Language and Understanding

Communication was important to King Benjamin. His father had assimilated two groups of people—the Nephites and the Mulekites—a process which included teaching the Mulekites “in his language” (Omni 1:18). He had later translated a Jaredite record “by the gift and power of God.” That record itself contained an account of the confounding of languages at the Tower of Babel anciently (Omni 1:20-22). The prophet Amaleki, who had completed the Small Plates of Nephi and entrusted them to Benjamin, had included an admonition to believe “the gift of speaking with tongues, and in the gift of interpreting languages” (Omni 1:25).

So Benjamin taught his sons “in all the language of his fathers, that thereby they might become men of understanding,” and he emphasized to them the importance of their ancestor Lehi understanding “the language of the Egyptians,” so that he could read the scriptures contained on the brass plates and teach what he learned to his children. (See Mosiah 1:2-4.) Consequently, Benjamin urged his sons to make use of their education and search the scriptures diligently. (See Mosiah 1:7.)

I’ve been reading a book called Listening Well, by William R. Miller, and Benjamin’s words reminded me of the following diagram which appears on page 8 of that book:

The point is that there are at least three ways communication can break down:

1. The speaker may do a poor job of articulating their thoughts.
2. The listener may not accurately hear the words spoken (or read the words written).
3. The listener may interpret the words inaccurately.

It seems clear that we can improve our understanding by becoming more acquainted with language, and not just language in general, but the way specific people use language to convey meaning. If I want to understand my wife and my children better, I can pay closer attention to how they convert thoughts and feelings into words. If I want to understand prophets better, I can become more familiar with their use of language.

Today, I will strive to be a better listener by becoming a better interpreter of language. I will pay more attention to the words people use in order to more accurately understand their meaning.