Communication. Texting, talking, signing, yelling, body language...this names only a few kinds of communication that human beings have, and there are countless more. Is one form better than another? Hard to say. One may prefer texting to get their thoughts across, while another may prefer to talk in person. Yet another may not want to communicate at all. Even not communicating at all is a form of communication. While the forms of communication are as varied as the colors in the rainbow, one thing remains true in all cases of communication; communication is powerful. Communication is so powerful that it is basically a super power if used in the right way. This may seem far-fetched, but it is indeed that strong a force.
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| Image found "coolpics.wcgame.ru" |
I am not an animal expert, no do I claim to be, but this gorilla appears to be, for lack of a better term,
pissed off. He is opening his mouth and baring his fangs in a threatening manner, bristling his fur, and clenching his muscles. Perhaps this is to communicate something such as "back off, buddy" or "I will destroy you if you get one inch closer to me", or even something totally different such as "I am yawning." I don't think this gorilla is yawning, based on his facial expression, but again, I am no gorilla expert. What I do know this this; this gorilla is sending a strong message. To me, this gorilla is communicating a simple statement.
Do not mess with me right now. Don't need to tell me twice. Should a gorilla do this to me in real life, I'd probably shrink and slink away in fear of getting pummeled to death. This is because the gorilla has communicated that he is indeed not in a mood to be messed with via his threatening posture and expressions. Should that have happened, this gorilla would have almost mind-controlled me to do something that I previously may not have done. I am not inherently afraid of gorillas, but with the power of communication, this gorilla could have instilled fear in my heart and mind, causing my body to react in an appropriate manner. Communication is a powerful force indeed if it can control the actions of a being with free will. However, as is the nature of the beast, communication can send entirely different signals. This could be via body language, such as seen in the gorilla above, tone in a writing, or something as simple as a few choice words. Two seemingly similar sentences will be used to show what the difference of just one word can make. Pardon the language used, but I believe these show a drastic change in the message being conveyed.
"Darn you."
"Fuck you."
...To me, these two sentences, while only different in one word, send a completely different message. The first sentence seems to imply that the speaker is perhaps mildly upset or kidding about something, the second sentence seems to be a direct threat or insult, an "angry gorilla face" to the reader, if you will.
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| Image found "siucu.tumblr.com" |
...Thank you, gorilla. Thank you for that. I think the angry face would have sufficed, but it is kind of you to provide another example of communication. This gorilla is flipping the bird, which has become a symbol for "fuck you" in the human world. This creature didn't even need to say the words or write them, as seen above. He simply used a gesture to communicate the desired message. Once again, I am no gorilla expert, and he could merely be mimicking what he has seen humans do, but this image was too entertaining to let slide. That being said and all silliness aside, communication is an extremely powerful tool. It can change the way others behave drastically. One word can be such a large difference in a sentence that seemingly similar sentences can have literally separate meanings. Communication is not to be understated or undersold; it is one of the most powerful things in the world.
