Summary Of The Power Of Words In Wartime By Lakoff

In Robin Talmoch Lakoff’s essay, “The Power of Words in Wartime”, the writer depicts her unique perspective involving soldiers and their jargon; she supports these views with an intricate metaphor and meticulous analysis of the causes and effects of war. In the essay, the writer articulates the main cause of war by employing the metaphor, “human beings are social animals”. Meaning, Homo sapiens contain DNA that make them feel compassion towards one another. She, however, argues that in war, this genetic makeup is discarded to the wayside in order to correctly execute a mission. In order to minimize the seemingly impossible feat of killing another person, military recruits are training to believe that these acts are highly reputable and acceptable. The writer also appeals to the sense of nomos by employing “we” when describing the emotions that result from presenting the …show more content…
The essayist is cognizant of the universal notion that by placing a diminishing name on something, it seems less daunting or important. Furthermore, she writes that this jargon of sorts between soldiers is a direct effect/result of their training, and it aids in alleviating the “queasiness over taking of human life”. The essayist also applies diction that soldiers have been enacting throughout history. By analyzing the “barbarians”, “Yankees”, Jerries”, “Frogs’, etc., the writer provides a brief glimpse of how and why this is a significant component of the cacophony colloquially called war. Additionally, she juxtaposes the sentences of analysis between the differentiating names of enemies in altercations. The short sentences the writer applies reinforce her main cause that minimizing jargon