good Article!
I really enjoyed the article. A few things really stuck out to me, but the main point was dealing with problems in your life. I've been learning lots about worrying lately. I noticed that I worry way to much about things I have no control over. That is a problem I have that is taking up time in my life where I could do more productive things. I do agree with the author in the fact that we cannot be spending our lives dwelling on each tiny, little problem. We need to realize that life is short and we have one shot at it. If we don't figure out where we stand, and who we are soon enough we could loose sight of everything.
First of all, I did not find the article to have an appropriate title. It wasn't really focused on movie ratings, on my opinion, but the use of language. Secondly, I think there has to be labels on human beings. The author says we forget that all human beings are human beings and we attach words to them such as black, gay, straight, white, etc. If we did not have these labels we would not be unique. There is the saying, "everyone is unique." That saying would not be true if there were no words to attach to human beings to describe them. I, personally, want words attached to my name that will describe me. As for the PG-13 rating stating that the movie contained, language, I do agree with Tom06 in that most people know that "language" in a movie is considered "adult language."
I thought the article had a good beginning, the breakdown of what our language really is as a bunch of symbols was really interesting. However after about 3 paragraphs, when he said-
“Could it be that our words cause us more problems than benefits? That our chopped-up, language-based method of encountering the world creates a situation where we spend most of our life energy trying to work out the problems with our method, rather than the problems of actual reality?”
-I started getting lost in the psycho babble. Too many sentences about the same subject, I feel he over-explained the topic to the point where I lost not only my interest in the subject matter but even my place on the page! Maybe I am not broad minded enough to grasp the true meaning of his essay, but for me it was too wordy and a little far fetched if you don’t mind my saying so.
I thought this article was run-on. But, I agree with the fact that we could be doing more productive things with our lives. When we die we will look back on when we sat around and watched the tube.
Not all things need to be rated with language being bad or good. Mostly it depends on the person that is rating the movie in this case or other thing that get rated.
Personally I think that the reader needs to go back and listen to their article. There is no real solution to this so called problem. When all is said and done no matter how well we think that we have a grasp of our own language, or way of speeking, there is now way knowing , much less controling the interpretations that one may assume from the words we let leak out of our mouths. As you were saying in class in regards to high context cultures, the man that said " yes, yes " in responce to the question of whether or not his work was complete was just trying to show respectwith out complicating the conversation. Where I'm from that would be considered a flat out lie, ( since the work was not done ) as well as a sign of unreliability. How many different places do think there may be room for misinterpretations in that situation. No matter what you say or do you can be misunderstood.
I thought that this was an interesting article. I was a bit confused
when I was reading it, but I got the gist of it at the end. It is good
to teach children early about language and good language at that.
People need to know that other people all around the world have
different beliefs, customs and above all language. Because there is
that difference, people are going to fight one another over who is
wrong and who is right. That is precisely why there is always going to
be something wrong with the world. Especially if we give people labels
and titles, like American Southerners did to the African Americans.
Children need to be taught that words are words and people are people,
not words. If they refer to a set of people as a word (crackers, and so
on), then those people are not even considered human to them, but
lesser equals. I agree with the author that language can cause us a lot
of suffering if not used wisely. The point I am trying to make is that
people need to treat others the way they would like to be treated, and
don’t hate people because they are different than you.
I thought the article was interesting and more about language in movies then anything. I think that it totally depends on who is rating the movie and who they expect to watch it.
Alright, i did not like this artlicle. i felt like this article was a bunch a blah. I guess it might be because I could not relate to this article. All I kept on hearing when I read this article was language, and I know it was not all about that. I read it twice, but I give up.
This article says so much but yet not enough. I like it don’t get me wrong this is one of the better topics I think. These “Warning Labels” give us thought about what we may see in the movie, such as the language. I think it’s a good idea to share with the kids the words they may be hearing but it doesn’t have to do with what it may mean but the context it’s in. The words in the movie not be said in a hurtful way, but if the parents perception’s of what the word means can change that around. Say in a movie it has a “gay couple” such as “I Know Pronounce You Chuck and Larry”. Kids ask questions and if these parents press on the kids telling them how gay’s are going to hell, they will also throw that label LABEL on them. So it may not be all about how the movie portrays something but it may be how the parents go about explaining it to the children.
It is a good article, although it was a bit confusing. I have to agree with tom06 on the "language" term that was used on the movie that the author of the article was watching. Basically it means that there may be words that are not suitable for kids under thirteen. There is no sense in worrying about the little things in life, but I know that I do worry about little things when there are bigger things that I should be focusing on. I do agree with the student that said that there isn't quite enough information about the warning labels of the language.
After reading the article, and the comments made regarding the article, I came to a few conclusions. One comment was made about the title not matching the article well, I do agree on that point. I also believe that the word "language" is vague. It means so many different things to so many different people, it is no wonder why there is so much confusion or misunderstanding in the world. The same goes for symbols. We, as individuals, all attribute our own way of looking at things, speaking and symbols included. I did like the article. It is nice to know that there are people out there who think and care about these issues.
One wonders whether we should return to the cave man era after reading this article. Back to pictures, grunts and sign language. Were we really better off? I had a bit of a chuckle over this article, as I have a two year old and we are constantly pointing out “what” things are and waiting for his much anticipated repetitions.
The approach of giving things names or identity seems to offend the writer. I interpret this writer as being more obsessed with perception than actual language. The writer seems to think we label before we have words. Maybe, but without words and language we can not deliver to others an accurate definition of ourselves. We, the ones with a voice hold the key to what others think or believe, not the outside cover. To judge a book by it’s' cover, per say, seems a bit simplistic when speaking about language. Again, this is perception on appearance, not perception because of ones definition of ones self.
This article may have began simply debating the word “language” in a move warning, but went wwaaayyyy beyond the scope of what language is or does for us.
We could really take this authors approach to other levels. Why is blue, blue? Maybe in other worlds our perception of blue is red to them. Who is it that decided at the dawning of time that a tree was a tree or a star was a star? We could go on and on. However, these things are what they are. Language and communication has evolved along with society from the days of pictures on a cave wall, to emailing pictures on a blackberry.
This article had good points to it through out the whole thing. It kind of made me think of what words really mean, when you sit down and acually have a deep thought about it. The way language can mean different things to different people depending on ones meanings of it shows how the PG-13 warnings on movies just depend on who is watching it. I don't think it should be a age matter, I think it depends on the way the person thinks of it when they hear it or use it in the future. It is all up to the person talking that makes the "symbols" their meaning.
I think that this article is absolutely correct. I think that people put too much meaning into words. Words are just a bunch of letters or symbols put down on paper. Why do people put so much meaning into the words they use? I have often wondered myself why words mean what they do. How come a kitchen is a kitchen and not asparagus? Like we discussed in class, the meaning is not in the words, but in the way the person speaking or writing presents them, but if the message is interpreted differently then it was meant, the meaning of the message can be completely different. So, the meaning is not only in the words, the presentation and in the person sending the message as well.
This article states that everyone has a label. Well this is true, and it needs to be done, because we aren't all the same. There is differences between every single one of us. As for the language aspect of this article, like in the movie, most people I think are able to realize that there is possibly swearing or other types of negative language. When you see that "language" is part of the reason it is PG-13, honestly what do you think it means? That it is good positive language? Obviously not when it is showing why the movie is PG-13.
I believe that most people watching movies when it tells you about the rating and language and everything, most people know what it means and should warn children about the movie and that some words are not suppose to be said at the age that they are at. When I was little I didn't know that I was suppose to say those bad words you heard in movies thought they were everyday words and now they are for me and a lot of other people. Every adult or parent should tell their kids that those words should not be said till a certain age or something.
As I read this article my mind rejected the writer’s ideas. Language does not make objects and experiences less by identifying and categorizing them. Language broadens life experiences. A child might call a picture in a book “a cat”. When he/she sees a toy cat the experience and meaning of the word changes. When a real cat is first encountered the meaning of the word changes again. In my opinion this is not a “firm division in a Reality which doesn’t actually have any divisions.” The child is expanding on a concept and deepening his/her experience related to that concept. Language is instrumental to the broadening of the concept. Language allows us to describe what we see.
Language has depth and breadth. I totally agree that meaning resides in people and not the words themselves. I am a lover of poetry. I like to read about the poets and their lives. This enriches what I am reading. I know and understand more about what the poet meant when I put the poem into the context of his/her own life. Not everyone likes to read this way. Some people are happy with a poem at face value, the meaning the words have on the page. Once again the meaning of the words lies with the individual person. Education and knowledge particularly deepen the meaning of language. I would also say that overall education teaches not to label and therefore not to use language as a limiting device.
I thought the author made some very good points. It made me think about how my children are being raised, and I feel that I have a lot of work to do. By work, I mean, I have to be very careful about what I say in front of them. Not only the vulgar language, but the slang too.
I never thought that if a movie was rated PG 13, that I would have to be concerned. I guess I was wrong, and now I am going to screen the movies more thoroughly.
tulariggen@yahoo.com
As I read the article that Whitman wrote about language and words, I thought about how true his statement was about the way we judge people according to the labels we give them. So many times before we meet people we give them a label and from that label we decide if we will like them or not. For example when we meet new neighbors, if the father or mother is a stay at home parent we draw the conclusion that they are uneducated. A farmer, is that the only job they could do without an education? In reality if we take a moment to get to know these people, we find many are highly educated and lead very interesting lives.
I agree with Whitman, slow down and quit chasing the words. If we would find what makes us happy and use the words to influence the positive things in our lives we would better understand language.
The article was a little hard to read. It was hard to concentrate on it and get what the message was. One thing that stuck out the most for me was about the PG 13 movie part.
I do not think that movie ratings need to specify what they mean when they say “language”. As mentioned previously by another blogger it is clear that “language” is aimed at adult language. Why would a movie say it is kid language? It doesn’t make sense. Obviously if it is kid language then it would not have a higher rating like PG 13. When it says language and rates PG 13 then people should realize it has adult language.
I thoroughly enjoyed this article. it had a lot of meaning and made a lot of sense. It is true movie warnings are to broad, and people are going to interpret them differently. What kind of language is it; swearing, sexual language or what. To play the devils advocate you would have to be an absolute idiot to not realize that it is a warning for a reason, so who cares what kind of language it really is. As i read further into the article I lost interest it bored me completely. it just kind of dragged on and stated the oblivious.
I believe this person is putting too much power in words. Words are just that, words. And I realize when it comes to communication; everyone views what someone says in a different way. But examining what words mean is not going to give us the answers to ‘Why are we here?’,’ Why is there death?’, and ‘What is the meaning of it all?’ To me it’s obvious, people don’t necessarily mean what they say. And in order to fully understand what a person means, you either have to know them, or to get them to open up enough to trust you with how they feel.
Yeah, labels suck. Who wants to be labeled as one thing or another? But the fact of the matter is, unless you’re the person being labeled, you don’t really care. How about instead of defining what we really mean by the words that we say, we get people to care about one another. We are all human beings, but that’s not what it’s about. It’s about the fact that society puts people in to categories. People are defined socially as ‘rich, poor, black, white, Arab, Christian, Pagan, evil, good, gay, straight, left, right’. Weather you teach your children that, or society does, either way they learn it.
This article really opened up my eyes to the things we cannot control in life. Also kids in this world are raised by the way their parents raise them. If they teach them on what they should and should not do; that is what they will and will not do. The whole movie rating issue is silly. I believe they should put what kind of language or rated material there is in the movie. Sometimes that might even get a person to want to watch a movie. If there is nudity or sexual explicit material; guys and girls alike may want to watch that movie. It adds to the movie when an a person strips down to their true selves. All in all good article!
I think that there should be a rating system but I don’t think that it is strict enough. The article was well written and makes a lot of since. And it is a topic that needed to be addressed.
This article is very true in a couple different ways. It starts with the lazy film police because these days it is getting really bad. Also I love all sorts of movies. These days we really need to focus on teaching the youth of today the right from wrong language.
This article was very enjoyable to read. I showed it to friends whom enjoy reading short stories such as this article and they found it pleasurable. Language can be perceived in a variety of ways compared to the use of experience of jargon and language. The word “language” used in this article would probably result in adult language since the caption of the use of the word is in a movie critique. Where someone might see “language” as an obvious use of the movie having conversations.
I enjoyed the article, and think that the author made some very good points. Simply stating "language" as a warning can mean a number of things. They may not be using bad words, but the context of the phrase can mean more than one thing. This even goes for movies that are generated towards children. Those ones are rated G, but if an adult watches those movies or shows, they may get something out of a phrase that may not even register to a child. A perfect example is on the childrens' cartoon, "Spongebob Square Pant". In one show Patrick says something intelligent, and Spongebob responds with, "Patrick! Your genius is showing." Patrick looks down, covers his privates, and exclaims, "Where?" Now how is that appropriate for a small child?
WOW. That was not worth my time to read because it made no sense what so ever. I don’t agree with the part that said that if we look past the symbols we can solve all out problems. Gee I wish that would work but I don’t think it would. He made it sound like we could all do this one thing and all out problems would just go away. Well we live in a broken world so that for sure will not happen. I think this person needs to get a grip.
I think this article was a little unorganized. But I did learn a little from it.
Language can mean so many different things to every individual person. When it comes to movies and there ratings, I don't even pay attention. And being a mother of small children I should pay a little more attention.
I admit, I have let my 5 year old watch a PG-13 film. Transformers and Spiderman, which were both awesome movies. Also, some other movies where the ratings are a little off would be Shrek. They are all rated PG when some of the crude humor in those movies I think are way worse than in a lot of PG 13 movies I've seen.
Now, Back to language. I also believe that "labeling" people happens all the time. We label someone before we even meet them and it's not necessarily wrong, but it's what our society has taught us growing up. The only way to avoid it is to try and change how you teach your children and young ones around you what is right and wrong.
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