Notes from the Smithy…

April 2007   #59

GREETINGS/CONTENTS

 Greetings from Southern Oregon.  Spring is in the air; some trees have blossomed, and some flowers have bloomed.  They are a promise of what is yet to come.  I pray your time left in school will be productive.

NEWS……………………………what’s happening

JUST FOR FUN……………..some punny statements

GRAMMAR & THOUGHT……… how much influence

GENERATIONS WITH VISION…a CD by Kevin

HELLO………………………origin of an expression

RECENT READS…………………a few from me

MISCELLANY……………………as it says

NEWS

A Journey Through Grammar Land, Parts 1 & 2 has been printed, picked up, and is in stock.  I have about 20 copies left of the previous edition of Part 1 and more of the Part 2’s.  They will be available for purchase as long they last.

We are making good progress on the DVD effort.  Software and equipment have both been purchased, and we are learning some new skills.  Again, I must emphasize that we are new to this, and there is no set deadline to finish the project.  However, we are working on it as time and energy permit.  Look in this column for future updates.

While I predicted last issue that another printing of the writing book would take place before summer was over, that was too conservative.  The next printing has already taken place.  There are no changes in this new printing.  Some folks are using the format writing book to teach writing worships and classes.  If you are one of these folks, be sure to check with me for bulk discounts. 

Recently while visiting a church in another state, visitors were asked to introduce themselves.  I did so, and at the end of the service a sweet young girl came up, introduced herself to me, and said, “I use your punctuation book.”  What a blessing!

JUST FOR FUN

Friends pass on interesting language tidbits to me from many different sources.  The internet has certainly increased the possibilities.  What follows are some puns.  I like them; maybe you will too.

I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger.  Then it hit me.

Police were called to a daycare where a three-year-old was resisting a rest.

Did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off? He’s all right now.

To write with a broken pencil is pointless.

When fish are in schools, they sometimes take debate.

A thief who stole a calendar got twelve months.

Thieves who steal corn from a garden could be charged with stalking.

We’ll never run out of math teachers because they always multiply.

A thief fell in wet cement and broke his leg.  He became a hardened criminal.

The dead batteries were given out free of charge.

If you take a laptop computer for a run, you could jog your memory.

What’s the definition of a will?  It’s a dead giveaway.

A chicken crossing the road: poultry in motion.

He had a photographic memory that never developed.

You are stuck with your debt if you can’t budge it.

A boiled egg is hard to beat.

Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.

Is it possible to buy a complete chess game in a pawn shop?

A plateau is a high form of flattery.

The professor discovered that her theory of earthquakes was on shaky ground.

Two antennae met on a roof, fell in love and got married.  The ceremony wasn’t much, but the reception was excellent.

And finally, there was the person who sent forty-two different puns to his friends with the hope that at least ten of the puns would make them laugh.  No pun in ten did.

GRAMMAR & THOUGHT

At the risk of stepping off into space, the following is a quick take on a subject of some debate.  The subject is referred to as linguistic determinism or linguistic relativity.  Some refer to it as the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis although that is not Whorf’s terminology.  You can look up these various terms on Google and find many references.

The real question revolves around the influence of grammar and vocabulary on the thought process.  Everyone agrees that languages differ in structure and vocabulary.  Last time I wrote about syntax and how English is an S-V-O language while others employ different syntaxes, S-O-V and V-S-O for instance.  No one disputes this point.  The dispute revolves around a second point, how much does the structure/grammar and vocabulary of a language influence how a person thinks and views the world?

Linguistic determinism is characterized as the view that language is either the only influence on thought or at least the overwhelming influence on thought.  Determinists are in the decided minority today.  Linguistic relativists think the influence is both ways, but they differ widely as to what extent language shapes thought.  No one believes that there is no connection; in fact, no experiment has proven a disconnection between language and thought.  As a result, current studies generally focus on how language affects thought.

Interestingly enough, this question has been examined by a wide variety of folks over time.  A number of science fiction authors have made observations about it.  Frank Herbert in Dune and Robert Heinlein in Stranger in a Strange Land both mention it.  George Orwell is the classic example.  In 1984 he introduced Newspeak, the language of Big Brother’s government.  The idea behind Newspeak was to get rid of all the negatives; bad became ungood.  Definitions were changed; freedom is slavery and war is peace.  The theory was that if the vocabulary changed sufficiently, no negative or anti-government thoughts would be possible.  How could there be a revolution if the terminology was absent from the language?  In Newspeak, the language would determine the thoughts, or lack of them.  It appears Orwell leaned toward the deterministic view.

Let’s set aside grammar for a moment and examine how vocabulary influences thought.  Orwell has an excellent essay entitled “Politics and the English Language.”  He is quite pointed about how politicians utilize terms to suit their positions or to turn the public’s eye in a particular perspective.  In the debate about abortion today we see the same thing going on.  Two views of the same issue are represented by the terms right to life and freedom of choice.  One’s choice of vocabulary frames the issue and the argument. 

Most readers will remember the name of Helen Keller.  Although not born deaf and blind, an early childhood illness left her thus.  By age seven she had invented about 60 signs to communicate, primarily with her family, but she was a spoiled and angry child.  In fact, some characterized her as demon possessed.  Helen’s mother recruited Anne Sullivan to teach Helen, and a transformation took place.  Helen eventually became an internationally known speaker and author.

Some time later in life, someone asked Helen what she thought before she learned to read and speak.  Her answer was that she didn’t think; she just had raw emotions and feelings, things like hunger, thirst, anger, and tiredness.  Her point was that she couldn’t think because she had no means of doing so, namely, no words or grammar with which to frame thoughts.  I realize this is anecdotal evidence, but it is revealing.

English is an object-oriented language.  We abound in nouns.  We have a penchant for putting a name on everything, even abstractions.  American Indian languages generally don’t seem to have near as many nouns as English does.  Here’s another difference; they have only one tense.  No past, no present, no future, just sort of a non-linear timelessness viewed as a single unity.  Different cultures have different languages; that means different languages have different views of the world and life.  Perspectives differ.

Modern quantum physics says light exists simultaneously in two forms, particle and wave.  How can that be?  In grammar we use the word light as three different parts of speech: noun, verb, and adjective.  The light from the sun through a magnifying glass lights the light tinder.  It’s perspective again.

Moving on, let’s look at how children acquire language.  I spoke of Helen Keller earlier.  She was fortunate that her instruction began early.  We all know that children have an ease of acquiring a language that many of us older folks don’t.  It is said that the missionary learns ten new words a day in his study while his children learn a hundred on the street.

Children learn language by receiving a wide variety and unsystematic series of language utterances, primarily from their family and others around them.  They are somehow able to sort through all this input and create totally new sentences they have never heard before that make sense to others.  The new sentences make sense because they conform to the accepted structures and patterns of the language.  How can this be?

Noam Chomsky says it is because there is some innate sense of language that we all have, some built-in inductive basis by which we know how to make the words work together.  Scripture strongly implies that language is a God-given gift.  Children seem adept at learning any language.  Think again of those missionary children.  The same goes for the many children who are adopted as babies or young children and transported to a new culture and language.  The historical incident that stands out is the Pilgrims in Holland.  Their children were learning Dutch instead of English and absorbing the culture; this is not what the Pilgrims wanted, so they arranged to leave Holland and later came to America.

So what does all this mean to you, the teacher?  Last time I said that students inherently know how the language works although most of them can’t explain it very well.  Your job is to explain what your students already use so that they can use it better.  With greater understanding comes greater facility.

Obviously acquiring a good vocabulary facilitates better communication, so teach them new words on some sort of systematic basis.  Better yet, show them how words are formed from other words along with affixes.  Jensen’s Vocabulary covers that nicely. 

English has patterns and structure to it.  Jensen’s Grammar teaches those patterns and structures through the use of formula writing.  Again, understanding the structures helps the student use the structures with greater accuracy and ability.

Does language influence thought?  Yes.  To what degree does it influence thought?  The jury is still out, but studies, experiments, and observations all point to the fact that language is a strong influence, perhaps stronger than many like to admit.

GENERATIONS WITH VISION

Kevin Swanson has lots of good things to say.  Below you will find a brief statement about a new CD he has put together, “Generations with Vision.”  I’ve not heard these, but I know Kevin, so they will be good.  Please note that I don’t carry this CD, and I will not receive any remuneration from this.  I am passing on information for your benefit.

“As an international keynote speaker, host of a daily radio program, and father of five children, Kevin Swanson shares a passionate vision for truth and relationship in a lost and lonely world.  Touching on the issues of relationships, education, child training, and a biblical family, these messages are designed to cast a vision for family discipleship that will last for generations.  A single CD with 9 Inspiring Messages in Mp3 format: 1. Ten Secrets to the Best Education for Your Child  2. The Homeschool Vision  3. Homeschooling Through the Generations  4. The Core Curriculum - Family Worship  5. Training Godly Children  6. Raising a Mighty Man of God  7. Raising a Beautiful Woman of God  8. Vision For Fatherhood  9. Renewing a Family Vision in the 21st Century.”

Go to http://generations.iwebc.net for more information on this CD.

HELLO

The origin of hello shows us how language changes to meet new needs.  The telephone presented a new challenge.  Previously folks knew to whom they were speaking, male or female, older or younger, superior or peer or inferior.  Knowing that, the speaker would formulate the proper greeting.  With the telephone the person on the other end might be anybody, so some sort of greeting needed to be invented to get around the problem.

Hello became the accepted greeting.  It probably came from hey, an interjection to get someone’s attention.  Other languages adopted different terms, bueno, bitte, and so forth, each language making some adaptation to the new technology.

RECENT READS

Here’s a brief review of the books I read since the last newsletter.

John Piper’s Don’t Waste Your Life was the focus of a small group discussion of which I was a part.  He introduces the failed philosophy of self-indulgence by revisiting some 60’s songs.  That was a trip down memory lane.  I thought the best chapter was #8 where he relates theology and faith to the workplace.

James Michener writes a good book.  I picked up a copy of The Covenant, about South Africa and was not disappointed.  His liberalism peeks through when he gets to modern times, but the history and characterization throughout was a joy to read.

I read two by Stephen Lawhead this time.  Hood is the first of a planned series about Robin Hood.  He sets it in Wales and a few centuries earlier; it’s a good story.  I also read the first in his Celtic Crusades series.  The Iron Lance moves from the Orkneys to the Holy Land and back.  Murdo is the hero, young and somewhat fearful but determined to find his dad.  A couple of monks he meets are quite delightful.

Robert D. Kaplan’s books are a mix of travelogue, history, and political commentary.  I read two of them.  In Balkan Ghosts he visits a variety of countries in the Balkans prior to the ethnic cleansing during Clinton’s time.  If he is correct, those hatreds go back a long time.  Imperial Grunts has him embedded with some army special operations forces around the world as well as a US Marine group in Iraq.  He has some interesting insights and is a very readable author.

Ray Feist is one of my favorite fantasy authors.  I devoured his third book in the Conclave of Shadows trilogy.  It is called Exile’s Return.  Feist builds his characters over time, and you think you get to know them.  This book was a bit of a surprise in that it transformed an earlier villain into a hero of sorts.  He also put in some cameo appearances of characters from previous books.  Feist always tells a good story.

One of my interests lies with finance, the markets, and so forth.  This quarter I read The Five Rules for Successful Stock Investing by Pat Dorsey.  The book was produced by Morningstar, a stock advisory service.  I thought the book was very informative but rather technical and tedious at times.

Douglas Bond’s new book is Guns of Thunder.  It is a boy’s book and traces young Ian M’Kethe’s adventures in early America.  While Bond is a bit preachy at times, he tells a story that should capture the attention of young boys quite well.

Wayne Mack and Dave Swavely combined forces to author Life in the Father’s House.  This book is aimed at the layman.  Many books are written for officers, but these fellows thought one for the layman was needed.  They talk about church life from the perspective of the pew and encourage people to become involved in a church, how to decide on which church to attend, and a variety of other practical ideas for the fellows and gals in general membership.  These brothers are clear and confronting about issues.

Sure enough I was able to sneak in two westerns this time, one by Louis L’Amour and one by W.W. Johnstone.  I enjoy light fare from time to time.

MISCELLANY

1.  Excerpts of material from this newsletter may be freely used so long as proper credit is given as to the source.  Feel free to copy it and pass it along.

2.  This newsletter is no longer published in print form except to send to new customers when they order.  I encourage you to sign up for the electronic version.  You can sign up here on the website or drop me an e-mail at   The e-mail version is free for as long as you want to receive it as long as I continue to publish it.

3.  Are you interested in a deal?  I’ve got a few slightly damaged or printer error books again.  Not many but a few.  It’s first come, first served.  Email me, , for information on availability of the punctuation, writing, and grammar books.  You will get a discount for buying a book with a bent corner or a wrinkle on the cover.

4.  Thanks to all of you who buy and use our books.  It’s because of you that we continue to serve in this business, and we appreciate the opportunity.

5.  The next issue of Smithy Notes is scheduled for distribution in July, sometime after the 4th.  Lord willing, I’ll have another issue out then.  Until then,

MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU,
Frode Jensen