Biographical Analysis of John Mcwhorter

Han Bin Kim Comp II, Class B Assignment 2, draft 1 February 23, 2013 trick McWhorter Interview Over the years I cast interviewed a good number of the great unwashed, except at that place has never been anyone sooner want John McWhorter. Upon class period the article The Cosmopolitan Tongue The catholicity of English as published in the 2009 Fall edition of domain of a function Affairs, I found my egotism delighted by the mellow but brawny tone and the writer who could use it with such ease. Here was a populace with brains, consideration, and humor.Lost in my reveries about what McWhorter would be same, I didnt quite slang that I had both(prenominal)how dialed his office number until a deep representative filtered through the receiver. Yes? McWhorter speaking. With a tingling sense of nervousness I had disregarded since my rookie days, I introduced myself and asked if he could sp ar time for a plan interview. He replied, Interviews, my dear sir, are rarely brief, and I could almost try on his smile. T present was that brilliant wit which had shake him to state that there were no feminine-gendered tables that talk wish well Penelope Cruz. (McWhorter, 251) After a turn or two of friendly wrangling, he gently suggested meeting Saturday afternoon at a quiet cafe we both knew. I agreed to the designated get together and, unable to control the temptation, asked, How long bind you said cafe like that? The way McWhorter pronounced the phrase was this the c was sweeter and lighter, in the way Italians and Spaniards speak, and the f was said like a soft psounding obviously foreign. He said simply, Since I was real young. I already knew that he had taught himself wrangles as a hobby since childhood (McWhorter, 247), and unsatisfied as I was with his answer, I vowed that Saturday would be a new day. On Saturday afternoon I drove down a peaceful country road and walked wordlessly into the cafe. A tall man stood with his back to me, gazing out the large cut confidential in var.ationow, and without prologue asked, Isnt that a beautiful poem right in front end of us? Anne Shirley said it a century ago, but Ill sign the liberty to repeat it.The lines and verses are only the outward garments of the poem the realistic poem is the soul within them and that beautiful scene is the soul of an impromptu poem. I smiled quietly at his analytical but sensitive analogy, reminded presently of his description of the word al an evergreen branch, a word whose lowest sound is a whistling past the sides of the tongue that sounds like wind passing through just such a branch. (McWhorter, 247) I ulterior asked him what his childhood nickname had been, and laughing, he confessed that he had most a good deal been called poet.Small admire for a man who could condense a long, eitherday sentence cite, for example, there are an innumerable number of books that could bedevil summed up to no regard as weightinto three pithy, creative, im h op onry-filled words Bookstore shelves groan. (McWhorter, 247) He folded his long self into the armchair, crossing his legs, and leaning slightly forward he told me to sit down. As I sat, I remarked, You look a great deal like I imagined you to be. His quiet question and intelligent gaze compelled me to elucidate.I had gathered a great deal of the premises from his writing. The contrasting thoughts I hardly rejoice when a nomenclature dies (McWhorter, 247) and Would it be inherently evil if there were not 6,000 spoken linguistic processs but one? (McWhorter, 252) could hardly have revealed themselves in a single effectuate of writing unless the writer was a man of exceptionally precise, cold logic. then I had already envisioned the deep-set, big eyes that flashed fire from to a lower place his hilltop, and the firmly set mouth. I had also imagined him to be a handsome man, and he was that, too.Humor saved the chin from tapering too sharply, the mouth from world dour Span ish speakers do not go about routinely imagining tables as cooing in feminine tones. (McWhorter, 249) McWhorter laughed at my analysis, wryly telling me that I should have gone out for professional work in physiognomy, and turn over me the menu which the waitress had left by his side. These little considerate actions which I had noticed during the phone call and the three minutes I had met him, inspired me to ask if he had always been so considerate. He looked surprised. I have never thought myself considerate, he said slowly, I am often told that I am too frank with my words. Before I turn my opinion on something, I look at it from all perspectives to hold that it is perfectly reasonable and logical. But once I make it, I say it without stopping to think if people who think otherwise go out be hurt by my words. I protested. I had already cognize that he was a considerate person just by reading his article namely, the welcoming way with which he drew his readers in around Am ericans pronounce disgusting as diss-kusting with a k sound. Try ityou believably do too. ) (McWhorter, 248) The tall man leaned back in the armchair and laughed. My dear friend, e actually writer is obligated to welcome his readers. Readers are the laziest species that ever drew breath, and if they weart receive welcomed, they wont read. As for being diligent in littler thingswell, I dont know if this is very relevant or not, but I read five versions of the Talmud, each(prenominal) one progressively harder, when I was in essence school. Im pretty authoritative junior high was when my interest in Hebraic peaked.The Talmud was a pretty good source of linguistic and cultural knowledge, and some of the moral standards made pretty logical sense, so I pick out them as my own. It was relevant. Being considerate in a gentlemanly way, however, was polar from the deferential attitude that McWhorter always took on when dealing with other cultures. more curious was how completely he seemed to understand each language, from its origin to how the people felt about itNative American groups would bristle at the appraisal that they are no longer meaningfully Indian simply because they no longer speak their ancestral language. (McWhorter, 249) McWhorter looked a trifle annoyed at first, but gradually his well-shaped face took on more complacent, amused lines. I am a writer, and I am a linguist, he said. some(prenominal) have to do with wordstheir denotation, connotation, nuance, and power. Knowing the power each word can make out automatically inspires you to feel a certain idolise for the English vocabulary in generalIm sure youll agree with me there, sirand knowing the power each language can wield brings you on your knees before the altar of all languages. But you dont worship something you know absolutely nothing about, he aid, gazing out at the sunlit scene again. You first make sure that whatever it is, it is something that deserves to be worshipped. So y ou study the language. From then on, its rather like bound into a river. Jump into the heart of the current, and you will be swept outdoor(a) like a stray autumn leaf. If you give yourself wholeheartedly up for the language to mold, the culture starts to mold you too. And as for the fact that I feel this way towards all languages, and here a small frown creased his brow as he turned to me again, well, it is a shame that this should be surprising, that is all.Each language has a rich legacy, albeit a legacy very different from our own, and they should be prize. McWhorters eloquence touched me, and we talked for two more hours, vacillating from vernacular everyday things I caught glimpses of from his article to fascinating facts I had never stargaze about him. I intentional that he had mastered Socrates syllogisms at the age of six and Hegelian dialectics at the age of twelve, and that the value he respected most in humanity was its reason.Judging by the cold shoulder he gave h is so beloved minority languages in his concluding paragraphWe moldiness consider the question in its pure, logical essence (McWhorter, 252)it was hardly surprising. more(prenominal) interesting was the fact that he had no less than four dogs at home, each named after a rare language he had curiously enjoyed. The latest addition to the family was a darling slender little Chihuahua named Ket, with triplex the uncertain grace of awkwardness found in dogs of his species. In the middle of hearing about Kets antics, I asked rather abruptly, What art form is your favorite?Modernist? McWhorter looked at me, surprised. How did you guess? I laughed. McWhorter, for a man of such clear-cut logic, enjoyed impossibilities as far as reality allowed The Ket language of Siberia is so awesomely irregular as to seem a work of art. (McWhorter, 250) It was only inseparable that he should enjoy Picasso, whose pictures showed sharper intellectual insight, over David or Michelangelo, whose plant w ere but excellent facsimiles of lifes appearance copied onto canvas and marble.Four hours passed by in the blink of an eye and time came for McWhorter to leave. He stood up and heartily shook my hand. It was an honor meeting you, sir, though I dare say the interview was not short. I shook my head. No, it was an excellent interview. Thank you very much, Mr. McWhorter. Please, John, McWhorter smilingly said. If theres one thing I learned from studying languages, it is that names are the essence of culture. Ive seen many languages that are creative and fiendishly difficult and randombut no language is ever simpler than the other.Each has rich names for the things they treasure most. Native Americans sometimes have odd names did you know that they have to earn it? But in our culture, we place identification foremostand thanks be, my name is John McWhorter John for friends and Mr. McWhorter for editors who dont like my articles. Arent there many Johns here? I teased, laughing, as I pulled on my coat. McWhorter shook his head. None like me, John McWhorter, he smiled, and treaded lightly out the door.