This Sounds Like the Beginning of a Joke
One of my favorite children’s book series is Amelia Bedelia. It involves a housekeeper named Amelia Bedelia who works for the Rogers family. She is always getting things wrong, even though Amelia does what she is told to do. The result is never what the Rogers family want, yet if you look at what Amelia did it is exactly what Mrs. Rogers said. When Mrs. Rogers asks Amelia to draw the drapes, she is asking Amelia to close the drapes. Amelia proceeds to draw a picture of the drapes, which is exactly what she is told to do.
The twist of words makes the story comical. It also shows how our language can be used for more than communicating one person to another. According to Webster’s First American Dictionary, language is defined as; “human speech; the use of words or sounds to articulate the thoughts of one person to another.”
Twists
Our language is one of our most used tools to convey a message. We are also able to maneuver the language for amusement to create jokes. It’s a fun and harmless way of interaction. Words spoken with a funny anecdote produces laughter.
Continue reading “What Happens When You Twist Language”
When people talk with each other today it’s common not to say what we mean. That’s not such an unheard of idea.
Ever wonder why the person you are talking to didn’t understand what you said? It’s because they think you are saying something else. Since Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, the definitions of words have changed. We expect that to happen as we invent new things, as slang words are created, and to keep up with the times. Consequently, new words are needed to name them.
