Free English Language Dissertations - E., If Participants Do Not Withdraw) It Does Not Seem To Be The Case That
e., if participants do not withdraw) it does not seem to be the case that hostility (‘ugliness’) will increase without some concomitant increase in intensity' (1990: 295). During the nearly fifty years' duration of the Cold War, neither opponent was willing to back down, yet neither one was willing to plunge into what might turn into a major war with dire, irreversible consequences. It was primarily a war fought with words and bravado, a dramatic opus played on an international stage. In fact, the Cold War was 'fought with national ideologies, economic posturing and infinite defense budgets, festered without any combat or mass casualties' (Hooten, n.d.).
This is in keeping with Grimshaw's assertion that, although disagreements can reach high levels of emotional upheaval, they do not necessarily have to result in physical interaction. 'Friendly disputes can get quite ‘hot’; at least to some point they can apparently increase in intensity without the occurrence of hostility’ (Grimshaw, 1990: 295). The ever-present fear of nuclear obliteration may have had a great deal to do with this abeyance of action. Much of the world was still numbed by the disastrous tragedy that this power had wrought in the past, and there was great consternation at the thought of reaching a level of conflict that would require use of it again. Therefore, the Cold War remained a war of words.
Words, of course, are more than mere utterances. We communicate a great about ourselves when we use themmore than the actual message we are seeking to convey at any given time. As Halliday explains, ‘in all languages, words, sounds and structures tend to become charged with social value' (1978: 166). In states of conflict, Halliday asserts that individuals tend to develop a code of words that not only reflects that conflict, but also helps the individual to come to terms with it on some level. He refers to this code of words as an 'antilanguage', and he asserts that 'it is to be expected that, in the antilanguage, the social values will be more clearly foregrounded’ (Halliday, 1978: 166).
Since the purpose of an 'antilanguage' is to give individuals an alternative reality that is acceptable to them, the theory may be applied to the language of the Cold War. Living with the constant threat of nuclear war is an unbearable state of mind for most individuals; therefore, they must create a world that is more livable to them. This concept is echoed in the writings of Lemert and Branaman, who assert that:
‘Whatever his position in society, the person insulates himself by blindnesses, half-truths, illusions, and rationalizations.
Dissertations - Free English Language Dissertations
