Chapter 9: Physical wounds may heal, while damage to the soul always leaves a scar behind…

Why is the Nineteen Eighty-Four novel by George Orwell relevant to a student taking the Programming Language course?
To answer this question, first we should find a link between both subjects, which is lies under the “Language” concept. The title of the article is “Language as the “Ultimate Weapon” in Nineteen Eighty-Four”. And while this is aimed specifically on the book Nineteen Eighty-Four, I beg to differ; Language is the most important weapon anywhere. In politics, education, professional careers, programming… Language is something to be feared. Language can bring destruction. Language can bring enlightenment.



We speak in different languages (this blog is in English, if you haven´t noticed). However, there are some things impossible to express with the knowledge we have about the English vocabulary. For example (my personal favorite), how can you say bon Appetit in English? Yeah, I thought so. There is no phrase to say that in English (we have it in Spanish). Some variants like “Have a good one”, or “Have a nice meal” may have the same intent, but the essence of the phrase is different.

Language is a delimiter of our actions, of our thoughts. As the government in Nineteen Eighty-Four knew, controlling the language will control how people express themselves, and with that, what they can think. Because of the same reason, it is impossible to think of something we haven’t seen before (In case you try, you´ll end up creating something out of objects you already know exist). But within its limitations, it’s a sandbox where we can create and shape anything we want. And it also works with programming.


We are bound to code within the syntax and instructions the selected programming languages provides, but we are free to do whatever we want with these rules. We can create something huge (based on smaller things we know how to code). This is the reason why Nineteen Eighty-Four is a great incorporation into de course; we should be able to comprehend the importance of the concept of language and apply it in our way we approach coding.

 References:
Berkes Jem (2000). Language as the ‘Ultimate Weapon’ in Nineteen Eighty-Four. Available on: http://webcem01.cem.itesm.mx:8005/s201713/tc2006/language_ultimate_weapon.html

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