On rare occasions, linguists have the pleasure of seeing the larger world realize that language matters. It’s not “just words” or “only semantics” — the choices a speaker makes have real social and political consequences.
Donald Trump, James Comey, and the Ambiguity of “Hope”
On rare occasions, linguists have the pleasure of seeing the larger world realize that language matters. It’s not “just words” or “only semantics”: the choices a speaker makes have real social and political consequences. One such occasion occurred when former FBI director James Comey testified before the Senate that President Trump said he “hoped” Comey would let the investigation into Michael Flynn go. Even a simple statement like “The cat is on the mat” can have a subtext, depending on the context, and there’s an ocean of both context and subtext in the Oval Office conversation between Comey and Trump. People tend to think that the meaning and intention of what they say and what is said to them is clear and unambiguous: an ordinary communication has but one form, one meaning, and one purpose. In fact, that’s rarely the case. While language is the treasure of our species, and we could not be what we are without it, it also lets us get into plenty of trouble.