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English 85, Sections A & F
November 7, 2003

Discussion: How does language create meaning?

Consider DeLillo's introduction to The Names-

For a long time I stayed away from the Acropolis. It daunted me, that somber rock. I preferred to wander in the modern city, imperfect, blaring. The weight and moment of those worked stones promised to make the business of seeing them a complicated one...Beauty, dignity, order, proportion. There are obligations attached to such a visit.

Then there was the question of its renown. I saw myself climbing the rough streets of the Plaka, past the discos, the handbag shops, the rows of bamboo chairs. Slowly, out of every bending lane, in waves of color and sound, came tourists in striped sneakers, fanning themselves with postcards, the philhellenes, laboring uphill, vastly unhappy, mingling in one unbroken line up to the monumental gateway.

How would the meaning change if it looked like this?

I stayed away from the Acropolis for a time. The monument bothered me, and so I preferred to walk around in the city. The architecture of the Acropolis held so much meaning that looking at it would be difficult…If you make such a visit, you're required to do certain things, like pay attention to its beauty, dignity, order, and proportion.

I also had to consider that this was an extremely a popular place. I thought about walking up the streets, past the cafes, the people in the street, and the rows of benches. Slowly, from every surrounding street, in large, loud groups, travelers would come in dressy sandals, fanning themselves with their hands, walking uphill, and coming together to form a line to the entrance.

Themes and issues raised in the DeLillo introduction that we find elsewhere in the novel:

Things to take away:

• In the two passages above, the events are the same (what happens), but the language (how the story is told) differs. Think about how DeLillo's language contributes to his meaning (the issues raised by the novel).
• In an explication or in a supporting paragraph of an essay, one of your intellectual tasks is to demonstrate your understanding of how language specifically creates meaning. So for every quote you use, discuss how it supports your argument by referring back to the quote.