"Some even believe that frictionless communication across languages would help different cultures and religions to see eye to eye, helping to bring about peace on earth"
Whoever said that, must not have paid much attention to Douglas Adams's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
"Meanwhile, the poor Babel Fish, by effectively removing all barriers to communication between different races and cultures, has caused more and bloodier wars than anything else in the history of creation."
Do you think people honestly believe - not that MT will improve, as it probably will - but that it could "help different cultures and religions to see eye to eye, helping to bring about peace on earth"?
ReplyDeleteIt's as if language were the only thing that causes differences in perspective - instead of a consequence of this - and thus the only barrier to peace.
I don't know if people say this naively or hypocritically...
Personally, I think that Adams was much closer to the mark.
ReplyDelete"help different cultures and religions to see eye to eye, helping to bring about peace on earth"?
ReplyDeleteI thought that's what television was supposed to do. And what did we get? Jackass and American Idol. Uh-oh.
I agree that the language barrier is far from the only cause of conflict, but still... I appreciate the perspective. Interesting article. Thanks,
ReplyDeletePhil
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