Say What You Mean
Are you really saying what you mean to say?
After the recent elections and all of the campaign rhetoric we’ve been exposed to… how many times did you find yourself asking “What did he/she just say?” So often after a televised political speech or debate, TV commentators spend time “translating” for the benefit of the viewers.
Why can’t we just expect to hear what the speaker means to say? And why do we need to interpret what point the writer was trying to make?
All too often folks rely on euphemisms, gentler and kinder words or phrases that substitute for harsher and more frank terms. Sometimes a speaker or writer will substitute another phrase because it sounds cute or catchy, it delivers less of a blow to the person being addressed, or it is just part of an over-used cliché that seems to fit in the sentence. An example of how a euphemism is used to sound gentler is: She passed away, she departed this earth, she went to sleep peacefully – all substitute phrases for the very simple and direct “She died”.
Use clear communication when you write. Stay away from abstract metaphors. Make comparisons to things that are well known and not just a private “joke”. One of the first things you need to do is understand your audience – know their age(s), their ethnic background and cultural influences, their interests, education, social status, etc. The more you know about your audience, the more you can “speak” to them in a language they will understand. If you are speaking to a twenty-something age group and you make a reference to a 1970’s sitcom, there is a strong possibility few, if any, will understand the significance.
Try talking or writing in an active voice. Generally the active statement is Subject+Verb+Object, She drove the car; The passive voice would have sounded something like The car was driven by her. Another example of active and passive wording could be Neil poured the concrete over the exposed wood vs. The concrete was poured over the exposed wood by Neil.
Writing exercise: Remember your last vacation? Maybe it was just a long weekend spent relaxing in solitude, or maybe it was a two-week long cruise spent with a lover. Whatever it was, write a “postcard” to your best friend and be sure to say “wish you were here” Draw that small box, just like the writing space of a picture postcard, and write your greeting and detail of your vacation inside it. Do NOT overflow.
Writing prompt: Write a list of the closest ten objects in the space you are in right now. Now using no more than one sentence each, describe each object for someone who has never seen color, shape or size.
