“It is never my custom to use words lightly. If 27 years in prison have done anything to me, it was to use the silence of solitude to make me understand how precious words are, and how real speech is in its impact on the way people live and die.” These were the words of the late President Nelson Mandela. Good evening adjudicators, ladies and gentlemen. A word is like a living organism: capable of growing, changing, spreading, and influencing the world in many ways, directly and indirectly through others. Words when said and articulated in the right way can change someone's mind; they can alter someone's belief. You have the power to bring someone from the slums of life and make a successful person out of them, or destroy someone's happiness using only your words. Does that seem a bit too good to be true? A simple choice of words can be the difference between someone accepting or denying your message. You can have a very beautiful thing to say, but say it with the wrong words and it's gone. …show more content…
I used to watch Bob the Builder every day, and one day I got a present – a toy drill. I was so driven by my passion for construction that I pressed this plastic drill against the wall with such zeal that I actually created a hole. Then my mom walked into the room and said “Hey hey! What’s wrong with you? Don't you ever do that again!” And guess what, I did it again. Nobody likes to be threatened, nobody likes to be intimidated, my pride would not allow it. I did it again a week later just to spite her. She walked into the room and I was at it again, and this time I was looking at her. She came down and said, “sweetie come here don't do that, you're a big boy now.” And I never did it again because my pride wanted me to be a big
The characters throughout the novel get impacted tremendously by negative comments. Most of the main characters in the book get torn down one way or another by a hurtful comment. However, words aren’t always used negatively. They have the power to teach new things which can increase one’s intellect. Liesel, throughout the book, was impacted the most by words because she started out knowing nothing and eventually she became very smart. The last positive thing words can do is make a person's dreams become reality. Max’s stories were beneficial to both him and his friend Liesel. They were an inspiration to them and allowed them to follow their aspirations. Words, and how we speak to one another can be very impactful. The Book Thief provides numerous examples as to how important it is to have a positive command of language, and we see how rhetoric has shaped the lives of many key characters throughout this
Words have the power to affect people in many ways from empowerment or to taking upon action. Words are able to make huge changes in the lives of many and can make good or bad changes. In history, people used words in both good and bad function from making a promise to a nation or even manipulating multitudes of people within a nation. Words definitely have the ability to take situations a far distance but despite the fact that evil can manipulate the majority of people, individuals too can realize the true actions and evil buried inside the perpetrator. People can be both ugly and beautiful at sometimes with weapons along their sides. A novel called The Book Thief illustrates the power of words in a multitude of ways, showing the potential
When discussing something like words and ideas it seems much simpler to allow someone who has done both for a living do it for you. This quote, quite succinctly, summarizes language, and ...
Words hold great power and when used correctly can influence what people believe and how they act.
Words have quite a powerful impact on an individual’s emotions which therefore affects how that individual views the world around them and themselves. Natasha Rodriguez explains this in her well-written article “Who Are You Calling Underprivileged?” The article explains how Rodriguez received a pamphlet from the college, she had applied for. This pamphlet was given to Rodriguez providing her with vital information about “Help for Underprivileged Students.” The college she was applying for was not aware of what Natasha Rodriguez financial situation was at the time because she had not sent any information to them about it yet which is the main reason why she wrote the article “Who Are You Calling Underprivileged?” She had received this information
Even though they're just words they have a very strong power over whoever hears them and writes them because it brings up the emotions that contributed to the
After reading “People First Language” by Kathie Snow, the first thing that came to my mind was the saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” I have never agreed with this saying because words can inflict pain just like sticks and stones. Words really do matter.
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”- Martin Luther King Jr.
Imagine living during the 1960’s when the nation was divided by segregation. The only way to express your ideas, beliefs, and thoughts during that time was through words. Famous Civil Rights activists such as, Dr.Martin Luther King Jr., inspired many with his wise words and empowering speeches. Times when many felt unheard or invisible, words were there as tranquilness and an ataraxia. Words have the power to provoke, calm, or inspire by motivating others to take action in what they believe in.
Joseph Addison once said, “Words, when well chosen, have so great a force in them that a description often gives us more lively ideas than the sight of things themselves (416).” I like this quote because it shows the importance of words and how powerful and influential they can be. Illustrations are used the same way, they hold the attention of readers, communicate content of information, and give insight of a particular event. There are eight types of illustrations: compare/contrast, personal experiences, processes, facts, quotations, case studies, examples, and statistics. My main focus, however, will be examples, facts, and quotes.
"The reality is simply an illusion, but at the end is a very convincing illusion" Albert Einstein. Do you ever feel that you remember a certain event with the utmost precision, and with all the details like it happened yesterday? And begins to occur around you about this incident to find out that they do not know anything about it and don 't know what you 're talking about! then you begin to decline yourself thinking: Am I losing my mind? Do not worry because you did not lose your mind in any way, but you passed a unique experience call "The false memory".
typing finding Mr. Simpson's blood at the scene of the crime, to retrieve a ‘
In her article " Do You Speak Presidential?" Trester explains how language is a powerful political tool presidents use to project a sense of pity and it 's not always what you say but how you say it (399). This sheds a light on Mandela 's speech with his use of pathos to target emotion and pity from the audience. "That spiritual and physical oneness we all share with this common homeland explains the depth of the pain we all carried in our hearts as we saw our country tear itself apart in a terrible conflict" (419). "Each time one of us touches the soil of this land, we feel a sense of personal renewal" (419). The language and tone Mandela speaks in projects a sense of pity as Trester says. Trester also says how language creates an identity. " Language is and will continue to be an important tool for creating identity" (403). This illuminates on Mandela 's rhetorical use with ethos. Mandela 's image and creditability is well known in South Africa, his past made this a little easier an his connection with the African citizens to be more than just a president but someone they can relate to. Mandela assures the people that he to has gone through the same suffering and long discrimination as well using "we" repetitively in his speech. "We understand it still that there is no easy road to freedom" (420). " We know it well that none of us acting alone can achieve success. We must therefore act together as a united people, for national reconciliation, for nation building, for the birth of a new world" (420). William Lutz, a professor of English at Rutgers University speaks on "Doubts About Doublespeak" which I believe also has a take on Mandela 's speech. Lutz 's articles refers to how doublespeak is a language which pretends to communicate but doesn 't (380). The fourth kind of doublespeak is inflated language, makes the ordinary seem
Words are powerful tools of communication and interpersonal skills. Having the ability to communicate effectively is the most important of all life skills. This life skill is most important because it is very essential for building relationships, whether it personal or impersonal; be it verbal or non verbal. It’s a way in which to express ones feelings, thoughts, and
Most of us in today’s society do not realize how powerful words can be and how huge of an impact they can have on our lives. I remember the day when my son said his first words,