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Written word signifies the beginning (a birth certificate) and the end (a death certificate) of a human life. Between those two important documents, a person creates and comes into contact with volumes upon volumes of written words, words that have shaped the Earth enough for one to state, in truth, that he who possesses the power of prose is the closest comparison that we have to a physical god. The written word has been created and mastered by humans alone, and in turn humans have gone on to collectively conquer the world.
Text is the main factor that separates humans from other animals, and it has allowed humans to communicate with others in ways no illiterate creature ever could. Conveying its message to one person or millions, to those in the room or across the world, written and typed script has the ability to aid in great decisions, choices that some would say were only meant for the gods.
Writing has allowed us to document history, to create permanent records of lives and stories that were before at the mercy of verbal storytelling and memory. This provides someone with a basis for his or her culture and behaviours, and instils in them a sense of pride of family and country, helping to unite those under common ancestries. Words that withstand the test of time are important to those who must learn from the past to ensure earlier mistakes are not repeated. Just as the lasting quality of pen is preferred to pencil; mistakes cannot be erased, but will be learned from if they can be read and reviewed for hundreds of years.
Those that can provide people with written accounts of their work that endure over time can ensure themselves a sort of immortality. We remember Shakespeare for his many plays, but we will never know of the woman who served him lunch, or the man who lived beside him. Chopin is known for his beautiful compositions, but countless others died without recognition because they never utilized the power of permanence and paper. We hold our scribes and composers in high regard, up with our kings and conquerors, because a great writer does not die, but lives on in his words.
Every human has one last written document; one that once signed signifies the end of that person’s life. One day the Earth may share that same fate, and the stroke of a pen may bring about the execution of human civilization by way of nuclear or biological warfare. But even on that dark day we will not be questioning writing’s worth, because writing is the tool that has aided us in encompassing the ultimate power of creating or destroying anything that we can, even ourselves; and that is as close to godliness as you can get.

The most human thing about being a human is the utilization of words in communication, effectively linking sound and language in order to aid in the verbalization of thought. Language, and the way it is used by individuals, is acquired from those around them, and from the environment that they are exposed to. As people are immersed in it everyday, language is something that is picked up quickly, and becomes a complex action that is simplified over a short period of time.
As humans grow and evolve over years, so does the language that they speak. New words and expressions are constantly being created. For example, with over 40, 000 words in the English language, statements are expressed at every moment that have never been uttered before. With that many words, there is no limit to the combinations that one person can articulate. Essentially, the more words you know, the better arsenal you possess to produce original statements. With this in mind, there are many phrases that could be used to portray what a word is, but really trying to explain what a word is in words is like a definition defining itself.
As fine-tuned as this method of communication is, there are still grey areas, and structure that requires abiding by limitations. If a picture were worth a thousand words, then most people would prefer to just display a photo rather than describe an image, which may span numerous pages of text. That is where verbal and written language lose their productivity. Finer thought may also be difficult to express through words, and all the while the mind may become distracted or preoccupied with adhering to specific guidelines regarding grammar.
Although other animals may have their own ‘languages’ of squeals and barks, humans are the only ones that have developed a system of syntax, and the only ones to have recorded their thoughts in written form. Being able to communicate this way has given us an edge over other creatures. To express abstract thought, and to plan beyond the season, are not concepts that other living things have the chance to indulge upon, and to truly live and move past mere existence is a luxury that we owe mostly to the deep thought that only a human’s complicated mind can generate; these thoughts are then reiterated through our refined system of words.