Humpty Dumpty knew what he was talking about. We are in control of the meanings of the words we use, if not as individuals then at least as a group, but sometimes words acquire an authority and a persuasion that exceed our understanding of them. Through our profligate use, a word may become influential even when its meaning is unclear and poorly understood. When the link between meaning and emotive influence is strained like this, the authority of language has gotten away from us.

The word “natural” is a clear example of this. It means roughly that something is not human-made, not artificial, but influence has grown through advertising to suggest that anything natural must be good, wholesome, and healthy. The link between what we mean by “natural” and the authority it has over our behavior is poorly understood, at best. Why are things that are not human fabrications better, across the board, than those that are? More to the point of meaning and understanding, what does it mean to describe a product like shampoo, breakfast cereal, or even rat poison as “all-natural”? And why is it better for me, and the rat too, presumably, if I use all-natural rat poison?