The Power of Language

Nelson Mandela once said, “If you talk to a man in a language that he understands, it goes to his head. If you talk to a man in his language, it goes to his heart.” Language I believe embodies a historical linguistic evolution that may alter a part of our identity. Identity more simply stated as what we consider normal checks in the boxes like age, race, and gender. These identities may then turn into roles and forms of communication like those between a husband and wife or superior to subordinate. Linguistics and social constructs on the other hand feel as though language is meant to be sacred almost, scholarly, proper, precise, English; yet, if most of our ‘English’ words derive from Latin origins doesn’t that prove that language is actually quite infinite and diverse?

Social constructs inhibit our belief that although our language may be altered it doesn’t affect how smart we are or our ability to understand or do things. “Ya’ll be mad going to the store” (Lyiscott) this clearly is someone uneducated right? Improperly using the scholastic language we were taught in school but realistically this is someone who has used the evolution of language to create their own among an individual or community or even culture to express themselves. Evolution: the gradual development of something, especially from a simple to a more complex form therefore, “let there be no confusion, let be there be no hesitation, this is not a promotion of ignorance but a linguistic celebration” (Lyiscott)