Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Notes on Grammar

It seems to me that Crow language grammar is extremely broad. For example, if I move something, or introduce something, cover something, or change something…all these things will get me a good scolding from Fig. The grammatical sentence is very simply “What you did, or allowed to happen, has pissed me off, upset, or otherwise caused me to worry, rather beyond belief.” (I may have editorialized that last bit).
The specific time of this sentence might be just now, a little previously, or a day ago. It does not really seem to matter. Fig’s perspective is very much that both of us understand things, the context and topic of the conversation she is starting, from a similar perspective, a Crow's perspective, or rather, a Crow pair's perspective; the problem is, that I am not a Crow, and more often than not, I have no idea what has upset her, at first. The irony is that this is exactly the same short-coming which gets me into hot water with my wife.

Anyway, the serious point I am trying to make here, is that birdies are living more in the moment, doing "survival", and Crows are working very much as a team, so the need for complex grammar seems as though it is less required, probably even a hindrance. Humans tend to live a much slower existence, planning, and reflecting, so our grammar is necessarily more "complex" in regards to time, and topic. It is interesting to compare the two "life styles" ; what is lost or gained opting for one or the other. I would guess that human divorce out numbers Crow divorce handily, and that is probably due to the fact that we have lost our ability, or need, to really act, and function in a connected way. Which is it, I wonder? We have sympathy, and empathy, a sense of fairness, and equality, but we are independent and aloof. Rather a shame.

Put another way, if you have ever watched a TV Show where they pit couples against each other, and they are yelling, and screaming, and swearing, issuing instructions with lots of yes's, and no's and short immediate feedback, encouragement, and scolding...that's Fig's style. Not all the time, thankfully. The reason we enjoy watching that kind of show so much, is because it is hilarious how obviously difficult it is for us to act as unified, cooperative pairs.

 

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