Huxley on War Language

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses Aldous Huxley's essay 'Word and Behavior" and how it expresses his clear opposition to the whole idea of war. The paper relates that, in his essay, Huxley takes great pains to attack the language that is used to describe and justify war. The paper then looks at how huxley's semantical attack on the language of war is very specific and very effective and points out that it reminds a person that there are plenty of euphemisms used in modern warfare to make the reality sound not as bad as it truly is.

From the Paper:

"Another thing that bothers Huxley is when those who create the language of war conceal the reality of war through "picturesque metaphors." The first example of those metaphors is the air force spokesman who is waiting for the manufacture of warplanes that are capable of going out to "destroy the hornets in their nest," as though the enemy were a hive of bees. He deplores the hiding of true violence. That hornet reference really came down to this, Huxley says; "in other words, to go and throw thermite, high explosives and vesicants [i.e. chemical weapons...] upon the inhabitants of neighboring countries before they have time to come and do the same to us.""

Sample of Sources Used:

• Huxley, Aldous. (1960). "Words and Behavior" from Collected Essays. New York: Bantam.
• Kushner, Barak. (2006). The Thought War: Japanese Imperial Propaganda. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.

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