The All New Don't Think of an Elephant!: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate

by George Lakoff

The more a brain circuit is activated, the stronger its synapses get. 2. The stronger its synapses get, the more likely it is to fire and the stronger the firing is. 3. When two circuits inhibit each other, the stronger one circuit gets, the weaker the other gets. 4. Suppose two mutually inhibitory circuits apply to different issues. As one gets stronger and the other gets weaker, the more likely it is the stronger one will start applying to more issues and the weaker one to fewer issues. 5. Language changes the strength of those circuits. Conservative language activates circuitry for the conservative worldview; progressive language activates circuitry for the progressive worldview. 6. Imagery fitting one worldview or the other matters as much or more. 7. Frequency of language use and imagery matters. The more frequent the language use or imagery, the more strengthening occurs. 8. Journalists are trained to use the most frequent language in public discourse. 9. The conservative turn in America has come from the constant use of conservative language in public discourse. So much so that progressives have often adopted conservative language, thus helping the conservative cause. 10. Because of the effect of language and imagery on the brain, the constant use of one ideology’s language over the other’s has an enormous effect on our politics.