Today, as I sat eating in the Cannon Center (affectionately deemed the "Cancer") my friends began discussing a certain French dish known as haggis. They told me it was...I honestly don't remember exactly. They got to the words "sheep intestine" and I shut off my ears promptly in revulsion. One friend sensed my disgust and sensitively comforted me by asking, "Don't you know what hot dogs are?" I said I didn't want to.
Now, I am starting to ponder my declination. What would it hurt me to hear what the ingredients of a hot dog are? I've eaten plenty and never gotten sick from them! Why would the words associated with elements of hot dogs make me so queasy?
I attribute it to the power of the word. Words are just noises, but the mental images and meanings they invoke are powerful enough to change the destinies of nations and the dinners of freshmen. They have the power to create worlds, and destroy worlds. Wow. That's power, eh?
With the great potential words have to shape our lives, it is a little worrisome to realize that everyone has them in their toolbox. In the words of the infamous Spiderman, "with great power, comes great responsibility."
8 comments:
hahahaha I think I'm gonna start calling it the cancer now. that's pretty funny. and yeah I think if we knew what was actually in hot dogs we would probably stop eating them...
Awesome post--I love how you related it to "real life".
luckily, not everyone knows how to use their "toolbox" of words like you, or like honors English students in general! I love the intricacies of words, and how powerful one word can be, compared to another that has no sway at all...
P.Mo, this one is pretty good. It's so trure how just a few words can change whether we like something or not.
Haha i remember when my best friend tried to tell me what was in hot dogs too, and I told her i didn't want to know! You definitely define the power of words here, Peter:)
nice job man, power in words....and hot dogs..... and believe me, you really don't want to know what's in a hot dog. Neither haggis!
I feel the same way, I don't think I ever want to know what's in a hotdog. Because I really like them, and that would probably make my "likeness" for them change.
I used to love haggis when i was little, then i found out what it was and i havent eaten it since. I never realized it was because of the gross connotations!
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