I found out yesterday that a woman I really like, in whatever way you want to take that, thinks I use long words when I talk to her because I know she doesn't know what they mean.
I was rather appalled anybody would even think me capable of such pretentious behaviour. If I use long words it's because they're the words that are passing through my head when I'm talking to somebody, or writing something down. It's not because I'm trying to intimidate anybody, or impress anybody.
Actually, I think my vocabulary is pretty basic for a man who likes to believe he's intelligent.
The most pretentious thing a person could do in conversation would be to simplify his (her) words or ideas because they presumed the person in front of them was too dumb to understand them in their original form. (Stand up everybody publically campaigning for the Republicans in the American election.)
It didn't even cross my mind that the woman I like wouldn't get what I was telling her.
She said she didn't mind that tendency in me because I taught her things. But I don't want to teach anybody anything either. What do I know that I should be electing myself anybody's teacher?
All I want to do is have a conversation with anybody who's interested so all of us can learn a little more.
2 comments:
I reviewed your blogs for any especially long words and could not find any. If I speak with someone who uses a word I'm unfamiliar with, I do one of two things. I ask the definition of said word OR I file it away and look it up as soon as possible. Maybe it was her way of seeking your approval? Someone told me not long ago that they'd never spoken to me in social situations because I intimidated her verbally. I didn't know what to think until someone told me that was her way of asking me if I thought she was dumb. People are funny creatures.
Yeah, I never looked at it that way. I don't think anyone is dumb if they suspect they might need to know more. Ignorance and inquiry don't go together, after all...
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