Limits of language

In Lewis’s defense, he is trying to explain some of the limits of language, which are worth noting (this in the last chapter of Studies in Words ). One limitation has to do with language’s inability “to inform us about complex physical shapes and movements. Hence descriptions of such things in the ancient writers are nearly always unintelligible.”

Glad to hear Lewis say that. I thought it was me.

Another limit is the difficulty we have of depicting a complex sudden change. If we are able to capture the suddenness, we sacrifice the complexity, and vice versa. Music is more supple in this regard, as is film.