Words dilute and brutalize; words depersonalize; words make the uncommon common. Culture is made up of languages - languages of words and numbers, of concepts and assumptions, of conventions and expectations, of problems and solutions, of answers and questions. Languages write our lives: they set the options whenever we make a choice, however free we may be in selecting. At the same time, it is our use of them that makes them what they are and reproduces them. This week we’re looking into how languages enforce their constraints upon us and ways to adjust, subvert, and remake anarchist dialogue.
How do you define your ideas about and on language? Is there a specific anarchist lexicon that defines our views of this world? A favorite theorist of language you have (and why)? Is the problem of language the problem of civilization? If so, how can we create an (anti)-politics of language and time that unravels these issues?
On the less theoretical side of things: What part of the world would you like to see more translations from? Have you translated texts previously? If so what advice can you offer other translators in terms of tips, techniques, and useful tools?