As a citizen of this country I can vouch for the wasteful ways of American society. We have been seeing more and more initiatives to waste less, reuse, and recycle. There has been a social campaign to “go green.” This can definitely be described as being a vague advertisement phrase because it’s saying one thing, but its meaning is completely different. What does “going green” mean exactly? It would be hard to know if you didn’t watch television or read the newspaper to understand that “going green” means to find ways to live a more sustainable lifestyle. From just the two word phrase, you wouldn’t be able to gather that because the literal meaning would be to paint yourself green! Well, depending on the interpretation of course. Overall I would say that the phrase “going green” is quite vague, but one way or another it has been widely popular and just about everyone knows what it means these days. I’m sure if a foreigner heard that they’d be a little lost!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Vague Phrase
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I really like the way you pulled an example that we all have heard numerous times and examined it unlike anyone before you did. I never thought about going green as a vague phrase, but i can say i have used the phrase hundreds of times and never noticed the true nature of the term, "Going Green", but now i have found that even common words and phrases have hidden meanings and definitions.
ReplyDeleteIt is pretty odd how people just let slip words or phrases just because they sound good. Politicians aren't dumb people. If you find a slogan that is catchy and something easy for the general population to remember, then they will remember you for that phrase. Just like when bush said there were "weapons of mass destruction" in the middle east but didnt specify where they really were or what kind they were. But everyone remembers him for that phrase; even though it was so ambiguous.
ReplyDelete