FISCHER: Respect the power of words

When I sit down to write this column each week, I have the amazing opportunity to write just about whatever I want. This is partly because I work for a newspaper that allows me the freedom to do so. More importantly, it is because I live in a country that guarantees I will not be punished, mistreated or discriminated against because of what I say.

While it is easy to take this for granted, many people around the world do not share this right. Thus, it is important to realize freedom of speech is an incredible right. It is also important to remember it is not a right to be taken lightly.

Words and language have a great deal of power and, when used improperly, they can be extremely damaging. Unfortunately, we often ignore this fact.

Last Wednesday the American Free Press Newspaper reported that a recent study done by the University of Pittsburgh had found a significant correlation between adolescent consumption of music containing sexually explicit lyrics and early sexual activity.

It would be tempting for us to just write this study off, but it may actually be getting at something even bigger than we realized.

In general, we like to think of words or language as mostly neutral or pretty harmless. For example, most can think back to a time in our early childhood when we heard our parents or friends use that familiar phrase, "Sticks and stone may break my bones but words will never hurt me." They probably said it in response to some kid who had been making fun of us, intending to make us feel better.  The point was that we shouldn't be affected by other people's words.

But the fact of the matter is, this phrase is just a cliché that really doesn't work outside of the playground or the classroom. Sure, we shouldn't let our self images be shaped by the hurtful words of a cruel peer, but in reality, language, and particularly spoken word, is powerful.

It is true that, in and of themselves, words are mere sounds and have no meaning other than that which we give them. For example, there is no special significance about the word "column" other than it describes that thing I write each week for the newspaper.

However, once a word is assigned a meaning it becomes a powerful mechanism for transmitting culture and ideas. Beyond this, language also becomes a mechanism that shapes culture and can actually influence the way we see the world.

Consider the example of describing objects by their color. If we see a grassy field we automatically describe it as green, and if we see a clear lake we describe it as blue. We generally take these classifications for granted and assume everyone sees it the same way.

However, traditional Japanese does not have words to distinguish between blue and green. They would use the same word to describe the color of the grassy field and of the clear lake. Certainly they see the difference between the two colors, but to them the difference is not significant enough to warrant classifying them as different colors. Their language both reflects and perpetuates this way of seeing the world (as does English).

Or consider the fact that some cultures lack a phrase like "Thank you" for expressing gratitude.  This does not mean they do not understand or demonstrate gratitude but that they express it in a different way. Here in the United States most of us learn early on the way to show gratitude is to say "thank you." Elsewhere people learn different ways to respond to gifts. Both are instances of language shaping culture and actions.

The words we use and the words we hear shape how we perceive and respond to the world around us.

Thus, a study that shows a link between music and behavior shouldn't surprise us.  Certainly listening to explicit music does not cause teens to go out and have sex, but it does help shape their attitudes about it.

It is similar to the way a teenage girl sees herself as stupid and ugly after her abusive parents repeatedly tell her she is. In the same way, if a teen hears sex portrayed in a degrading way over and over, he will begin to view and approach sex in the same way.

What we need to learn from all this is that we have to be careful about how we use our freedom of speech. Speech is powerful because it affects people. When used in the wrong way or for the wrong reasons it can have terrible results
So while I don't think this is cause to rush out and insist explicit lyrics be banned from radios and iTunes, it does demand we consider how we are affected by speech and how our speech affects others.  It does demand we act responsibly when exercising our free speech and refuse to support those who use it improperly.

Luke Fischer is a junior secondary education major. Reach him at lukefischer@dailynebraskan.com