tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2526736757651414061.post5120324046841724773..comments2024-03-29T10:02:55.374+00:00Comments on Nigeness: Talking to MyselfNigehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13314891387515045404noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2526736757651414061.post-53238245763664599902009-04-06T21:24:00.000+01:002009-04-06T21:24:00.000+01:00It certainly helps to clarify one's thoughts, i've...It certainly helps to clarify one's thoughts, i've found. i sometimes imagine explaining something to a friend - since i rarely see my friends i have to make do with imagination - and that often enables the thought to develop from a vague mental shape to something more substantial<BR/><BR/>i was thinking about language just the other day, actually, remembered Harold Bloom's line about Shakespeare's characters, that they overhear themselves. When we speak - even if to ourselves - the words become external, objects (kind of) in the world, which we can then consider as we would a cat or chair, as something not ourselves. You can't do that with vague mental shapes or even with internal monologue - in the latter, the words aren't physical, they're mental. i've often found that saying or writing something i've long thought seems to make a real difference in the world or in my self - there is, i think, a real difference between thoughts we say to ourselves in silence, and words we speak, even in an empty room. It's one reason i'm a little wary of language - once words are uttered, they go their own way and have unforeseen consequences.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2526736757651414061.post-12508141464108202162009-04-06T14:57:00.000+01:002009-04-06T14:57:00.000+01:00I catch my husband talking to himself all the time...I catch my husband talking to himself all the time lately. It's a bit scary, 'cause he's passed the six decade mark and I worry, "Could it be...Alzheimer's?" But, no, he assures me, he's been talking to himself for decades, just used to conceal it better. Whew. Ain't that a relief.Susan B.noreply@blogger.com