I wish I had a singing Babelfish
I suppose language and the ability to transcend time in thought are two things that distinguish the species homo sapiens from most others. The second one I haven't quite figured out whether I'm good at or bad at..I know I am no good at predicting the future, especially my own. The past? Well, "memory is a wonderful thing, if only we didn't have to deal with the past"!
What I wish I was better at, is the first. Language. Words can be powerful, if inadequate tools of expression. Even if I knew all the words in all the languages of all the cultures in the world, I think I'd be able to express only a fraction of all that I am thinking right now.
Hence the need for a Babelfish. A Babelfish is a fictional creature that you plug in your ear and then you can understand any language in the universe. Makes for a handy companion when you're hitchhiking in the galaxy :)
I need no ordinary Babelfish, I need a singing one, because I get most frustrated with my lack of knowledge of languages when I listen to music, especially ghazals or Tamil music. Carnatic music somehow I never even tried to understand the lyrics for!
Just paying attention to the lyrics, and making a little effort to find out the meaning of the words, or the story behind the song, can make all the difference between liking and loving it. But hey, that effort is what is the clincher...I used to be so enthusiastic about that kind of stuff before. I remember painfully playing a song on my old cranky cassette player over and over again till I got the lyrics written down just so I know them. I remember staying awake till 2 a.m. one night in college gushing over the poetry of Bob Dylan and The Doors with a friend.
I thought those days were gone, till lately. On recent long drives I have had the experience of actually listening to the words of some songs I might have heard before, and liked for the music and the tune and the singer's voice, but until I understood the words, I never really loved them. I also have had the chance of listening to some music that I never have before and loving it, mainly for the music. While I have a lot of help in the form of an indulgent teacher and an online dictionary, I still wish I had my singing Babelfish :)
I wish, I wish...
I wish I had a fish
Not a guppy or even a shark
I need my fish to light my dark
And not one that'll end up as a dish.
A fish to help me appreciate
The magic that people create
When they make music
And make those words tick
Such a fish will be a true mate.
A singing Babelfish would be nice
Can't win it in a throw of dice
But I sure can dream of it
To clear my confusion bit by bit
But till then a dictionary'll have to suffice!
What I wish I was better at, is the first. Language. Words can be powerful, if inadequate tools of expression. Even if I knew all the words in all the languages of all the cultures in the world, I think I'd be able to express only a fraction of all that I am thinking right now.
Hence the need for a Babelfish. A Babelfish is a fictional creature that you plug in your ear and then you can understand any language in the universe. Makes for a handy companion when you're hitchhiking in the galaxy :)
I need no ordinary Babelfish, I need a singing one, because I get most frustrated with my lack of knowledge of languages when I listen to music, especially ghazals or Tamil music. Carnatic music somehow I never even tried to understand the lyrics for!
Just paying attention to the lyrics, and making a little effort to find out the meaning of the words, or the story behind the song, can make all the difference between liking and loving it. But hey, that effort is what is the clincher...I used to be so enthusiastic about that kind of stuff before. I remember painfully playing a song on my old cranky cassette player over and over again till I got the lyrics written down just so I know them. I remember staying awake till 2 a.m. one night in college gushing over the poetry of Bob Dylan and The Doors with a friend.
I thought those days were gone, till lately. On recent long drives I have had the experience of actually listening to the words of some songs I might have heard before, and liked for the music and the tune and the singer's voice, but until I understood the words, I never really loved them. I also have had the chance of listening to some music that I never have before and loving it, mainly for the music. While I have a lot of help in the form of an indulgent teacher and an online dictionary, I still wish I had my singing Babelfish :)
I wish, I wish...
I wish I had a fish
Not a guppy or even a shark
I need my fish to light my dark
And not one that'll end up as a dish.
A fish to help me appreciate
The magic that people create
When they make music
And make those words tick
Such a fish will be a true mate.
A singing Babelfish would be nice
Can't win it in a throw of dice
But I sure can dream of it
To clear my confusion bit by bit
But till then a dictionary'll have to suffice!
posted by RTD2 at 9:36 PM
3 Comments:
:-)
"Can't win it in a throw of dice
But I sure can dream of it
To clear my confusion bit by bit"
Nice!
I have tried hard, but haven't gotten around really enjoying music without understanding the words. I guess one can listen to dhinchaak Bollywood numbers with the same 20 words used for them without issue, but whenever the quality of writing in a ghazal is poor, I get very annoyed.
By the way, what might also help is a 'Birbalfish' :-) Something for the brains!
A Birbalfish might be good, except that then I'll be accused more of making "Birbal ki khicchdi"!! And SD, I bet a Dissertation-fish would do us both some good, huh?!
Aarti
Post a Comment
<< Home