Names

Written 6/22/10
11:16 AM

Apparently wheat bread is not wheat bread. It's brown bread. At least it is in Ireland. I suppose when I think about it, wheat bread might not be such a good name for it. Perhaps "brown" describes it better; after all; after all, white bread is made with wheat too.

This reminds me of that line from Romeo and Juliet "what is a rose if by any other name it would smell as sweet," or something to that effect. Why do names matter so much to us? If I call it wheat or brown bread, I'm talking about the same things aren't I? And yet two different cultures give one object two different names.

It makes me wonder what other things we give different names than what the Irish give them. I also wonder if the names we give them are really that important. I can easily switch to eating brown bread and crisps and not give it a second thought.

But objects do not feel; they do not care what you call them. There are thousands of languages in the world after all. But names do matter to people. I don't want to be called anything other than "Jared": no nickname, nothing else. My name means something to me. Other people are very proud of their names as well; they take pride in a unique spelling or pronunciation. Names mean something to people. Maybe it's identity, maybe pride, maybe dignity. I really don't know. I do know that it's a much larger faux paux to call someone the wrong name than to order a ham sandwich on wheat in Ireland.