Language barriers: universities are becoming factories of jargon and illiteracy

[Paul Mackin]

On Tue, 2003-06-24 at 13:36, David Morris wrote: 
> 
> http://www.spectator.co.uk/article.php3?table=old&section=current&issue=2003-06-14&id=3194
> 
> In his essay ‘Politics and the English Language’ (1946), George Orwell laments
> the corruption of the English language in postwar society. Everywhere he finds
> pompous phrases designed to sound weighty (‘render inoperative’, meaning
> ‘break’); Latin- or Greek-based words where simpler words will do (‘ameliorate’
> for ‘improve’, ‘clandestine’ for ‘secret’); words which have lost their meaning
> (‘fascism’, meaning ‘something not desirable’); padding to give an impression
> of depth (‘this is a consideration which we should do well to bear in mind’);
> clichés (‘ring the changes on’, ‘play into the hands of’, ‘toe the line’,
> ‘explore every avenue’). Words that give him particular grief include
> ‘phenomenon’, ‘element’, ‘objective’, ‘categorical’, ‘virtual’, ‘basic’,
> ‘primary’, ‘promote’, ‘constitute’, ‘exhibit’, ‘exploit’, ‘utilise’. 
> 
> Orwell continues, ‘A speaker who uses that kind of phraseology has gone some
> distance to turning himself into a machine. The appropriate noises are coming
> out of his larynx, but his brain is not involved as it would be if he were
> choosing his words for himself.’ It is like ‘having a packet of aspirins always
> at one’s elbow’. 

Alas, Orwell died too soon, as did Hemingway. Neither lived into the
postmodern age. Where plain truths expressed in plain language are
simply not the currency in which we barter ideas. 

Postmodern 'truth' demands cliche and the million other depths we
immerse ourselves in.. 

Imagine Orwell's reaction upon reading the first chapter of V. Try to
imagine my reaction.

Peter Williams, the author of the piece David quoted, is a classics
scholar. Translating the Odyssey and things like that.

P.