“Language, too, has become, not merely the glass through which we see “the world outside” but the instrument with which we shape and limit our purposes and apprehensions” (Byatt).
(Essay)
Language is a very important and in a way unique means of communication. It is a special code that was created by people not only to name objects and actions, but also to convey their meaning, value, importance and necessity. Language (and communication itself) is a way to convey different information to gain knowledge and experience. Language is not only “the glass through which we see “the world outside”, but the instrument with which we shape and limit our purposes and apprehensions” (Byatt).
People created their special code called “language”. All information, experience and knowledge people gain using their special code. Through centuries language (no matter spoken or written) was the only way to get to know “the world outside”. People learn about their roots and about the history of their ancestors through the language.
A newborn, who can not see well yet and who does not know how to use his ability to see the objects around him learns “the world outside” through the sounds (when his parents are talking to him). He gains his first life experience through the spoken language. Later, listening to his parents’ voices he starts to associate and link visual objects with the words and their meanings. Then he learns how to speak. A child asks million questions and using the language learns the world around him.
People who are not able to see the world on their own (because of different reasons) can read the books or newspaper articles about it, or can listen to the tales of those who became somehow familiar with “the world outside”. All of these methods (written or spoken) are connected with the language. This way language becomes a “glass through which we see “the world outside”. Still this is not the only role of the language.
Language can also...