The Power of Spoken Word

The Power of Spoken Word

            The power of the spoken word is an aspect which many societies share and has a long history; for instance, in western civilization, religious books, such as the Bible, act as written reference for this concept. Words are powerful forces that human beings have been given since the time of creation. People have the power to constructively or destructively use this force for encouragement and despair, respectively, in their daily lives. Besides, words have power and energy with the capacity to humble, humiliate, harm, hinder, heal, or help, hence an agent of shaping behaviors. All people need to accept that words spoken to them can affect their feelings, others, and even to the entire world. As a result of the powerful force of spoken words, people must coach themselves to speak in ways that show humility, gentleness, and respect so that others can recognize their moral lives through the right speech. Consequently, accurate speech is enhanced through perfection in which individuals have the chance to contemplate on their words while bearing in mind the consequence on the audience. The impact of words, however, varies from one person to the other, depending on their perception and understanding. People need to realize that experience is a vital way that fills meaning in words in which the longer they live, the more words evoke their happy and sad past. Reading and learning are also another way that enhances the meaning of words in life.  Accepting the power of the spoken word, therefore, is an essential therapy step to those who use speech for self-interest purposes.  Besides, words go through stages of life where they are born, grow, and die, while transforming morally, making some to become noble in the world. In society, the power of speech has positive or negative influences on individuals. When history is critically analyzed, in 1600, the spoken word was viewed as a risk factor for limiting good relationships. This concept, however, can be changed through sentence structuring to alter individuals’ interpretation. Action speaks louder than words is a contrasting point against the power of the spoken word, however, it displays open expression. In the end, there is a need to admit the destructive nature of this aspect and limit the accompanying consequences by breaking the power of negative words.

In society, the power of speech has more impacts on people, either in positive or negative ways. In any given society, words are considered powerful weapons since they can heal people with broken hearts when conveyed in a manner that shows honest and positive inner intent (Palmer 520). Consequently, words that are spoken harshly with damaging intent to destroy and limit solid relationships. In many societies, miracles and wars have been realized through insightful and mere utterances. According to these statements, healthy words build people, whereby human beings have been given a speech to help eliminate negative behaviors, such as rudeness and stress. The power of real change is found in words, where good deeds and thoughts are effective ways of building people. Some individuals’ frustrations are raised at the moment they are facing disappointment or setback when speech is wrongly used. In this case, people should avoid addressing others who are going through pain. Generally, any speech has an effect on people, which implies that positive words promote a safe society. The happiness of everyone is to build environments that enhance healthy living by avoiding words, which express the absence of inner sincerity (Brown 1). This statement implies that a negative speech forces people to develop mistrust on the sender, thus turning friends into enemies.

Moreover, in the year 1600, people viewed the spoken word as a peril factor that has the potential of dividing society. According to this claim, during that time, individuals were aware that speech was provocative and profound, but needed to be conveyed contextually to minimize the negative consequence of separating society. Besides, these people viewed spoken word as a way of bringing cognitive changes, whether conducted discreetly or directly, but in a way that was easily understood.  In addition, using the reference from the works of William Shakespeare, people who lived in the year 1600 viewed spoken word as a way of expressing emotional feelings, such as love and lust, sorrow and rage, and hope and despair (Brandes 3).

Consequently, during that time, specific words were attached to particular stylistic effects that had the possibility of persuading people to make various decisions. This perception of the spoken word has not changed in contemporary society. People still know the power and effect of speech, where they strain to do anything to present the utterances in the best way possible to avoid hurting others. Speech is also used to convince others; for instance, politicians twist their words when presenting their agenda so that they can be voted. Generally, there is still the power of spoken word since any utterances, whether positively or negatively, impact the world. These words still have the power to build or destroy others in various ways, where all people make efforts to disciplining themselves to deliver a meaningful speech.

Additionally, the power of the spoken word can be changed to alter the interpretation that determines the destruction and beneficial outcomes. This action is achieved in various ways; first, the subject of the sentence can be varied to bring different meanings. For instance, a scenario where a character’s name is used in place of pronouns. Secondly, long sentences may be broken down to shorten complex ones, which may, in turn, be interpreted differently. Also, the sentence structure is changed through the use of dependent or subordinate clauses before a subject, thus changing the meaning (Miller 3). For example, when “watched” is used interchangeably with “looking across” in a sentence, some people interpret differently.

Furthermore, a common contrasting point to the claim that there is power in the spoken word is “actions speak louder than words.” According to this statement, although communication is either achieved through speech and actions, words are treated as mere sounds emitted by people (Bonvillain 4). The most important thing is actions that tend to place meaning into words. In this case, many are times individuals have not done things they have spoken, which has completely changed the direction of specific actions. Consequently, in this century, the power of the spoken word is not emphasized since mere promises are treated with less attention than hard work. For instance, politicians use words to sway the position of constituents to vote in their favor, but after winning, their powers are measured through the actions. During the subsequent election, those who possessed the power of the spoken word to convince the voters with less actions during their era have smaller chances of winning.

Moreover, the point that action speaks louder than words lies in the contemplation that deeds depict people’s personality and character. How someone behaves and what he does is what presents him to other people. For instance, during fire infernos, a hero will be someone who does all possible things to rescue a child inside the house, instead of expressing words that show sympathizing feelings. In general, completion of tasks is promoted through actions rather than words. In any working environment, appreciated, valued, and productive employees are viewed as people who get the work done than those who talk. Another contrasting point about the power of spoken word lies in the saying, “sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt you” (Sophie 511). People widely use this chant as they grow up to imply that words do not have any influence in real-life situations. According to this statement, hurtful words do not have any powers of causing physical torture, thus they will be disregarded and ignored.

From the above analyses, the spoken word is an indication of open expression where people tend to be true and honest to themselves. Spoken word art has been developed from this concept to create morally upright societies by correcting evil actions. Besides, since the spoken word is powerful, different communities use this weapon to explore various topics, such as social injustices, politics, mental health, equality, women’s right, classism, and race, which have been given less attention from the past (Australian 2). These expressions act as ways of creating opportunities for the voiceless, who have been put aside by the societal practices. Similarly, the spoken word is a way of liberating people who have been silently struggling to express things easily, which would be difficult using other means. According to Australian work on “Power of spoken word dwindles on the page,” (2), the influence of this concept has enabled activists to use it in educating the society on some unwelcoming issues, such as deforestation.

Besides, there is a need to explore how individuals can break the power of negative words to limit the unwelcome consequences brought by this concept. This topic is important since people have intentionally or unintentionally used cruel words regularly. These words have made them unable to build a good relationship with family members, teachers, children, religious leaders, and even workmates. The need to put up the measures to such behaviors will promote victory by rising above insulting, demeaning, and hurtful words. Therefore, there is a need to understand the circumstances and emotions that eclipse spoken words, along with forgiving the offenders. People should embrace the truth and realize the consequences of both positive and negative words. Praying is the best way of breaking the power of negative words by helping us walk in the freedom provided by God, hence the life of many people can be changed through empowering and encouraging the power of words. When positive words are uttered, they raise self-esteem, favor encouragement, and overshadow defeat by enhancing peaceful minds.

In conclusion, the power of the spoken word is a concept given to humanity and has played a significant role in changing society, both positively and negatively. According to this claim, many people have been built through positive words. Here, the speech was used as an encouragement tool that healed broken hearts and brought motivation in doing various tasks. Contrary, the power of speech has destroyed many individuals and relationships due to the use of harsh words. Consequently, during the year 1600, words were viewed as influential factors in determining the direction of society. This situation forced those people to tailor their speech in a way that will have less destructive effects on others. The structure of the sentence can be altered to present different meanings though ways, such as changing the subject, shortening complex ones, and using dependent or subordinate clauses before a subject. A different point to this concept is “actions speak louder than words,” where speech seems to be treated as mere promises, and instead of the need for hard work. Future studies should focus on presenting a systemic framework for understanding the relationship between types of language power to avoid societal violence. The study should also formulate how people can counter the power of the spoken word to subvert or resist the present dominance and enhance social transformation for collective benefits.

Works cited

“Power of spoken word dwindles on the page.” Australian [National, Australia], 2 Mar. 2019, p.   19. Gale Academic OneFile, https://link-gale-com.db22.linccweb.org/apps/doc/A57640

7626/AONE?u=lincclin_pcc&sid=AONE&xid=1484f97e. Accessed 9 Feb. 2020.

Bonvillain, N. Language, culture, and communication: The meaning of messages. Rowman           & Littlefield, 2019.

Brandes, G. William Shakespeare: A Critical Study. Good Press, 2019.

Brown, M. “POWER OF SPOKEN WORD: Artists Form Communities Throughout the   District.” UWIRE Text, 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?             direct=true&db=edsgao&AN=edsgcl.583670669&site=eds-live.

Palmer, G. “Power of the Spoken Word.” American Indian Quarterly, vol. 38, no. 4, 2014, p.       512. EBSCOhost, doi:10.5250/amerindiquar.38.4.0512.

Sophie, H. “Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones but Words Will Never Hurt Me”:      Ageing, Invisibility and Textual Play.” Architecture and Culture, 5.3 (2017): 505-512.

Miller, J. Introduction to English syntax. Edinburgh University Press, 2016.