In defense of harsh words
These days, when it comes to vocabulary, using a word that is not understood by the lowest common denominator in our society is almost to be seen as politically incorrect or offensive. We are so bombarded by the mantra of “write plain and simple” that to use any word that is not easily known to all is to be labeled “elitist” or “pretentious” or “bombastic”, regardless of whether the word in question may be legitimate. and perfectly adapted to the occasion; in fact, that may be the best word for the occasion.
It often seems that when a writer uses a word that is not instantly recognized by all, it must be an example of bad writing, because (so the argument goes) the only good writing is one that is “clear” – using a limited vocabulary understood for all. Just about every time a word usage writer goes over the reader’s head, you can be sure someone will complain about “having to look up a dictionary.” However, people do not realize how often we are presented with more difficult words, because our natural inclination is to ignore them, rather than look them up in a dictionary. To consider:
A recent editorial in a Pittsburgh newspaper read: “The fact that [Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Joe] Hoeffel views [state] sovereignty as a four-letter word is absolutely scientific. I’m going back to school, Joe. Article I and Google’s Tenth Amendment “.
The word “scientist” means a claim to scholarship. It was absolutely the perfect choice of words for the occasion. But how many readers of the article knew that word or, more importantly, would stop to look for it? Very few?
The beauty of many difficult words is that they are inexpensive because they replace several simpler (read: more mundane) words. “Sciolistic” is an example. Here’s another one: In a recent issue of Newsweek, editor-in-chief Jon Meachem, discussing the magazine’s financial woes, declared, “We are not Planglosians on the issues at hand.” Planglossian means blindly or naively optimistic and is based on Dr. Pangloss, Candide’s optimistic tutor in Voltaire’s novel of the same name.
Even in those situations where there may be an exact word simpler than the one chosen, a difficult word can certainly enliven the writing. For example, in a recent New York Times article on Facebook, the author wrote that “Jeffrey Toobin, a CNN legal analyst, credits (or blames) the 2008 election for his Brobdingnagian list [of Facebook friends].
Sure, the author could have been referring to Mr. Toobin’s “really big” or “huge” list of Facebook friends, but would that grab the reader’s attention that much? Should not.
As William F. Buckley once said, “We tend to believe that a word is unfamiliar because it is unfamiliar to us.” However, if we want to avoid a permanent reduction in our collective vocabulary, we must move away from the mindset that the use of harsh words by others is simply a poor reflection of the people demanding them. Introducing difficult words should give each of us a chance to expand our vocabulary.