Language+1


 * Read the quote below. Then, write a minimum of two responses to it, or another student's comment. As you read the quote, think about how this idea can connect to other ideas and perspectives. This wiki will be due at 11:59:59 on Sunday, 7/31!**

"Speech is but a broken light upon the depth/Of the unspoken" ---George Eliot

Brenda S: In addtion to my previous response.. I believe that what George Eliot is trying to say is that sometimes speech can dim the way that one is trying to communicate the words one is trying to say.. as in the way the tone of our voice is perceived by others (angry, sad, happy, etc.,). however, when one leaves those words "unspoken" and writes them down or something.. the feeling the person attains.. is neutral..

Brenda S: Everybody is referring to language..but no where in the quotation is the word language presented..

Jane G: Language helps us understand certain aspects of knowledge but speech is not the only way that can help us achieve on uncovering the unknown. I feel like that I'm paraphrasing all that is discussed here but it makes me wonder, what are other ways that will shine the light on the depths of the unknown other than language?

Melissa M.: Our speech is light fading in a dark tunnel and what lies at the end is what we didn't say, therefore the light is broken since it never shined or revealed what we held back.

Melissa M: My interpretation of this quote would be that Eliot is showing the way we hold back things when we speak and we don't truly get our message across.

Xiomara G: My understanding of this quote tells me that our words will never truly be able to express what really lies inside our minds and we cannot always put into words our true thoughts. Xiomara G: I believe that this quote means that our speech limits our minds on what we are capable of saying.

G.Romero: (To Ryan) You do not have to take all the credibilty from Jesus responses. He is not sure then he is not sure. We may not all be sure about our answer to this quote. Thats your opinion on his responses like my opinion where you do not have to judge what he says just because he put "Idk".

G.Romero: (to Ryan) I agree on what you are saying. language can not reach everything and we need more than just language to express ourselves. Language does not solve all of our problems. Language is just a minor tool to express. Ryan A: I believe that Eliot means that spoken words can't reach everything that we want to say, just as light can't reach all of the things we want to see.

Ryan A: (To Jesus) Putting "Idk :P" at the end of your response takes away all of your credibility to me and I cannot take either of your responses seriously.

Aaron C: We see language as something that we have achieved and advanced to its peak however we hold it to more then it is because in reality it is a "broken light" that can only be applied to certain occasions.

Rodrigo S: This quote can also mean that language, our main form of communication, is not very reliable in helping us decipher those unknown & "unspoken" truths that we seek.

Jesus O: I believe that these similes can help explain Eliot's quote. Speech is like a broken light and the depth/of the unspoken is like a universe, infinite. Speech (words) is limited to explain the unspoken (what can't be perceived through language or speech) like a broken light is limited to illuminate all through out the universe.

Jesus O : What I perceived through Eliot's quote was that speech is limited, therefore limiting our knowledge and that there is certain things speech or language can't help explain like the unspoken or the future. Idk :P

Aaron C.: The quote is saying that we can understand ideas with language however language does have barriers and can not explain everything.

Na'Keenya J.: The quote is saying that speech does not fully shine a light on all concepts but is merely a dim or broken light on life concepts. It is saying speech is limited and the words we don't have make some knowledge unknown

Miguel L.: The depth of the "unspoken" is so great that it makes speech seem like merely a "broken light" in a huge depth of darkness. Analogy --> "speech" is to "the unspoken" as "earth" is to "the universe"

Miguel L.: From my perspective, George Eliot is trying to say that speech is one way of being heard, however there is so much more that is "unspoken" or not talked about.

Fernando G.: Also, the "unspoken" could be a metaphor for "knowledge" as what the others are explaining as well. "...the depth" could be a metaphor for those who have not yet understood what is being said ("broken light")

Fernando G.: Response to S. Vazquez's question: He tried to ban gay marriage as distraction from the useless statue he paid for with the tax payers' money. However, Brian created a bigger distraction when he attempted to intimidate Mayor West to decline the ban, for his cousin Jasper.

Fernando G.: What I believe what George Elliot is stating from this quote is that words are a part of knowledge we must decipher to understand.

S. Vazquez: Response to Cesar Lopez's Video. When does he ban gay marriage?

Rodrigo S : I believe this quote means that language is a small scratch in our knowledge, and more lies beyond it that we don't know about.

Cesar L. an example from my previous comment can be shown in an episode of Family Guy when Mayor West uses a ban on gay maridge to distract citizens of a Solid Gold Dig 'Em statue he made with Tax payers money.media type="custom" key="10097067"

Jason M.: also when it says that "Speech is but a broken light" it means that it is something narrow or insignificant compare to all the knowledge(unspoken) that there is outside.

Jason M.: to me George Eliot is saying that words are a mere part of all that is unknown to us and that there is more to it then just language.

S. Vazquez: To Me George Eliot wished to go farther than Speech with this quote. He means that speech (language communication) is just a tiny part of the immense knowledge. He means there is much much more than we can possibly communicate. Communication is just a part of the whole picture, and the true light (light means knowledge) includes speech but goes well beyond it (to the unspoken). Therefore true knowledge is not reached through speech, but using it together with much more. Let's Use Eduardo R's Example of a wall but lets interpret it differently. Picture this, We are behind a wall. Beyond the wall is knowledge (metaphorically expressed as a light) we made a tiny crack in this wall and we gained speech ("a broken light"), but the true knowledge ("the unspoken") will be acquired when we break the entire wall. (REMEMBER TO POST ON TOP! UNDER THE QUOTE! ABOVE ALL THE OTHER COMMENTS!)

Francisco M: i think that this quote means that you need to voice your opinion, because speech does not work for "...the unspoken"

Cesar L : I believe George Eliot is saying how People speak of things in speaches that are sometimes not important. For example the president might make a speech about state dept instead of talking about troubles in afghanistan.

Joselyn G: In response to Ricardo C... how will you be able to yourself if there is no light? The only way you can be able to see yourself is by the reflection of a mirror when light shines upon it.

Joselyn G: In my opinion, I believe that this quote emphasizes the importance of communication. Those who are not able to communicate will find difficulty to express themselves therefore, they are being pushed away deeper and deeper in the dark. The smallest breaking of light allows a tunnel that can be represented by a guidance to the unknown. However, many times we choose to avoid this guidance by the uncertainty of what lies behind.

Ricardo C_ I think that this quote is trying to say that it doesnt matter what you say or think because there will always be someone else that is blinded by their own opinions and thoughts. That is why speech is compared to a broken light because whe a light is broken you can't see anything but yourself.

Fabian D: What i think this quote means is that as we talk we mention those who are never mentioned, for example: the homeless are never mentioned yet they are always a concern to the city and some of us.

Eduardo R: This whole statement could be a metaphor. I think what it is saying is that we are something closed like a wall. And there is a hole or a crack through that wall in which we have the ability to speak. And the light that shines through the wall are our words that we can use to communicate. The light represents good or justice. What i infer is that we have the ability to make the world a better place or make a big difference or impact through our speech. This stresses the importance of speech that we use.

Bryant D. This statement refers to the "depth" as the unknown, and speach is but a fraction of light in the pitch black hole of the unknown. This little bit of light reveals information that we did not yet know or for the sake of this metaphor, what we cannot yet see in a pitch black hole (the unknown).

Bryant D. In respose to Joselyn G's first statement, there are more ways to be able to see yourself than in a miror. Objects can be seen by the light they emit or reflect. Reflected light obeys the law of reflection that states that the angle of reflection is equal to the angle of incidence.

Olivia M: This quote reminds me of a simliar one I have heard (which I pasted below), and I think that in a way they share similar meanings, or atleast in my interpretations of them both. The wise ones fashioned speech with their thought, sifting it as grain is sifted through a sieve. -Buddha

Olivia M: I think that both quotes are talking about how what we say pales in comparison to what we think. Sometimes we can feel so strongly about something that there are only so many out there words to describe it. "The depth of the unspoken" represents our minds, and how they truely hold an infinite depth because of our intellectual capacity. Speech is merely a "broken light" because as much as we try to illuminate the depth of our minds through speech, sometimes it's just never enough.

Nancy A: I agree with Olivia, and I think one of the most known examples of this would be 'Love'. People can try to describe it, and rearrange words countless times in order to try to word it better, but 'sometimes words just aren't enough', especially because we can say that 'love' is an emotion and it is different for everyone.

Olivia M: @Nancy A: If this were facebook, I would "Like" your comment. (: LOVE is most definitely a powerful emotion that is subjective enough to make it difficult to describe in just plain words, and it portrays exactly the kind of power that I was going for to demonstrate the limits of speech. Well said, Nancy!