The English Language
Language indeed determines how you think, or it can limit your thinking. Look at this sentence for example:
I will be a better person
This statement could convey two meanings:
- I will be a better person (than who I was yesterday, or before an incident, reaction or action)
- I will be a better person (than somebody else)
We all aim to be better people as we walk our own path of life. But this statement gives the hazardous flexibility to think of improving ourselves in the wrong way.
Consider expressing the same sentiment in the Chinese language:
做好点个人 — Zuo hao dian’r de ren
Translation: To be a person of an additional bit of good.
The translation of this statement does not imply that there is some comparison to another. It simply states an absolute — to have a little more good than before. It is not to have a better good; it is just to have a bit more good — kind of like acquiring an extra stamp to your precious collection.