One of the symptoms of modern and postmodern change
is the large stock of new words, or certainly the new use
of old words--terms such as "user-friendly," "downsizing,"
"multiculturalism," "politically-correct," "homophobic,"
"postmodern," "poststructuralism," and "deconstruction."
If the cartographers of our time are working away furiously
to draw up new maps as empires get further subdivided each
day, our neologists (those who invent new words) are living
at a boom time for their preoccupations. One such word that
we are all now accustomed to hearing repeatedly is "secular,"
or "secularization."
I would venture to suggest that we might find ourselves
stumbling when asked to define what this word really
means. The word itself has a broad sweep, and in differing
contexts brings a different spin to the central idea.
MORE!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment