on language

“Table is a Table” (Ein Tisch ist ein Tisch) by Peter Bichsel, where a lonely man thought it funny to change the names of things calling each thing by a different name, and he eventually becomes incapable of having even a simple conversation with others. Language may be randomly assigned, yet it is still based on a consensus, so if you speak of a rose you should “mean” a rose, otherwise there is going to be a lot of confusion between the two of you.

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My defenses
Become fences
Now I'm stumblin'
I change my faces
And if you think I'm fake-up
Wait around til I take off my makeup
Here we go again
I meet another one
Her name is...
She looks at me, says I'm the only one
(Chorus)
I met a Christian in Christiansands
A devil in Helsinki
I met a Christian in Christiansands
A devil in Helsinki
Is it getting better?
Wrote her a letter
Asking questions
Baby steps in sections
I mean we'll take it slow
I really don't know
When you talk, you make me cringe
Silver means the messenger
Let her go, don't question her
(Chorus)
You and me
What does that mean?
Always
What does that mean?
Forever
What does that mean?
It means we'll manage
I'll master your language
And in the meantime, I create my own
By my own
You and me
What does that mean?
Always
What does that mean?
Forever
What does that mean?
It means we'll manage
I'll master your language
And in the meantime, I create my own
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