LOGIC AND INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGE 51 



The international language is, therefore, faithful not only 

 to logic, but to the spirit of our languages, in admitting at 

 the same time the two inverse derivations : gay a, gayeso ; 

 joyo, joyoza. A language which contained the suffix -es, and 

 not the suffix -oz, would be lame or one-armed. 



Besides, this lacuna would manifest itself very quickly in 

 further derivations, for the latter would violate the principle 

 of reversibility and therefore that of uniqueness. If from 

 joyo were derived joya, from this adjective, analogous to gaya, 

 one could derive inversely joyeso = joyo, thus producing 

 two names for the same quality (just as above sano would 

 have been synonymous with saneso). If from kurajo (courage) 

 were derived kuraja (courageous), one could derive from the 

 latter kurajeso, synonymous with kurajo. And, on the other 

 hand, kurajo being the substantive of kuraja, this word would 

 signify both courage and a courageous person. From want 

 of a single suffix the whole series of derivations would 

 become confused and illogical, just as in a chain of reason- 

 ing a single error, or in an algebraical calculation a single 

 false equation, would lead to the most absurd conclusions. 



To sum up, one must take care not to derive a word 

 directly from another, except when they both express the 

 same idea (apart from the difference of their grammatical 

 role in the sentence). Consequently, whenever the sense 

 changes, a word element must be added or disappear, in 

 order to translate the modification of the idea. It is by 

 virtue of this condition that the language will become the 

 exact and faithful expression of our thoughts, and will con- 

 form to that indwelling and instinctive logic which, in spite 

 of all sorts of irregularities and exceptions, animates our 

 languages. In its system of derivation as well as in the 

 rest of its structure, the international language is nothing 

 but a purified and idealised extract, a quintessence of the 

 European languages. The logic which holds sway there is 

 not the Aristotelian logic of genus and species, but rather 



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