Lesson 1- The Wonderful World of Words

There is an interesting relationship between words and meanings. Most times we get so used to familiar words and often rely solely on them for better understanding. But it is amazing how even unfamiliar words can help convey meaning. Human communication is indeed marvelous and magical.

For instance, the poem read out to us during the lesson highlights the fact that there are more factors to communicate meaning than just words. Otherwise, no one would be able to make any sense out of the poem, which was mostly filled with nonsense words. What helped us understand wasn’t the clarity of the words but their sound, their rendition and symbolic syntax. Their onomatopoeic signals greatly conveyed meaning.

We also learn that there is a slippery relationship between words and meanings, as words can communicate meaning, and they can as well obscure meanings.