High thoughts must have high language.
(The Frogs, 405 BCE)

Aristophanes

aristophanes

Contemplations on the Quote

I wonder what Aristophanes meant by high thoughts. Is it thoughts that are complex in nature? Like philosophical doctrines, theories and worldviews or could it also be the elegance in simplicity?

What I mean by that is sometimes the most simple explanation is oftentimes the best one.

I just have a feeling that high language doesn’t have to be the jargon and special terms found in each discipline, even if it could be that as well.

One need not to dumb things down, but one can attempt to make them more simple. In other words, things don’t have to be more complicated than they truly are.

This is the fallacy with a lot of academic studies and endeavours I feel, they intentionally complicate things by using too complex of a language so that everyone walks around thinking about things that lead back to the essential kernel of the thing they we're discussing.

High language to accompany high thoughts is indeed a powerful thing. Just don't let it turn into a pompous display of superiority.


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