Speaking in Tongue Blog Post

  


On a TIME magazine, that was published in 1997, an article was published to raise awareness about the gradual loss of languages throughout the world. Surprisingly, according to the magazine, there are approximately 6,500 different languages, and one language is being disappeared every 2 weeks. 

   Along with this, he quotes that any language is as divine and endless a mystery as a living organism. It is very apparent that language is being compared to a living organism with its characteristics of being divine and endless. However, I want to ask you. Are living organisms divine, meaning that they don't die? Clearly not. But, when they die, they are decomposed and are broken into simpler matters, being absorbed into the soil. Likewise, I believe that the author is trying to convey a message that despite the death of many languages, they are assimilated into something that lasts forever, and that is culture and tradition.

    Moreover, the author further compares language as a mystery. I believe that the author is trying to deliver that language, like its characteristics of living organisms, doesn’t know what external forces are awaiting it. The author also implies that languages can be easily damaged by external forces like living organisms are by poachers. An example he gives is the Russians, who were the poachers in this case, and the people of Nentsi, being the living organisms. The people of Nentsi were forced to give up their language and were brutally treated to imbibe the Russian language; not a long after, the language of Nentsi evaporated on Earth, but luckily, the culture and tradition of it are still at present.