words - by elaine - manners & mystery

language is powerful, language is limited

Mel Bochner, Language is not Transparent, 1999 What were the most hurtful words someone ever said to you? If you’ve lived at all, you can probably come up with an answer, and if you’re a sensitive person, maybe a half dozen. But if I were to ask, what was the nicest thing someone ever said to you, would you remember? Part of this is because we have a negativity bias. We tend to remember slights and wrongdoing more than acts of kindness. We fixate on what could go wrong rather than on positive outcomes. It’s a survival mechanism. Words are powerful and limited, costly and cheap. You could…

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