​ CREATIVE WRITING

​ Assignment-2    

Some say that language is a construct, words are inert and they manage to convey only a fraction
of the complex emotions and ideas that bear fruit in the human mind. There are even some who
argue that humans could communicate telepathically long before the advent of language. I was
never concerned or interested in these ideas until quite recently. A crisis that I faced changed my
entire perception of languages and its importance.
I had spent all my formative years in Kerala the small but beautiful state in the Southern tip of
India. I completed my schooling in an ordinary public school. Hence my exposure to other
Indian languages let alone foreign languages was minimal. Although English and Hindi were
compulsory courses for us, we never took it too seriously and studied enough to score well in the
exams. Still, I was interested in reading and had read quite a few English books during this time
and so my writing skills in the language was decent. But rarely did we use any other language
other than Malayalam, our mother tongue in communication. But I didn’t realize my folly until I
started my college at BITS Hyderabad.
BITS is located in another South Indian state of Telangana and has students coming from all over
India and even abroad. To my horror I realized that all the students could speak either good
English or Hindi. Obviously, communication with other students became painful and I struggled
to communicate properly. Even though my grasp in English was decent I was ridiculed by my
new friends because of my discernible accent. I realized how important language skills were in
life and how it can even change a person’s life. But I never gave up and relentlessly worked on
my language and pronunciation. Gradually, my language improved I was able to communicate
better with people in English and my life became better.
However, my fascination with language didn’t end there. After I became reasonably comfortable
in English, I became interested in the evolution and the immense variety of languages itself. I
started reading books on these subjects and my interests grew further. I came to the conclusion
that I must do a Masters program in language studies in some prestigious international school.
Harvard being one of the most prestigious schools of all time was then an obvious choice. My
desire to study in Harvard further grew after I read the book-” Biology and Evolution of
language”, by Harvard professor Phillip Liebermann. It is my heartfelt desire to study in a
university like Harvard where history sleeps under teachers and visionaries like Prof. Lieberman.

Vinayan Nair
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