History PlayingWith / LanguageEqualsThought

* '''Justified''': The people in this culture have a rare neuro-cognitive defect that prevents them from coming up with new concepts and attaching labels (i.e. words) to them; thus the only concepts they can use are ones which they have words for.
* '''Inverted''':

** The ProudWarriorRace has no word for "war" because that's all they do.

** The [[NonIndicativeName Peaceful Tribe]] only lack a word for "murder" because they are {{Manipulative Bastard}}s that habitually use euphemisms; the concept of murder is still very much present and they're very good at hiding the bodies...
** A violent culture lacks words for violence and ends up describing things in really awkward ways like "harvest red waters of not welcome person with pointy tool" for stabbing outsiders.
* '''Double Subverted''': ...however, lack of a word for murder eventually eradicated the murderous aspect of society.

* '''Zig Zagged''': In Xville, there is no word for murder but murder happens all the time because they have no concept of murder. People assume that killing anyone they dislike is a basic right. There is, however, actually a word for not killing somebody. Meanwhile, the peaceful tribe Yville has no word for peace but has a word for murder. When a person from Xville learns the language of Yville, or vice-versa, nothing changes, because language follows culture. When Xville develops a word for murder, the citizens living there start to believe that murder is wrong, due to their understanding of its concept. Yville's culture still remains the same, even after its citizens learn the Xville's newly changed language.

* '''Lampshaded''': "Of course they're peaceful," the Anthropologist announced, "they don't even have a word for 'kill.'"

** A council of aliens are looking over lower lifeforms. One proposes language manipulation and is shot down as an idiot by the others.

* '''Discussed''': 'We don't have wars, but we do have the word war, contrary to what you may think.'
* '''Conversed''': 'Hang on, they have ''no'' word for murder! Their books must be awkwardly written!'

** Control of language becomes a social control mechanism used by ideological totalitarians to attain political power.

%% Optional items, added after Conversed, at your discretion:
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%%* '''Plotted A Good Waste''': ???
%%* '''Played For Laughs''': ???
%%* '''Played For Drama''': ???

* '''Defied''': A council of aliens are looking over lower lifeforms. One proposes language manipulation and is shot down as an idiot by the others.

* '''Double Subverted''': ...However, they actually use the same euphemism every time; thus meaning that they do in fact have a word for "murder" even if its an ironic name.

* '''Exploited''': ???

* '''Discussed''': ???
* '''Conversed''': ???

** The [[NonIndicativeName Peaceful Tribe]] doesn't have ''a'' word for murder, but they understand the concept in terms of the words they do have (such as "intentionally ending a persons' life without consent") and have no trouble connecting the word to the meaning once someone else explains it to them.
** The Peaceful Tribe only lack a word for "murder" because they are {{Manipulative Bastard}}s that habitually use euphemisms; the concept of murder is still very much present and they're very good at hiding the bodies...

** The [[NonIndicativeName Peaceful Tribe]] only lack a word for "murder" because they are {{Manipulative Bastard}}s that habitually use euphemisms; the concept of murder is still very much present and they're very good at hiding the bodies...

* '''Reconstructed''':
** The society where LanguageEqualsThought also has lots of ''very'' pejorative terms for "totalitarian", all of which are synonymous with evil, thus preventing a totalitarian power luster from emerging in the first place.

** They have no word for totalitarian.

** The [[NonIndicativeName Peaceful Tribe]] only lack a word for "murder" because they are [[ManipulativeBastard Manipulative Bastards]] that habitually use euphemisms; the concept of murder is still very much present and they're very good at hiding the bodies...

** Alice's language doesn't have a word for "proportion," so everyone [[DisproportionateRetribution blows things out]] [[DisproportionateReward of proportion]].

* '''Inverted''': Changes in a culture's language are ''caused by'' changes in the underlying thought patterns of people that speak said language.

* '''Downplayed''': ???

* '''Straight''': Alice of the Peaceful Tribe comes from a society where there are no words for "murder." As a ''consequence'' of this, Alice's society never has a situation where any single human being deliberately kills any other human being.

** The [[NonIndicativeName Peaceful Tribe]] only lack a word for "murder" because they are [[ManipulativeBastard Manipulative Bastards]] that habitually use euphemisms; the concept of murder is still very much present and they're very good at hiding the bodies...
** A violent culture lacks words for violence and ends up describing things in really awkward ways like "harvest red waters of not welcome person with pointy tool" for stabbing outsiders.
* '''Double Subverted''': ...However, they actually use the same euphemism every time; thus meaning that they do in fact have a word for "murder" even if its an ironic name.

* '''Deconstructed''':
** Control of language becomes a social control mechanism used by ideological totalitarians to attain political power.
** Alice's language doesn't have a word for "proportion," so everyone [[DisproportionateRetribution blows things out]] [[DisproportionateReward of proportion]].
* '''Reconstructed''':
** The society where LanguageEqualsThought also has lots of ''very'' pejorative terms for "totalitarian", all of which are synonymous with evil, thus preventing a totalitarian power luster from emerging in the first place.
** They have no word for totalitarian.

* '''Enforced''': The story was written for a LitCrit class being held at StrawmanU; where LanguageEqualsThought is all the rage amongst the faculty.

* '''Invoked''': See deconstructed.

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* '''Basic Trope''': Changes in a culture's language will change how people that speak said language think, and thus act; a culture without words for violent acts will have no conception of violence.

* '''Subverted''': The [[NonIndicativeName Peaceful Tribe]] only lack a word for "murder" because they are [[ManipulativeBastard Manipulative Bastards]] that habitually use euphemisms; the concept of murder is still very much present and they're very good at hiding the bodies...

* '''Parodied''': After learning a programming language, Alice becomes a computer.

* '''Deconstructed''': Control of language becomes a social control mechanism used by ideological totalitarians to attain political power.

* '''Reconstructed''': The society where LanguageEqualsThought also has lots of ''very'' pejorative terms for "totalitarian", all of which are synonymous with evil, thus preventing a totalitarian power luster from emerging in the first place.
** Alternatively, they have no word for totalitarian.

** After learning a programming language, Alice becomes a computer.
** Alice's language has no word for gravity, [[AchievementsInIgnorance so she can fly]].

* '''Parodied''': A violent culture lacks words for violence and ends up describing things in really awkward ways like "harvest red waters of not welcome person with pointy tool" for stabbing outsiders.

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* '''Zig Zagged''': In Xville there is no word for murder but murder happens all the time. Turns out murder happens all the time because they have no concept of murder people assume killing anybody they are mad at is their right there is actually a word for not killing somebody. Meanwhile the peaceful tribe Y ville has no word for peace but has a word for murder. Turns out that learning each others language does not change either culture because language follows culture not the other way around. But wait now that there is a word for murder in Xville the next generation find it easier to wrap there minds around the concept that maby they shouldn't kill there brother just because he annoys them. However learning Xvilles language doesn't change the culture in Yville at all.

'''LanguageEqualsThought''': Changes in a culture's language will change how people that speak said language think (and thus act); a culture without words for violent acts will have no conception of violence.

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** Because there is no rules against killing even unwritten rules in Xville there is no word for murder instead there is a word for not killing somebody. In Yville there is no word for peace only war because peace is taken for granted that much.

* '''Zig Zagged''': ???

* '''Subverted''': The [[NonIndicativeName Peaceful Tribe]] only lack a word for "murder" because they are [[ManipulativeBastard Manipulative Bastards]] that habitually use euphemisms; the concept of murder is still very much present and they're very good at hiding the bodies...
** Because there is no rules against killing even unwritten rules in Xville there is no word for murder instead there is a word for not killing somebody. In Yville there is no word for peace only war because peace is taken for granted that much.