On the Difference Between Words and Things

Untangle the web of words with On the Difference Between Words and Things, a thought-provoking archival film presented by Dr. Irving Lee, that probes the perilous gap between language and reality. This mid-century gem opens with a quiet warning: words point to things, but aren’t the things themselves—forget this, and folly follows. Picture a man puffed up by praise—‘hero’ rings hollow when deeds falter—Dr. Lee’s calm voice cuts through, showing how fixating on words alone breeds unrealistic behavior: a boast twists truth, a label obscures time’s flux. The camera shifts—animated lines blur a tree into ‘majestic,’ then ‘stunted,’ proving exaggeration’s ease over precision’s toil. Lee unpacks the why: language tempts distortion, unshackled from context—‘brave’ today, not yesterday. With sharp insight and mid-20th-century clarity, this film cautions against verbal mirages, urging care in speech. Archival Moments revives this linguistic lesson—subscribe to discern more from the echoes of history!