Category Archives: Essay

Language and Reality in Post-Classical Science and Postmodern Literature: Short Paper

Language is crucial to our understanding of the world around us. Russian speakers who have words that differentiate between lighter and darker blues are able to distinguish between shades of blue faster than English speakers; East Asian languages that use honorifics create a culture that emphasizes respect and age difference. The Native Americans whose languages are based on verbs and contain no nouns could not conceive receiving an offer to buy their land, while for the Europeans, noun-based linguistics normalized this concept. Language affects the very way we think and view the world, and Indo-European linguistics have contributed greatly to our current comprehension of classical science and literature.

The classical view of language leads us to hold a particular perspective in life in many ways, even simply by involving the separation and hierarchization of a “signifier” and “signified”. In order to understand ideas of post-classical science and post-modern literature and philosophy, we must deconstruct the language we use and release ourselves from the way it forces us to understand the world.

The “signified” referred to above indicates the actual concept that the “signifier” is attempting to “represent”; thus, modern language is based on the idea of representation of concepts. Everything is concrete – “present” – and able to be “held” or “grasped”, hence the heavy reliance of nouns in the English language. The representation of the “signified” requires something, normally an object, to be represented. Our fixation on “objects” reflects onto the way our mind thinks, as we are forced to separate and differentiate the world around us into perceived concepts. This “logic of representation” is what Derrida calls a “metaphysics of presence” because of the hierarchy and differentiation created by language. Much of Eurocentric thought is based on fundamentals that can be built on: pure truths (a “transcendental signified” that transcends all signifiers) that reveal more complex ideas, basic building blocks of life (elementary particles) that combine to build everything else in the universe.

In this way, the atomic view in science is similar to the classical view of language. Much of the classical perspective in science is based on a hierarchy. Basic elements, such as atoms and molecules, come together in different ways to form different – again – “objects”. Essentially, the classical perspective on the world attempts to understand a screenshot of the world – What is present at this point in time? What comprises of this world in the present? Just as the modern English language follows a “logic of representation”, classical science also implements a line of logical thinking that separates and categorizes our physical world using an “either-or” mindset in order to understand our world.

In contrast, the post-classical perspective regards time as something in a state of “flux”. Thus, the world is comprised not of “things”, but of “events”. Everything in the world is changing constantly; nothing in two different points of time are the same, not even what seems to be permanent. Even mountains are slowly eroding, no matter how slow it takes.

In this manner enters the idea of “undecidability”. Because of the ever-changing state of the world around us, “pure” concepts no longer exist and opposites intangle. Nothing is “ranked” higher than another. Good and evil are no longer opposite sides of a spectrum nor one considered superior to another, and everything around us is both present and absent. There is essentially a coexistence of opposites, as one cannot exist without the other; they are two sides of the same coin, running along opposite and both ends of a Mobius strip. Rather than classify the surrounding world through “either-or” mentality (which cuts through the balance of a chiasmic unity), Derrida’s notion of undecidability rejects the binary opposites and instead views the world through the perspective of the word “and”, the idea that we can be both sides of a dichotomy. This idea of “chiasmic unity” relates to that of “metaphor” in literature. Metaphoricity allows to understand ideas through the “and” lens, simply introducing relation rather than definition and distinction.

Post-classical scientists challenge the classical atomic structure of the universe with their own “and” glasses in the form of quantum theory. Niels Bohr discusses the results of experiments that reveal light to be both a wave as well as a particle. This concept of complementarity completely undermines the classical way of scientific thinking, as it is revealed that it is entirely possible to have the qualities of two mutually exclusive opposites. Werner Heisenburg later introduces the idea of “uncertainty”, which claims that it is impossible for a particle’s position and momentum to be precisely measured, due to the flux of time.

Because so much of our worldview is shaped by modern language, we must challenge the very fundamentals of language – including the classification of concepts separated by employment of “either-or” methods of thought – in order to understand the “complementarity” of opposites central to post-classical science and post-modern literature.

Essay: Distortion (‘Metamorphosis’ Timed Write)

In the story “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka, Kafka distorts Gregor’s voice, body, and behavior to show how the modern worker’s obsession with work can lead to isolation.

Kafka first distorts Gregor’s body in order to demonstrate how one’s obsession with their job isolates one from their sense of self. When Gregor discovers his new body, he “saw his little legs struggling with each other more fiercely than ever, if that were possible, and saw no way of bringing peace and order to this mindless motion” (16). Kafka’s diction of “mindless motion” describes how Gregor considers his work to be “mindless”, as though his own mind is not put to use in his job. His inability to bring “peace and order” to this motion illustrates the lack of control Gregor has in his life and in his job. His own legs, which are supposed to carry him and take him where he wants to go, are out of control and useless, further symbolizing Gregor’s inability to support himself and take his life in the direction he desires. This lack of control, self-sustainability, and direction in Gregor’s life, along with his mind being wasted in his job, all help strip away Gregor’s individuality, potential, ambition, and thoughts, thus conveying the isolation from sense of self that can be caused from working too hard.

Gregor’s voice is also distorted in order to illustrate how lack of communication can lead to isolation from others. Upon conceiving the reactions of his family to his voice, Gregor realizes that “his words were no longer intelligible even though they seemed clear enough to him, clearer than before, perhaps because his ear had grown accustomed to them” (25). Due to his dedication to his work, Gregor rarely has time to have real conversations with his parents and his sister; when he finally has a need to communicate, his words are “no longer intelligible” from lack of previous communication. However, his words are “clearer than before” to Gregor himself, because he has become “accustomed” to his state of non-communication, to his work that took away his humanity and livelihood so that he no longer sounds human to his family. Work, as it had done to Gregor, can rob one of continual communication with their loved ones from whom they will thus be isolated.

Another aspect of Gregor that is distorted is his behavior; by distorting this aspect, Kafka demonstrates how working to please others causes one to abandon their own needs and isolate themselves further. When Gregor tries to get out of bed in the morning, “he no longer paid any attention to the pain in his abdomen, however it burned” (24). His abdomen, which has been in severe pain for a long while by this point, is ignored by Gregor as he attempts to get up even though the logical response is to treat the pain. Gregor is so desperate to get to his job that his basic health needs are disregarded, exemplifying how the modern worker’s personal needs will be overlooked in their desire to please their boss and support their family financially. Later on in the story, Gregor realizes his sister is repulsed by his appearance and “one day carried the sheet to the sofa on his back… and arranged it in such a way that he was now completely covered and his sister would not be able to see him” (51). Covering himself with the sheet to spare his sister the view of his transformed body is a quintessential example of isolating oneself to please others, as Gregor is purposefully using the sheet to create a barrier between himself and his family, believing it will help his sister despite sacrificing his own need for love and recognition. This action also represents how Gregor throws himself into work in order to support his family, and thus distances himself in the meantime, believing it to be the best for his family. Gregor ignoring the pain in his abdomen in favor of getting ready for work, as well as blocking his sister from himself, contribute to the idea of the desire to please others causes one to neglect one’s personal needs and isolate themselves.

The distortion of Gregor’s body, voice, and behavior in “The Metamorphosis” helps illustrate how the modern worker’s obsession of work, which comes with a lack of communication, lack of control and vitality, and a desire to please others, will lead to isolation from others as well as their own needs and identity. While having a job is important, it is essential for workers to maintain a happy, healthy relationship with their loved ones, and to hold on to their own lives and ensure they don’t lose their sense of selves.

Essay: The Importance of Storytelling (‘The Things They Carried’ Synthesis Essay)

There is a story of a city known as Omelas which appears to be the happiest place on Earth. The city is prosperous, and its citizens, who are intelligent and mature, celebrate the first day of summer with a grand festival. It seems perfect, except for one aspect that all who have reached the age of adolescence are aware of: one child, locked in an unbearable, filthy closet setting with barely any food or kind words, suffering for the happiness of everyone else. Most are shocked and ponder for a while after learning of this, and choose to accept this social contract, continuing their happy lives in Omelas with the knowledge of the child’s existence. The others, after whom the story is named, walk away from Omelas forever, unable to come to terms with this moral paradox. The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin describes different reactions to a shocking revelation: those who tell themselves the cold, hard truth; those who accept the dilemma as a necessary trade; and those who imagine that the child is not there, pretend that no one needs to suffer in exchange for their happiness. They tell different stories to deal with the knowledge of the child, some that simply convey facts, some that help escape reality, and others that justify a decision or cause guilt. It is not only people in fictional works who use storytelling for these reasons. Real people, especially soldiers experiencing or having experienced war, turn to storytelling for many different reasons. Whether to relieve us of a burden, to provide comfort, or any other reason, storytelling serves a much broader purpose than merely conveying facts.

One important purpose of storytelling is to release our memories and ideas and relieve ourselves of a burden. Many soldiers struggle with sharing their experiences with someone. One such soldier is Norman Bowker in The Things They Carried, who wanders aimlessly around town upon return from war and comments that “the place looked …still and lifeless… the town could not talk, and would not listen. ‘How’d you like to hear about the war?’ He might have asked, but the place could only blink and shrug. It had no memory, therefore no guilt” (O’Brien 143). Bowker desperately wants someone to ask him about the war, but unlike him, the town had ‘no memory’ and ‘no guilt,’ providing no sympathy for Bowker. The ‘lifeless’ town had no human empathy for him and ‘would not listen.’ Without someone to talk to and release his experiences and guilt, Bowker feels lonely and not understood, and ends up committing suicide. Another veteran, Brandon Friedman, similarly recalls in an article called The End of War Stories that “when I left the Army after two combat tours, I couldn’t shut up about it. I had to put the memories somewhere. So many were toxic, and I needed to purge. I would tell stories to anyone who would listen” (Friedman). Friedman’s diction of “couldn’t shut up” as well as telling his stories to “anyone” conveys his desperation to have his stories be heard. Describing his memories as “toxic” further depicts them as something poisonous that he needs to “purge.” By writing them onto paper, he releases his toxic memories into stories, relieving him of the poisonous burden. Another article, How Art Heals the Wounds of War by Andrea Stone, explains that creating masks helps soldiers because “someone who has experienced trauma has a block that keeps them from verbalizing what they’ve been through… The mask gives them a way to explain themselves. The concrete image of the mask unleashes words… reintegrates the left and right hemispheres. Now they can discuss their feelings…” (Stone). War veterans experience a “block” that prevents them from formulating words and expressing themselves. By releasing their thoughts onto a mask, they are able to “unleash words”: they are able to “explain” themselves, to “verbalize” and “discuss their feelings.” Storytelling through art allows soldiers to release their trauma into a mask. Those carrying their burdens for too long can face a fate like Bowker’s; through these masks, however, soldiers who struggle because of untold experiences locked inside them can free them, releasing ill feelings of guilt, regret, loneliness, and trauma into the stories they tell through words or art.

Another purpose of storytelling is to help cope or deal with a difficult reality. While Norman Bowker and Henry Dobbins play checkers, O’Brien and the other soldiers enjoy watching because “there was something… orderly and reassuring [about the game]… the playing field was a strict grid… you could watch the tactics unfolding… there were rules” (O’Brien 32). The soldiers are drawn in by the “strict grid” of the checkerboard. O’Brien mentions the “tactics” of the game, directly comparing it to his current position in war. Checkers is “strict,” war is not; checkers is “orderly and reassuring,” war is not; in checkers, “there were rules”; in war, there are none. The soldiers watching the story of the checkerboard unfold are trying to grasp onto the hint of control they had back in the U.S.; the story Bowker and Dobbins create on the board allows them to escape the reality of war and find comfort in everything the war is not. O’Brien also uses storytelling to cope with the loss of a soul. Reflecting on his imaginations of Linda, who died when he was young, O’Brien reveals that “in the spell of memory and imagination, I can still see her as if through ice, as if I’m gazing into some other world… sometimes I can even see Timmy skating with Linda under the yellow floodlights… I’m skimming across the surface of my own history… and when I take a high leap into the dark and come down thirty years later, I realize it is as Tim trying to save Timmy’s life with a story” (O’Brien 245-246). In this metaphor, O’Brien skates on ice that reflects his memories and history. Through the ice, he can remember Linda; he can “still see her… as if [he’s] gazing into some other world.” By remembering Linda and imagining she’s still alive, it helps him cope with the reality that she’s dead, because to him, her soul is still alive. Thirty years later, as he recalls his past, he realizes he’s trying to preserve his younger self, his innocence; that “it is as Tim trying to save Timmy’s life with a story.” Through the ice, through his stories, imagination and memories, he can “save Timmy’s life” as well as everyone he has lost in the past. As demonstrated by O’Brien with Linda and the soldiers with the checkerboard, imagination and storytelling can help one escape reality or be comforted by a loss through the salvation of a soul.

By allowing us to release repressed thoughts and by providing comfort in times of need, storytelling proves itself to have a purpose beyond the communication of factual information. Just as the citizens of Omelas do, many soldiers need utilization of storytelling for letting go of a guilty conscience or to escape the realities of their surroundings. War veterans often return home struggling to release their experiences and share with someone who understands. Storytelling is then crucial in welcoming a soldier back from war: by empathizing, listening, realizing the true magnitude of war’s horrors, and providing a platform for veterans to express themselves, veterans will be able to relieve themselves of much burden and more comfortably reintegrate into society.

Works Cited

  • Friedman, Brandon. “The End of War Stories.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 21 Mar. 2013. Web. 02 May 2017.
  • Natchez, Jon, and Sarah Robbins. The Things They Carried: Tim O’Brien. New York, NY: Spark Pub., 2003. Print.
  • Stone, Andrea. “How Art Heals the Wounds of War.” National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 01 May 2017. Web. 02 May 2017.