I was sitting in my first Psalms translation class the other day, and Dr. Young asked us to go around the room and say why we were studying Hebrew. I started thinking about it, glad that I wasn't one of the first people to go. My answer had something to do with the vivid nature of the language, how every word evokes pictures and actions.
And I love that about Hebrew; I love how the language paints pictures, just as a parable teaches lessons. In studying Hebrew, I am learning something Tolkien knew much better: that, in a way, language is the fundamental unit of culture. That, to know a culture, you must first understand its language. Language and ideas cannot be divorced.
But it hit me as I sat there: I don't just love Hebrew. I love words. All words. (Well, most words.)
And maybe that's why I'm doing all of this. Studying English, studying literature, studying the Bible in its original languages. I adore words. I adore their complexities and their combinations, their literal meanings and figurative connotations. I adore them for the meanings their authors intend them to have and for the subsequent meanings they take on through intertextuality.
They are, in a sense, a fundamental building block of who I am and who I will become.
6 comments:
So, are you keeping the title of each entry this year to the number of words in the month again?
I haven't decided yet. But I figured I'd better start out that way, just in case. :)
I always wanted to learn more about language than I had a chance to. I can kind of do it vicariously in conversation with one of my friends with a masters in classics. She knows 7 languages: 4 dead ones and 3 current ones. If I ever become independantly wealthy, I think I will quit my job and go to school indefinitely to learn stuff. Mainly languages and history.
You know, I thought your titles were getting rather odd towards the end of the year, but it never occurred to me that I should count them (the words). Kudos to you for keeping it up the whole year!
For this year, why not try syllables?
PS--You should update to the new version of blogger--it's fantastic!
I'm actually on the new Blogger already. Can't say that I've seen much of a change for the better. What do you like about it?
I like that you can drag and drop page elements and add photos to the sidebar. I also like the comment moderation by email. (Not that I really have to use it, but its still cool.) It is also very nice to be able to change single elements color and font.
The one thing that I am still trying to figure out is the Subscribe to: Posts (Atom) at the bottom.
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