On Language & Seeing
This morning I came across an interesting article in Brain Pickings about the French philosopher Maurice Blanchot, the dual power of language and what it really means to see. Language, according to Blanchot, has the inherent dualistic power to reveal and at the same time conceal truth.
I hadn't really thought of language in this way before.
A few days ago, while preparing for a writing project on Istanbul, I struggled a bit in deciding what stories to tell about this city and what stories to leave out and why. Also, how much of myself to include or should I remain objective and removed, should I write what I see or should I interpret a place as if it held some deeper meaning?
The questions came to me from my own current surroundings. I live in one of the most historic but also one of the poorer neighborhoods of Istanbul. There are certain things I see here that disturb me. My mind accepts them as part of the fabric of the place, so when I walk the streets and my mind starts weaving thoughts together into stories, things that disturb me are part of that whole. And when I consciously leave certain aspects out while writing , there seems to be a hole in the fabric.
But, at the same time, I am very aware that I am sharing my impressions with others and I want to be sensitive to the image my writing gives to a place I don’t really know well. I encounter the same problem in photography - what to shoot and what not to shoot and why.
To me writing is a tool with which we extract meaning from reality and share it with others.
As a writer and photographer, I approach each place as if it held some deeper meaning. This is my truth as a writer. I use the images and situations that reality presents to me as doorways to a deeper, transcendental meaning. This is directly related to the way that I see things. I write to share this personal reality with others and to realize myself. At the same time, I am very well aware that there are stories that I can’t write because it is not in my nature to write them.
If I consider language being inherently dualistic then as I interpret the world around me, I change it through my choice of words which have the dual power of helping me see clearly and at the same time creating the illusion of seeing when in fact I may very well be misperceiving. This is the implicit duality of language - a dangerous relationship between seeing and storytelling, of connection and separation. A duality that is explored in the book “The Infinite Conversation,” by French philosopher Maurice Blanchot.
But I am not wholly ignorant of this reality. I personally know how blind seeing can make me. As I write and re-write, I become so close to my writing that when I say that I am finished, it’s because I can’t see my writing anymore. I have suddenly become too close to it by editing and re-writing it. I post it convinced that I am done, only to return to it a month later and see things in it that I hadn’t seen before. I then either correct it - because I would have corrected it, to begin with or I correct it because my choice of words don't reflect my current understanding of the truth. To see once again is to apprehend things immediately from a distance and through distance.
What we chose to see and not see, what we chose to express in language and not express is as writers is in the end, a part of our own meaning making process. I write in order to know my way. To me, my writing represents ultimately how I see myself in the context of life. As as a writer struggles to extract and create meaning it is also equally important that a reader be discerning.
M x
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This is a very insightful post. And I've been really enjoying your other posts and photos, of places I have little chance of visiting. Despite all your questions, dualities and conflicts, somehow you are achieving a wonderful balance and your posts are compelling and interesting. Thank you.
Oh Wendy! Thank you for your thoughtful comment. Warm hugs from Istanbul. I have just been over to visit your blog and saw that you live in New Zealand. An equally beautiful place in its own way. Do you enjoy living there?
Hi Martina. Yes, it's nice being tucked away from the world and the people are nice. It is very beautiful, with each different area having a very different look , feel and climate. We are very lucky, and it's important to remember that and not take it all for granted.
Outstanding insights on writing, photography, interpretation and communication in general. Nicely done.
Thank you. I appreciate your comment. You have some lovely photography on your blog. I look forward to exploring it more.
Martina.. I really enjoy reading your thoughts on writing and seeing, discerning..made me feel one with you.. me a native San Diegan from California and spoiled with lots of sunshine and the ocean that I love near by... I look forward to reading more of your lovely insights, God bless you, Jeane Taddonio
oh and p.s. Thanks for the like on my Presence of the Rain.. as you can imagine, rain is a real 'event' where I live (-;
Thank you Jeane for your lovely, thoughtful comment. I am glad you are spoiled with sunshine and plenty of ocean. It is a gift to have things we love close by. 🙂
What a great post, very insightful and food for thought 🙂
Language is also a double-edged sword. But the good news is we ALWAYS have the power to wield it.
this is a nice compare-the duoble-edged sword. something I could put in my copying of ear-sword from hieronymus bosch 's ear-knife out of garden of delights 😉 greetings thecopist
Thanks for your like of my post on Christmas; you are very kind.
I’m happy to be following. 😊
wonderful! I always enjoy your writing!
My pleasure. 😊
Interesting article - language and communication are always challenges - especially when in a foreign country but even a native country!
Yes, I agree Marilyn. 😊
Yes, words are one of the best tool to hide the truth!
Thank you for visiting our blog and give us the possibility of knowing yours.Great and deep!
Wonderfully said. The Art of Seeing is always a difficult concept to explain.
As a Photographer I am always trying to inspire others to See!
But when it comes to Photography we try to capture and show things the
average person doesn't notice. If there is something we don't like to an extent that
it creates an emotion. We try to show that as well. It all depends on the individuals
mood and feelings from the general surroundings at that moment.
Thank you for Liking my latest Blog Post "Mood".
Mark