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AMADO, Coleen M.III-37 BSE Physics

G-SS 04Dr. Guillermo Q. Roman, Jr.

December 20, 2013____________________________________________________________________________

UNIT III

THE WORLD IN WORDS

Our ideas would just be thoughts if we wouldnt be able to express those. And in doing

such, we need to use words. Words are the manifestation of the ideas and thoughts that we

have in our mind. Words are said to be powerful for they can be used to inform, persuade,

command and invoke emotions. But, the question is, can words be used to express the truth?

I personally believe that words cannot be used to tell the truth. First, thoughts cannot be

accurately expressed in words. Sometimes, what we think appears different when put into

words. This could be due to a poor vocabulary and incapacity for organization of thoughts. If

words cannot exactly represent our thoughts, how would it be able to tell the truth?

Second, words just depend on our thoughts. Like what was mentioned earlier, words are

manifestation of our thoughts. Therefore, words and thoughts could be considered identical. But

could the human mind possibly think of the truth? I dont think so. Just as what Kant s

Copernican Revolution says, the human mind has limitations. It couldnt possibly think or

perceive everything. And since words are representations of our thoughts, then words also

couldnt possibly tell the truth.

Third, words can be deceiving. It has the ability to manipulate the truth. A good example

would be the platform of the candidates during elections. They say everything good in the world

in order to win the hearts of the public. They promise to serve the people and to work for their

welfare once theyre in office. They say that they wouldnt practice corruption unlike what most

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of the politicians do. But are they really telling the truth? I guess theyre not. Corruption is still

evident in the government. The number of the poor is still increasing. Thats the reality.

Another example would be the ads or commercials in the television. The products that

are being endorsed are very promising. Some even uses scientific proof to convince the public.

But when you buy the product and use it, you would be disappointed because its not like what

the ads say. You would end up spending money for nothing. Im not saying that its always like

this, but most of the time, it is.

Lastly, one shouldnt completely trust ones words because they could be figurative. Its

possible to have hidden messages behind words. A good example would be the language of the

boys and girls especially those who are in relationship. When a boy asks a girl whether there is

a problem and the girl answers none, actually there is. The boy should be threatened. And

when a boy and a girl are shopping and the boy says, It looks good on you. Go and buy it, it

means that he already wants to go home.

It is impossible for words to tell the truth. They are very flexible and manipulative. And

worse, they could even be used to reverse and twist reality.