TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter
-
0:03 - 0:04Hi!
-
0:04 - 0:06Audience: Hi!
-
0:06 - 0:08So my name is Reba Elliott
-
0:08 - 0:11and I do work for an organization
called Lifting Voices. -
0:12 - 0:16Our mission is to help young people
discover and share their voices -
0:17 - 0:20in order to grow, find joy
and accomplish change. -
0:21 - 0:24My work is sharing the power of words
-
0:24 - 0:27and I really know that
words have big power. -
0:28 - 0:30Because, look at this!
-
0:30 - 0:33Here I am, standing, talking
-
0:34 - 0:38and there you are,
hundreds and hundreds of you, -
0:38 - 0:40listening!
-
0:42 - 0:44We've got something going here already
-
0:44 - 0:48and we did it through nothing more
than a couple of simple spoken words. -
0:50 - 0:53My day-to-day work is with young people
-
0:53 - 0:56and I find that the child's mentality
-
0:56 - 0:58which is fun and open and explorative
-
0:58 - 1:00can be really useful.
-
1:00 - 1:03So I'd like to borrow
something from that mentality -
1:03 - 1:05and play a game with you.
-
1:06 - 1:08Yeah!
(Laughter) -
1:09 - 1:12This game is called "Let's make a story".
-
1:12 - 1:14We're going to make
a story together, you and I. -
1:14 - 1:16And our story is about a word.
-
1:17 - 1:18Any word.
-
1:18 - 1:20A word that means something to you.
-
1:20 - 1:22A word you say all the time.
-
1:24 - 1:25Puppies?
-
1:25 - 1:27Ice-cream?
-
1:27 - 1:29Your favourite word.
-
1:30 - 1:31Think about it!
-
1:34 - 1:36Got something?
-
1:37 - 1:38Good.
-
1:39 - 1:42Your word represents language.
-
1:42 - 1:47Every word you've ever spoken
or heard, or read, or written. -
1:47 - 1:52Every word you've ever
whispered or shouted. -
1:53 - 1:57It's all there in your mind right now.
-
1:59 - 2:01Or we're going to give it a story.
-
2:01 - 2:02See what it can do.
-
2:04 - 2:05Every story has a journey
-
2:05 - 2:07and ours is no different.
-
2:07 - 2:10Our journey begins... at the beginning!
-
2:11 - 2:13Where language first begins.
-
2:14 - 2:15Babies.
-
2:17 - 2:18That's my son.
(Audience: aaahhh) -
2:19 - 2:21I know. Perfect reaction. Yeah.
(Laughter) -
2:24 - 2:26So his name's August
and he's 2 years old. -
2:26 - 2:28And like any parent can tell you,
-
2:28 - 2:31watching language develop
in a child is miraculous. -
2:32 - 2:36When August was first born
all he could do was mew. -
2:37 - 2:38Like a little cat.
-
2:39 - 2:42Just "mew".
(Laughter) -
2:42 - 2:43And now 2 short years later,
-
2:43 - 2:46he has this amazing ability
to name his world. -
2:47 - 2:49He has a name for things he sees
-
2:49 - 2:51and a name for things he does.
-
2:51 - 2:53And what's even more amazing
-
2:53 - 2:55is that he can put
those words together -
2:55 - 2:56to make thing happen.
-
2:57 - 2:58He can say...
-
2:59 - 3:02My son has a very deep voice
for a 2-year-old. -
3:02 - 3:03(Laughter)
-
3:03 - 3:03So he'll say:
-
3:04 - 3:08"Mama, throw the blue ball!"
(Laughter) -
3:09 - 3:11And the ball will be thrown.
-
3:12 - 3:14Here it goes!
(Laughter) -
3:15 - 3:18By naming his world,
he begins to transcend it. -
3:19 - 3:23If he can get the right words
in the right order, -
3:23 - 3:25he can make things happen.
-
3:26 - 3:29I don't know what my son's
favourite word will be when he grows up, -
3:30 - 3:32but I can predict that his mind,
-
3:32 - 3:36which is richly familiar
with this practice of making things -
3:36 - 3:37happen through words,
-
3:37 - 3:39is going be a good home for it.
-
3:42 - 3:44I know another toddler.
-
3:45 - 3:46I work for this toddler.
-
3:48 - 3:49Her name is Erica.
-
3:50 - 3:52And like my son she's 2.
-
3:53 - 3:55But they are different in a big way
-
3:56 - 3:59because this 2-year-old cannot speak.
-
4:02 - 4:03She can make sounds.
-
4:03 - 4:05She can groan.
-
4:06 - 4:08I think it's really important
that you know -
4:08 - 4:11there's no physical cause
for her inability to speak. -
4:12 - 4:14She doesn't have a cognitive disorder,
-
4:14 - 4:17she doesn't have an oral disorder.
-
4:19 - 4:21This little girl can't speak
-
4:21 - 4:23because no one cares
about her enough -
4:23 - 4:26to speak to her or listen to her.
-
4:28 - 4:30She can't name her world
-
4:30 - 4:34because no one cared about
her enough to name it for her. -
4:35 - 4:37Unlike my son,
-
4:37 - 4:40she can't make things happen
through her words. -
4:43 - 4:47I remember I was reading
a book with her one day -
4:47 - 4:51and I looked at her
and this light came on in her eyes. -
4:53 - 4:57I remember it was a book
about a little baby getting dressed. -
4:58 - 5:01And I looked at Erica
-
5:01 - 5:04and this huge smile broke over her face
-
5:05 - 5:06and she looked up at me and said:
-
5:07 - 5:09"Shoe!"
-
5:10 - 5:11And now every time I see her
-
5:11 - 5:14she runs to me and she pulls me down
-
5:14 - 5:16and she points at my shoes
and she points at her shoes -
5:16 - 5:19and she says: "Shoe!"
(Laughter) -
5:19 - 5:21"Shoe-shoe-shoe-shoe-shoe!"
(Laughter) -
5:23 - 5:25And that's all.
-
5:27 - 5:29Think about your word.
-
5:29 - 5:32Let's give your word a story.
-
5:33 - 5:37In which toddler
would you like its journey to begin? -
5:39 - 5:402 children.
-
5:41 - 5:422 little humans.
-
5:44 - 5:48In which mouth will your word thrive?
-
5:50 - 5:52We all have times when we're speechless.
-
5:53 - 5:55Times when a notion just hits us
-
5:55 - 5:58and we can't transfer
that impulse to language. -
5:59 - 6:01When I look at August or I look at Erica,
-
6:01 - 6:05the word "love" doesn't really suffice.
-
6:06 - 6:08And in terrible times too, words fail us.
-
6:09 - 6:12I've experienced violence,
drug addiction... -
6:12 - 6:14What I've gotta tell you?
-
6:14 - 6:15Fear?
-
6:16 - 6:17Despair?
-
6:19 - 6:21It really doesn't cover it.
-
6:22 - 6:24And I'm sure the same is true for you.
-
6:24 - 6:28If you think about the most wonderful
and the bleakest times in your life, -
6:28 - 6:31you'll be really hard pressed
to put names to them. -
6:32 - 6:34Even your favourite word.
-
6:34 - 6:38The one that we're so tenderly guiding
through this little journey. -
6:39 - 6:40It's just a label.
-
6:41 - 6:43It's just a sign post.
-
6:43 - 6:47Pointing the way to your
ineffable experience -
6:48 - 6:52of puppies or ice-cream, or whatever.
-
6:55 - 6:56So why do we do it?
-
6:56 - 6:59Why do we put labels to experience?
-
7:00 - 7:03Some people say that
language is an instinct. -
7:03 - 7:06That all of us, me standing here,
you sitting there, -
7:06 - 7:10big smart adults, we're all
just a step above my toddler. -
7:10 - 7:13We put names to things
to transcend them. -
7:14 - 7:18We put the names in the sentences
and we make the sentences go. -
7:18 - 7:22Love is a many-splendored thing.
-
7:22 - 7:25We have nothing to fear but fear itself.
-
7:27 - 7:30We make worlds happen through words.
-
7:31 - 7:32It's a big deal
-
7:32 - 7:35and it's a big part of our human story.
-
7:36 - 7:38Here's a big word:
-
7:38 - 7:39civilization.
-
7:40 - 7:43Civilization in general
was carried on the backs of our words. -
7:44 - 7:45Think of our forebears.
-
7:46 - 7:47There they are.
-
7:47 - 7:48Inventing irrigation,
-
7:48 - 7:50developing systems of exchange,
-
7:50 - 7:54creating new and much easier
modes of survival. -
7:54 - 7:56Out of nothing.
-
7:57 - 8:01Out of the simple raw materials
of their landscapes and their minds. -
8:04 - 8:05Words were there.
-
8:07 - 8:10Words allowed those ideas
to be shared efficiently. -
8:11 - 8:13And even more importantly,
-
8:13 - 8:16words allowed those ideas
to be shared abstractly. -
8:18 - 8:19Think about it.
-
8:20 - 8:23Our forebears would have had
a really hard time pantomiming -
8:24 - 8:25annual,
-
8:25 - 8:27flood,
-
8:27 - 8:28or
-
8:30 - 8:32currency.
-
8:33 - 8:37Without words, for the pure ideas
that grow to our world, -
8:37 - 8:39we can't manipulate them.
-
8:39 - 8:42We can't make them
into something brighter and better. -
8:43 - 8:46This is the neighbourhood
where Erica lives. -
8:48 - 8:51This neighbourhood is located 3 miles...
-
8:51 - 8:54it's 1 hour's walk from
where we're standing. -
8:54 - 8:57Her neighbourhood is our neighbourhood.
-
9:00 - 9:041/3 of the adults in DC
are functionally illiterate. -
9:06 - 9:08How will they tell us their ideas?
-
9:08 - 9:13How will they tell us about
the next irrigation or currency? -
9:14 - 9:20We need their help to shape the ideas
that will transform our world. -
9:23 - 9:26Somewhere in your life
there's a young person. -
9:27 - 9:28Maybe it's your child,
-
9:29 - 9:32maybe it's a kid down a block.
-
9:33 - 9:36Take time today to think about
-
9:36 - 9:40how you want your word
to live in that child. -
9:40 - 9:43Make sure he can say shoe
-
9:43 - 9:46and ball, and love.
-
9:48 - 9:52Make sure he can help us
shape our human story. -
9:53 - 9:54Thank you.
-
9:54 - 9:56(Applause)
- Title:
- TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter
- Description:
-
Reba Elliott is the founder of Lifting Voices and this is her talk from TEDxYSE:Unleashing Young Social Entrepreneurs hosted by Ashoka's Youth Venture on November 13th, 2010 in Washington, DC.
Reba Elliott is the founder and executive director of Lifting Voices, a grassroots, nonprofit organization with a vision that the words of young people will heal, inspire, and instruct families, communities, and people in power. Lifting Voices develops the capability for abstract thinking among young people in disadvantaged areas of Washington, and ensures their thinking is valued by creating markets for youth-produced projects in the community. Learn more at http://liftingvoices.org/
What is TEDx?
In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TED has created a program called TEDx.
In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self- organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x=independently organized TED event.
The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.
More information is at http://www.ted.com and http://www.ted.com/tedx
This video was shot by Blue Sky Films, edited by Nicole Van Slyke
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDxTalks
- Duration:
- 09:57
Elisabeth Buffard edited English subtitles for TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter | ||
Elisabeth Buffard edited English subtitles for TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter | ||
Elisabeth Buffard approved English subtitles for TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter | ||
Elisabeth Buffard edited English subtitles for TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter | ||
Elisabeth Buffard edited English subtitles for TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter | ||
Elisabeth Buffard edited English subtitles for TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter | ||
Caroline ERUIMY accepted English subtitles for TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter | ||
Caroline ERUIMY edited English subtitles for TEDxYSE - Reba Elliott - Why Words Matter |