“The question is,” said Alice, “whether you can make words mean so many different things.”
“The question is,” said Humpty Dumpty, “which is to be master—that’s all.”
—from Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll (1872)
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As election day draws ever nearer, TV viewers in particular are being bombarded by political commercials that contain vague words and phrases designed to elicit warm feelings in unwary voters. One frequently used phrase, sometimes found even in commercials of political opponents, is one that says, “[Candidate’s name] will fight for Arkansas values.”
Linguistics research tells us that people are more likely to accept, rather than reject, information transmitted with words that raise positive feelings. To sway one who lives and votes in Arkansas, using the state’s name in a political advertisement is a no-brainer. It establishes a warm, fuzzy bond between speaker and listener.
And who could resist liking a candidate who will fight for Arkansas values?
Hmm. Let’s think about that for a moment. Exactly what are Arkansas values? For example, does the phrase refer to acceptance of obesity? After all, according to a 2013 report by the Centers for Disease Control, Arkansas ranks second in the nation for adult obesity (Mississippi is ranked first).
If not obesity, perhaps Arkansas values relate to short life spans, for according to the 2013-2014 National Human Development Report published by The Measure of America, Arkansas is tied with Kentucky for having the sixth-shortest life span in the 50 states. A short life span certainly is something to cherish, for the younger one is when one dies, the less need there is to worry about extensive, old-age medical costs or that oft-maligned Obamacare.
Okay, maybe obesity and short life spans aren’t what the politicians have in mind. Instead, maybe Arkansas values relate to toting guns into churches and bars. Or restricting the civil rights of people who appear or act differently from the majority of the population. Or making certain that one’s religious values are forced upon everyone else in the state.
Any of these could be true, or none of these could be true. That’s the beauty of vague words. They can mean what the recipient wants them to mean.
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In addition, while discussing the topic of fighting for Arkansas values, consider what the word fight means. In the context of a political commercial, it sounds quite positive, possibly meaning that the candidate will stand up and argue for what is right (Arkansas values, of course).
But according to several well-respected linguistics sources (commonly known as dictionaries), “to fight” also means to quarrel, to struggle against in any manner and to try to prevent the development of something.
Sound familiar? Does the phrase “Washington gridlock” come to mind?
Unfortunately, when political parties fight, all too often the word takes on one of its more negative definitions, and nothing is accomplished. That’s been congressional reality for the past several years, and in the coming election, voters have a chance to change that outcome.
As Alice and Humpty Dumpty did, voters might consider who has power over words and what power words have.
More specifically, when voters are the targets of political commercials telling them a candidate will fight for Arkansas values, voters might ask themselves what that really means and if that is what they really want their political representatives to do.
Wouldn’t it be better if candidates ran on platforms of understanding? Wouldn’t it be more productive to elect a candidate who will compromise, with the welfare of all constituents in mind?
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Bruce Plopper conducted linguistics research and often taught a graduate Press and Propaganda course before retiring from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in 2012.