When words lose meaning, people lose minds
(Universal)"When words lose their meaning, people lose their minds."
"When people lose their minds, words lose their meaning." - George Orwell
"When words lose their meaning, people lose their liberty." - Confucius
Aldous Huxley in "Brave New World" explores similar themes through the manipulation of language and culture, suggesting a loss of meaning leads to a loss of individuality and critical thinking.
Jean Baudrillard, a French philosopher, discussed the hyper reality where signs and symbols lose their connection to reality, which can be seen as a form of words losing meaning. His work on simulation and simulacra touches on how this disconnection can affect human thought and perception.
Noam Chomsky has spoken extensively on the manipulation of language in politics and media, suggesting that when language is used to obscure truth or manipulate, it can lead to a form of mental control or confusion among the populace.
Hannah Arendt in her discussions on totalitarianism and the banality of evil, addressed how language can be used to dehumanize and desensitize, which indirectly speaks to the loss of meaning in words leading to a loss of moral clarity or reasoning.