The Abuse of Language and the Language of Abuse

by J. Andrew Kirk

The particular words, whose use and meaning is examined in this study, are commonly used by people with strong convictions about moral issues and identity politics. They are often attached to ideals, policies and practices in diverse and frequently contradictory ways. Is there, then, so much confusion that the words no longer serve any useful purpose? Or, is there some merit in trying to indicate how the meaning of the words is being stretched to such an extent that the same word has come to signify conflicting opinions? When people expropriate language for particular partisan causes, communication becomes ambiguous and misleading. The rhetoric may sound persuasive, but it breaks down, when the conversation partner has little idea what the other is talking about. Reasoning together requires at least a minimal agreement on what a person intends when they employ certain words and phrases. The book shows how key words have become misused and how they may be restored to a more precise and accurate meaning.

220 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 24, 2019

About the author

J. Andrew Kirk has spent his life in theological education in South America and the United Kingdom. Recently retired from a teaching position at the University of Birmingham, England, he is the former Dean and Head of the School of Mission and World Christianity at Selly Oak Colleges. Kirk holds degrees from the University of London and Cambridge.

He is the author of thirteen books, including The Mission of Theology and Theology as Mission (1997), What is Mission?: Theological Explorations (1999), and Mission under Scrutiny: Confronting Current Challenges (2006).