Words Matter: The Moral Foundations of Language

Language has the enormous power to shape reality. Aristotle understood this clearly, describing language as a form of technology we use to mould and fashion society. The recent and sudden rise of LLMs (Large Language Models) to power generative AI underscores Aristotle’s ancient insight, highlighting the almost limitless potential of language as a technological tool.

School is arguably the most important social setting, alongside the home, where young people first learn to harness the immense power of language. The news media rightly recognises the foundational role schools play in this regard, even if reporting often skews towards concerns about eroding standards.

Yet what is almost always overlooked in these discussions about standards are the moral standards by which language learning is measured.

The questionable misuse of language that appears so pervasive in public life today should cause real concern for parents. Online disinformation, the normalisation of post-truth news reporting, the polarisation of political discourse through deliberately inflammatory speech and growing concerns about AI-assisted plagiarism are all part of the world our young people already inhabit.

This alone should cause us to consider the moral foundations upon which our children learn to use language and evaluate how it is properly used.

At Burgmann, it is the Christian perspective above all that guides how students take moral responsibility for what they do with language. Grounded in the wisdom of Jesus, our guiding principle is that students learn to use language in ways that are loving towards others.

“If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13:1).

So wrote the Apostle Paul to the early Christian community, showing how learning to use language is only complete, not after we have mastered all the grammatical rules, conventions of writing and rhetorical techniques, but once we have learned to use language to enact love for our neighbour.

The practical implications of using our words in ways that are loving leave no aspect of the Burgmann community unaffected. Learning to speak with kindness, respect, goodness, gentleness and grace are all ways that Burgmann promotes language rooted and established in love.

Ours is a culture that seeks to use language to encourage rather than criticise. To build up rather than tear down.

As a Christian culture, mindful of what scholar Christian B. Miller has recently termed “The Honesty Crisis” (Oxford, 2026) impacting society today, Burgmann is committed to upholding the virtues of honesty and integrity as principles for speaking the truth in love.

To return to Aristotle, the great Greek philosopher noted how competent language users employ three “appeals” – logos, pathos and ethos – roughly translated as reason, passion and morality.

This so-called ‘rhetorical triangle’ is routinely invoked at Burgmann when students take part in competitive debating and public speaking, and when crafting an essay or persuasive text.

At Burgmann, we make a special point of emphasising the third of Aristotle’s “appeals” as part of our everyday use of words. The responsible use of any technology, especially a technology as powerful as human language, depends on ethos – ethics, morality and character.

Here at our School, that means a Christian ethos, rooted in love.