So I was thinking the other day, Why is the "mother tongue" looked down on? Why isn't it more evident in the sciences? (I was in the Clyde building at the time, right after an electrical engineering class.)
It occurred to me that perhaps the Mother Tongue isn't as precise. Engineering requires precision, clarity, and concreteness!
Well, that's wrong on its face: when a mother comforts her child, a child learns to keep house, or we learn to get along with others, precision, clarity, and concreteness help immensely. Navigating the oceans of emotions and thoughts sailed by the human psyche is an art that very few master. We call the pupils of this discipline "good at listening" and tell them "you always know the right thing to say." It's a skill.
I would posit that the difference lies in decision, not precision. I attended a seminar some years ago that pointed out that decision, decide, and deciduous share a common root: cutting off. Perhaps in the Father Tongue's world, one must cut off possibilities, prune one's path, and seek The Right Way (oh, and can this language argue!), while the Mother Tongue understands the infinite nature of the future and seeks to join paths, knowing that traveling together is always easier.
(Sorry, this has been rattling around in my head for a day or two and I didn't find a better place for it. It'll be out of date by Tuesday...I think.)
I would agree that the mother tongue isn't as precise as the father tongue. Sometimes it feels like a more common, day-to-day kinda of language used in more casual atmospheres, like the home. But at the same time, in the home the mother tongue is used to communicate with children. This can take some serious precision! Although it may not seem precise in an intellectual sense, speaking in the mother tongue takes clarification and simplicity, combined in a single, understandable statement that directs a more simple mind. We all know the elementary school jokes like, "You didn't say I HAD to do my chores. You said you WANT me to." etc. etc. The mother tongue can easily be a combination of simplicity, skill, and exactness.
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