ON ACTING: Language

A good actor speaks from the front of their mouth. Their language escapes through their teeth. Words are meant to penetrate the other character's skull. Language is not merely a release of feeling, but a physical attempt to encase that feeling into a purposeful instrumentality: to convince, to defeat, to maneuver the human landscape to our purposes. Language demands the other character's understanding and ultimately acquiescence. It organizes feelings into sharp, focused words; logic, ideas, concepts to hurl at other people. It is a missile, not a balm. It perhaps serves as a release of emotion in the short term, but in the long term it seeks to penetrate and dissolve the listener's resistance and create permanent, favorable change.