LANGUAGES: Special and common
Charles François (2004). LANGUAGES: Special and common, International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics, 2(1): 1856.
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 1856 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Human sciences, Epistemology, ontology or semantics |
J. ENGELBERG makes the following comment: “Every area of specialization possesses a special language. Its existence magnifies the efficiency and power of thought and communication within that area; however it also isolates practitioners of various fields from one another, and from non-specialists as well.
- “By contrast, the language of integrative study is the common language… This language seems to have been devised precisely to meet the needs of the realm of wholes, the realm in which every person ultimately has to live. It is reasonable to assume that natural language evolved to facilitate integration” (1991, p.11).
Unfortunately, even the cybernetic-systemic language tends to specialize, and we should try to limit this tendency as much as possible by using an absolute minimum of specific vocabulary (and still less, jargon) and create it in the most simple terms, in order to remain comprehensible for any specialist, and also for common people.