Quillette
•53% Informative
We do not coordinate around reality but around versions of reality hewn by words.
When we feel that we understand something clearly, this has a thought-terminating effect.
This creates a kind of cognitive vulnerability that allows people to be manipulated by any system of thought that is “seductively clear”.
We tend to talk in the same ways as others in our community, but may find ourselves parroting and circulating inapposite, inaccurate, uncharitable, or even pernicious takes.
Are we simply innocent victims of context? Or should we be accountable for how we talk? We have opportunities to discover facts, which by virtue of being true are likely to be useful, certainly more useful than falsehoods.
Often we are not seeking statements as facts to help us figure out what we should believe.
Usually we already know what we believe. What we seek are statements to justify those beliefs.
Language might be good for this function but we can use it to do better. By treating language with greater respect, we can achieve more than simple self-defence.
VR Score
65
Informative language
70
Neutral language
50
Article tone
informal
Language
English
Language complexity
46
Offensive language
possibly offensive
Hate speech
not hateful
Attention-grabbing headline
detected
Known propaganda techniques
detected
Time-value
long-living
External references
1
Source diversity
1
Affiliate links
1