S/he Made it Come Alive!

I'm reading a fascinating book by George Friedman, The Next Decade. I will have more to say about the book later. This morning I will point out that Friedman is one of those people who both knows his subject and can make it come alive with delightful, insightful, penetrating prose.

These two qualities do not always go together. We have all known smart people who had a hard time communicating what they knew. And we have all known people who "made it come alive" whatever the subject. The kid who hates history and is suddenly deep into the French Revolution or the American Presidency because some teacher made this dry and uninteresting subject come alive. The college student who had never considered a particular field of study for a career until listening to someone at a party one night who made it come alive ~ not only because of their passion for the subject but also by the words they used and the way they wound the language around their passion.

That is much of what makes a good teacher, passion for the subject and a way with words to communicate that passion. One example from Friedman as he talks about the United States' rise to world power. ". . . . preeminence did not arrive until 1991, when the Soviet Union collapsed, leaving the U. S. alone as a colossus without a counterweight." (p. 15) Zing! If you haven't understood the U. S. position until then, that one phrase clicks it all into place. That is the power of language used well. Whatever "it" is, well spoken and written language can make it come alive.