If I
somehow lost my language just as Jill Bolte Taylor did, I think I would be
happy. I spend most of my days trapped in my head. There is always something
happening whether it’s an argument or a song stuck in my head or thoughts about
weird someone is or thoughts about how weird I am. The list goes on. So, I feel
that if I could somehow lose all of the “… brain chatter…”, as Jill Bolte
Taylor put it, constantly going on in my mind, I would finally be able to just
appreciate the simple things. She gives an example of waking up to the sun
shining and just being able to experience the sun shining. When I wake up,
especially recently, to the sun shining, I immediately start stressing about
what all I have to accomplish that day and where I need to be in the next hour
or two. Without the ability to get bogged down by this cluttered, sporadic
thought, I would no longer have stress or anxiety or any of the other downsides
that comes with complex thought.
I’m
sure there would be disadvantages to the loss of language as well. Like the
inability to plan ahead or the inability to communicate the simplest things to
others. However, I have a feeling that these things wouldn’t make me upset or
sad because there would be no inner monologue to remind me that this is a
depressing situation. There would be no little voice telling me that everyone
around me thinks that I am stupid because I can no longer speak or comprehend.
No little voice to remind me that I lost my career or future because without
language, no of these things matter. It would just be “… pure silence inside…”
my head, and that sounds amazing.
I agree, the loss of language wouldn't be a complete downfall of my life. It would make me more appreaciative of simple things like you said. Without language I feel like life would be less complex, doing activities without thought. That sounds like an easy and stressful life to live. The downside of it is that we really don't have thoughts without language I believe. But we still have an "inner voice" in our head that allows us to be aware of what's in the world and how we interpret it. That's why I wouldn't feel completely lost without it. It's like living a rule free life which I don't see a problem with.
ReplyDeleteAs I was reading your post something weird came to my mind. What if instead of losing language, it was something like color. Being born without this connection to the things around you is adaptable because it’s all you’ve ever seen your whole life. But imagine losing this small but wonder detail. No longer being able to truly enjoy spring watching the flowers bloom or the fall when the leaves turn. You’d lose a piece of yourself. And no matter how much you try and tell yourself that you’ll be ok with this small but major change you’re really not. So I disagree with the happiness you’d find in losing such a BIG part of oneself. It’s different when you originally start out that way. Ildefonso struggled with gaining language, no inside voices in his head from the start. Imagine just suddenly getting “…brain chatter…” it could really make or break a person.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with you due to my reasoning of I can't imagine not having that little voice in my head because it is your gut instinct. I mean we all think or say our initial reaction inside our head like "oh her dress is cute" or "wow his hair is weird because its green" but we don't say it out loud. I can understand the concept of sometimes it is frustrating because you can't turn the little voice off and then it just keeps going and going but without it you would not know your true identity. Like Jill Bolte Taylor mentions "my brain chanter went totally silent, just think about how boring that would be. You basically have no thoughts and you not really thinking for yourself. Life would be empty because you don't have anything going on in that beautiful brain of yours that has so much potential and personality. The thought of "Pure Silence" to me scares me because that means I'm not thinking. I absolutely love halfway through class i think about all the homework and stuff i have to do on my list and without that constant reminder telling me ok its laundry on Sunday or grocery store on Thursday then my life would be a mess. Their would be no structure because your never thinking about the future or what you have to do, thats why i disagree and don't like the idea of "Pure Silence".
ReplyDeleteI disagree with what you have said about being happy with losing language because I feel that communication is truly everything in every instance. You ask questions through communicational language, you deal with problems through language communication even if it is just talking aloud to yourself, we all need some sort of language in order to truly get what we need to be said across. I don't believe that I could survive a day without talking, let alone an hour without some verbal communication because that is truly how I as an individual. “Brain chatter” can be pretty overwhelming at times but being a talkative person like myself, I don't know how to keep my issues inside. I can truly open up to an individual because I was always raised to get it out instead of let it build up inside you, in order to get over a problem or concern. I think that regardless being able to use language to communicate or not, an individual will always have some level of stress and anxiety. Yes I believe that you can “appreciate the simple things” but I am just so talkative, I would have to talk to someone about how great those things are. For example, having a family never be able to hear your voice or even know how it sounds can be truly heartbreaking, I know that on the day when my grandma was taking her last breaths, the words “I love you” came out and never being able to hear that voice again truly sucks, after those words were spoke, she continued to live for a week or so and just could look at you. You could tell the words that she wanted to speak but just wouldn't come out and that is another reason I believe communication is really big, not only for yourself but the others around you who care for you as well. Being able to verbally communicate with language is everything to me and I don't know what I would do if I lost that forever.
ReplyDeleteI partially disagree with you because even though it seems neat to have all stress and frustration removed from an individual, it also seems terrifying. I believe that we were all meant to provide some input into our society even if it’s just a little bit that we can contribute. The “pure silence” that Jill Bolte Taylor mentions in this podcast doesn’t exactly do that. Having that “brain chatter” can constantly create ideas. Whether big or small, they’re of great benefit. Communication and interaction with one another are very essential because there’s no barrier that stops us from sharing thoughts and also developing our communication skills. It’s how we as people progress, move forward. It is what makes the human being so wonderful, the way we perceive things. Additionally, it makes us who we are. Taylor states that once her language was gone she no longer had “ongoing information processing” such as “these are my beliefs, I am an individual, I’m a single” and so on. These “constant reminders” obviously add to who we know we are and what we are. Although it’s okay to escape from our everyday struggles somehow, I would not want to have that silence forever. I wouldn’t be able to support the thought of having no sort of inner voice or to fail to hear it.
ReplyDeleteThank you Tony for this wonderful blog post that you have posted. I agree with you in the sense of being able to not worry about what you have to do and what deadlines you have to meet. Language has it’s ups and downs and even with being stuck in your head, how will you be able to learn new stuff? If you think about it, without language or some way of communication, it is very hard to survive in this world where language is a big factor in this society that evolves constantly. In this case, I would like to agree to disagree with you. Living a life without language is such a huge disadvantage because you are in a world where you are not connected to the things that help make life go on. For example not being able to listen and comprehend the news which contains good and bad stuff that would help you be aware of what’s going on for your safety. Also living without language restricts your mind and knowledge from growing and creating beautiful pictures and scenery with word that could be painted for you. In this state of being mute and also not being able to comprehend, what purpose will you have to life if all you know is your own knowledge that could only take you so far?
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