Teaching Language arTs in The WaLdorf schooL

Language
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self-protection, and if that feeling is one of resistance, it is expressed
in the e sound. And its opposite feeling, that of aiming toward, or
approaching and uniting with something, is expressed in the i sound.
These, then, are the main vowels. We will cover the details later,
including the diphthongs. One other vowel should be considered,
which occurs less frequently in European languages and expresses
something stronger than all the others. If you try to find a vowel by
letting a, o, and u sound together, this expresses at first a feeling of fear,
and then an identification with what is feared. This sound expresses
the most profound awe. It is found with particular frequency in Asian
languages and shows that Asians are able to develop tremendous awe
and veneration, whereas in Western languages this sound is missing,
since awe and veneration are not the strongest traits of Europeans.
We now have an image of the inner soul moods expressed by
the vowels. All vowels express the inner soul stirring in our affinity
with things. Even when we are afraid, the fear is based on a mysterious
affinity. We would never fear something without having a hidden
affinity for it. In examining such matters, however, you must
remember that it is relatively easy to make the observation that o
has something to do with astonishment, u with fear and anxiety, a
with admiration and wonder, e with resistance, i with approaching
something, and aou with veneration. Nevertheless, one’s ability to
observe these connections will be obscured by confusing the feeling
nuance that comes from hearing the sound and the feeling nuance
that arises when speaking the sound. The two are different. You must
bear in mind that the nuances of feeling I have enumerated are related
to communicating the sounds. They apply when you want to
communicate something to someone by using the sound. If you wish
to tell someone that you are afraid, it is expressed by the u sound.
There is a difference of nuance when you yourself are afraid and when
you want to arouse fear in someone else by articulating u. Your own
fear will be echoed back when you attempt to arouse it in another,
for example, by saying to a child, “u-u” [“ooo”]. It is important to
consider this aspect with regard to the social implications of speech.
If you do so, you will easily see the point.