Uses of Language

At the Hoover Institution website is an article about George Orwell, his use of language, and why the preservation and use of the English language is important. The article is titled "Orwell's Instructive Errors" and was written by Liam Julian.

The article discusses what Orwell had to say in his essays about the use of language and also how Orwell himself used language in some of his writings. One of the essays referred to is "Politics and the English Language".

These two pieces are of interest for political reasons, but also for the use of both readers and writers.

I don't agree with everything Liam Julian said. For example, in the following paragraph he seems to think right-wing extremists are the same as conservatives, which is assuredly not true.

It is, certainly, not only denizens of the left who theorize and euphemize their way out of inconvenient situations. The staunchest apologists for the worst elements of British Empire were conservatives, and now, as in Orwell’s time, it is conservatives who lean most heavily on theory to explain away indigence and squalor as inevitable in a free society and thereby rid themselves of responsibility to alleviate the burdens of the impoverished. Certainly America’s foremost racists are found on the right, and they have all sorts of theories. And yet such justifications — whether of racism, imperialism, neglect of the poor, or even creationism — currently have but parochial appeal. The left is in power now, and so it is that today’s most influential and worrisome euphemizing comes from the left.

Regarding racism in particular, it is people like Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and, yes, Barack and Michelle Obama who keep racism most alive in America. They are not found on the right in America. Nonetheless, the article has some interesting things to say about the uses of language.

Arts & Letters

There is a website called Arts & Letters Daily that you might enjoy looking at. It's full of links to articles, book reviews, and essays. Down the left sidebar is a long list of various types of links, as well.

Some things you'll like and some you won't, but there's a lot of variety there. In the many links, you will probably discover some interesting websites that will appeal to you.

Enjoy!

Learning about Shakespeare

I have found a website that you might enjoy. It's called Shakespeare Criticism. I have just begun to look through it, but it appears to be full of information and links that will help you to gain greater insight to Shakespeare's writings and, in the process, accumulate ideas for themes and approaches to your own writing.

Learning about Literature

I find that knowing about literature helps me with my writing. I know, for example, to strive for unity in setting (time and place) and theme. I learn about ways to use symbolism. Studying literature also helps me to enjoy reading more.

One site that I have found that explains a lot of these things is John Lye's website. He is chair of the English department at Brock University in Canada. His page isn't just for his students--it contains a number of articles that you will find helpful, too. For example, one is "On the Uses of Studying Literature". In this article, Professor Lye offers a number of theses on ways to view literature, such as a source of wisdom. There are a number of other articles listed and he also has links to other sites. If you are interested in literature, you will find a lot to read!

I bring my own views to these sites that explain literature and literary theory. I don't, for example, buy into Marxist theory or feminist theory, but it is useful to have an overview of what's out there. What I am more interested in is something like Professor Lye's page for "Critical Reading: A Guide" which gives some explanations and some questions for a reader to use in understanding what he is reading more fully. For me, it's as interesting to read about literature as it is to read literature.

J R R Tolkien

One of my favorite authors is J. R. R. Tolkien. The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings are much loved books that I return to again and again. They are delightful and interesting stories, but there is such depth to them, as well. I gain insight into the human condition by reading them.

A webpage that I have found and am beginning to explore is "The Catholic Imagination of J. R. R. Tolkien". It has quite a list of articles & essays about Tolkien's writings from a spiritual point of view. You might enjoy it as well.

Literary Criticism

One of the many subjects I enjoy studying is literary criticism. It helps me to find new ideas in interpreting literature and inspires me in my own writing.

There is a website called The Internet Public Library which provides an enormous number of links to various resources on the web. The site has a page called "Online Literary Criticism Guide" which will lead you to sources for the study of literature that you might not discover on your own. You will find sites geared to specific areas of literature. There is biographical information as well as literary criticism.

It is interesting to read how others view a particular author's writing. You will also learn where a piece of writing falls short or succeeds well in what it tries to accomplish and this can help you with your own writing. You will also find yourself inspired to try writing in a particular genre or about a particular subject as you read about those things in essays on criticism.

Give it a whirl!