The unavoidable architecture of the English language

The Board of Architects recently urged Malaysian journalists and political figures to exercise caution when using the term architect for fear that it could cast aspersion on the licensed profession.

It said that when used in a derogatory manner, the title architect, which is legally protected under the Architects Act 1967, could also cause confusion among the public.

To be clear, architects have played a key role in transforming our skylines in the cities in the relentless march towards literally building the nation.

While acknowledging the rightful place of figures of speech in our daily conversations, the board was concerned that the use of the term architect had been unduly associated with the dark designs of evil mortals.

In particular, it pointed out, political commentators tended to portray those committing corruption as, lo and behold, “architects” of the heinous crime.

In the wake of this trepidation, it is feared that the board’s sensitivity and cautionary note could trigger a chain reaction in other professions in the country – to be wary about how certain terms are used or misused.

For example, a distraught chartered accountant friend has already expressed concern that his profession could be unnecessarily smeared when certain white-collar criminals are made to account for their misdeeds. This is despite the fact that accountability is a good thing.

Similarly, some chefs would not be relieved to know that there are companies which cook their accounts, with the implication that doubts would be raised about the chefs’ professional integrity. This is beyond the case of too many cooks spoiling the broth.

Messing with data and documents is indeed a diabolical act. That is why doctors would be worried that the image of their profession could be compromised if someone doctored an important document in a desperate attempt to qualify as a dentist.

Surgeons and tailors have important skills to operate on a sick individual and stitch a dress respectively. But it’s troubling when such terms take a different twist: for instance, the Zionist regime conducts surgical strikes against defenceless Palestinian civilians with weapons that are tailored to kill on an industrial scale. It would seem that the two sets of professionals are culpable.

Like architects, engineers are important in nation-building. But engineers they may not be looked upon kindly after a bunch of politicians engineered what was called the “Sheraton move”, resulting in the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government in 2020. This obviously contrasts with the positivity that resides in the original meaning, which is to help build bridges, roads and buildings.

This sordid episode in our political landscape has led many to believe that there’s something rotten in the state of Denmark. Here we wonder aloud whether the faraway Danes are appalled by this expression when they’ve got nothing to do with such shenanigans in the first place.

Thank God that such a remark did not eventually spark a diplomatic row between Malaysia and the Scandinavian country!

As we can see from the above, it is unfortunate that the English language, like many other languages, is replete with figures of speech and nuances to the extent that it violates the ‘sanctity’ of certain terms even if they’re copyrighted. – Free Malaysia Today