Etymology of Words (Echo, Snob)

I know I’m probably taking something away from Why we Say It Wednesday but I’ve always been fascinated by the story or origin behind common everyday words. For example the word, echo has quite a story behind it. First off, the word echo is reverberation of sound due to sonic reflection from hard surfaces. Its origin is believed to come from the Greeks who had no way to explain the phenomenon of this reverberating sound. Therefore, like every other time you need to some reason or story to justify a phenomenon they turned to religion. The story goes that Echo was the name of a nymph who accompanied Zeus and his wife Hera. Hera, who was a not a fan of the nymphs to start out with, disliked the chatterbox. Zeus charged Echo with the responsibility of keeping Hera busy while he was doing things he ought not to. Enraged by this deception, Hera cursed Echo with the ability only to speak when spoken to, she could not keep silent when spoken too and she could only repeat that in which was spoken to her. After having this curse, she fell in love with a self-absorbed youth and later had her heart broken. It is said that Echo died in a cave, however, her voice is still present with us today and from this the word echo.

Another word that I found very interesting was the word, snob. A snob is a person who believes that some people are inherently inferior to them. The word snob was first believed to be used in the 1820’s in England but started in Scotland to describe a shoemaker or a shoemaker’s apprentice. In England, it is believed to come from the phrase sine nobilitate which means without nobility. This phrase was abbreviated s.nob and it was put next to ordinary people’s names to help distinguish them from the aristocratic peers. Then this term began to be used to mean a person with no breeding, both the honest laborers who knew their place and the rude social climbers who imitated the manners of the upper classes. Due to this change, the word or abbreviation snob began to mock people who acted in this way.

Etymology of words just fascinates me because I think it’s very interesting to know the stories of some of the common everyday words we use. It’s weird to think about how words came to be because we are so used to saying them so often that we tend to believe that they have always been used when in reality they haven’t been. I wonder what new words we are going to create in our lifetime and what stories they will have behind them.

Video games: The Evolution of Story

Over the course of mankind, story has constantly been evolving and so too has story-telling. Stories used to be passed orally, then through books and other written pieces, to the radio, to movies and now we see a whole new form of story... video games!

You’re probably thinking that video games impede our story-telling mind not stimulate it but I believe that it does just the opposite. Video games are actually expanding our story-telling minds allowing us to learn, imagine, and experience new stories. The best part about these stories is that they are interactive. Video games actually enable you to have input into your own story! They aren’t like books where you are reading somebody else’s tale, you are creating your own story! I know that you are thinking that a lot of video games have set stories that you must follow but that isn’t necessarily true. For example, in The Sims or in Minecraft there is no set campaign or story mode you have to follow. In both of these video games you are able to create your own story within the virtual world. You can roam and create your own life in the video game realm. Having the ability to create your own story within these games isn’t blocking our imagination and story-telling minds but in fact adding to it. It allows us to experience scenarios that we would never be able to experience or be ready for in the real world which will help you in the future. In addition to allowing us to create our own stories they also offer cultural/life lessons as well. In most games, they reward skill, courage, and honor. Eventually these traits are ingrained in our brains and causes us to show these traits in real life. Also, video games helps you learn strategy and planning as a result of the many ways you can accomplish or overcome the obstacles in the game.

Some people argue that sitting in front of the TV screen all day sucks the imagination from your head, but actually these games are offering more stories and are in fact helping our imagination. Studies have actually shown that kids who play video games are more creative than kids who don’t.  The study of 491 12-year-olds was conducted by lead researcher Linda Jackson, a professor of psychology at Michigan State University, as part of the Children and Technology Project. The study showed that the more kids played video games, the more creative they were in tasks like writing stories and drawing pictures, as gauged by the figural version of the Torrance Test of Creativity. The test uses picture exercises to measure mental characteristics like originality, elaboration, and emotional expressiveness. The study shows that contrary to popular belief, video games stimulate our story craving minds and offer a new form of story that we can interact with. Video games prove that story is constantly evolving and adapting itself to find new ways to be experienced and spread. Who knows how story will evolve next?

Music and Story

As humans we crave music just as much as we crave story. It’s an integral part of our everyday lives and can evoke sadness, joy, serenity, awe, or excitement. The reason for this is deeper than just pleasure; music has both an intellectual and emotional impact on our brains. Listening to a good song doesn’t just bring out an emotional response but also gives you an intellectual reward.

One way music affects story is the effect melodies and catchy rhythms have on the mind which allows us to remember the information a lot quicker than usual. I’m not sure if you have ever noticed but do you wonder why you can remember song lyrics so easily? Most times without even realizing it we will learn and memorize an entire song in a matter of minutes. This is called automatic memory which means you remember information that is appealing or interests you. This is why we are able to retain song lyrics and remember these stories so well. Songs were a way people passed on traditions and stories over time as well like the ABC’s, nursery rhymes, The Odyssey, and even advertising jingles.

 Every song tells a story and every time we listen to it we take part in that story. We visualize scenarios where the music would apply and imagine or make a story about our events. Music is another form of story for our story-craving minds. For instance, in Passenger’s song, Let Her Go, we hear a soft calming melody and experience different scenarios in our head about what the song is about.

 Only miss the sun when it starts to snow

 Only know you love her when you let her go

 Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

 Only hate the road when you're missing home

 Only know you love her when you let her go

And you let her go

The lyrics above cause the listener to get many different images in their head. You can picture a man who took some girl in his life for granted and now is forced to watch her leave, a man who tried so hard for someone only to watch them fall for someone else, or some other form of lose. Music has the power to evoke emotions and help you learn and create a story in the process.  Music and melody have an effect on the human brain and allow us to really immerse ourselves in a scene or song. This is exactly why in movies we hear different types of music in movies because they have an effect that draws out different emotions. For example, in Jaws you know exactly when the shark is coming because the music starts playing, you get those butterflies in your stomach when you hear a romantic song while watching a couple fall in love and feel their pain and heartbreak in a sad song when they are separated. The music is there for a reason and adds to the effect of the story on us. The need for music in our lives is a result of our story-craving minds because songs are just another form of story.

Here's Passenger's song Let Her Go

 

Here's one example from a famous movie where music played an important role in the scene: