I wasn’t going to write anything this evening. I knew I’d come back a bit late this evening, and assumed I’d be too tired and wouldn’t have much time, so I’d take an evening off.

Yet here I am.

I wonder if there’s anything to this compulsion to write. I mean, probably not. I probably just like writing, and sometimes just really feel like doing it, even if there’s nothing particular I want to write about.

But I’ve thought before about whether or not language is something inherently human. And if that’s the case, do we also then have a compulsion to use it?

Even if language is a purely social construct, it’s an element of every human culture. It’s such an integral part of life, that maybe that ubiquity compels us to use language. It’s hard to say, because it’s so hard for most of us to avoid using language in at least some basic way. And for most people there’s at least some degree of social compulsion to communicate with others. And there’s probably an evolutionary aspect to that.

It’s individual of course, and some people can manage much better than others without some kind of communication.

I wonder though, if the average person, put in complete isolation, would feel that compulsion to communicate. I’m sure most of us would start talking to ourselves.

Or writing to ourselves…