The Way of the Goat

- Preface –

To those who have known me before, during, and after my gradual downfall (or upfall?) into the world of Goats, i.e., the appreciation, obsession, fascination, and utter incredulity thereof: the following article shall attempt to shed light on what may appear to be an odd “hobby,” but what to me is a mode of viewing & acting in life: that of, The Goat. In working with the linguistic notion that language is not external to thought, rather is wound tightly with it and formed by it, I will argue that The Goat, too, is a vehicle for continual discovery and, as such, an instrument for our innermost desire to play, celebrate, and ponder all life and its inhabitants. What does it mean to name? How does the named world differ from the universe that names it? Taken as a whole, The Goat, malleable and many-sided, straddles both worlds and thus belongs to both the individual and society. It is a complex farm animal, to say the least, and above all, a gateway to explore the diversity of language and human interaction.

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What does one think of when the word Goat is written or spoken? Perhaps the first image that comes to mind is that of the common, four-legged farm animal found throughout the world and revered in religion and folklore. Or maybe it’s the scent of goat cheese, a delicacy in cooking and an option for humans with lactose intolerance. Whatever the image, Goat is just like any other actual word: it is a sign, or re-presentation, of some material, which is absent. But that’s not saying much. Most every word in the human language stands for some idea or concept—as a whole, and in conjunction with sounds, these concepts constitute our complex system of communication.

Let us now delve into this so-called “system.” For starters, Goat, on its own, may be just that: A Goat. An audible sound and set of words that conjures the image of an animal. The existence of Goat, then, would lie in the association of the concept goat (the “signified”), with the sound-image of goat (the “signifier”). Linguistics is not interested in the actual OBJECT in reality (the “referent.”) Or maybe I’m not particularly interested in it. In any event, we communicate via an ongoing relationship between the signifier and the signified. So where, then, is the real, tangible GOAT? I want to pet him. Patience.

To borrow from Kristev, “one of the founding postulates of linguistics is that the sign is arbitrary” (14). In other words, there is no necessary, or motivated, relationship between the signifier and the signified: the same signified “goat” has its signifier in la cabra in Spanish, la chevre in French, and capra in Italian. The arbitrariness of the sign, then, is absolute and necessary for all subjects speaking the same language.

Thus, it is not the relationship between the signifier (sound-image of goat) and the signified (idea of goat) that is arbitrary—because this is agreed upon and specific to one’s system of language; rather, it is the relation between the sign and the ACTUAL (physical) reality that it names that is completely and utterly random. Hence: who is to say that an innocent Angora goat, munching on the farm, is any different from an innocent child, happily eating his ice cream? I call them both goats, chowing down.

Dig into this grass and munch a little. Instead of trying to discover why we have all agreed to call the animal “goat” a GOAT (g-o-a-t), let us instead explore the recursive cycle of language, whose real manifestation arises in signification. We have much more freedom here, and much more room for transformation. Goat herding, goat-naming, goat-loving comes to life as the result of a process of destabilization of the traditional link between symbol and reality. Given that this relationship is, at some level, frustratingly arbitrary as is, we can only revel in the beauty of syntactic metamorphosis: We agree to play, to twist, and to generate more and more and more manifestations of The Goat, a process that, personally, delivers a much-needed psychological and spiritual catharsis.

GOAT, are you there? It’s me, Margaret.

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Now, I will never fully be able to explain, nor defend, my initial fascination with the concept, physical entity, and symbol of The Goat over all other animals. Goats are, pure and simple, very silly and absurd animals, and I love them for this. For me, they have become an entertaining lens through which to explore the world and differing modes of thought.

When conceptualizing the goat, let us think in the big picture: just as a singular word is the minimal unit of language, a singular goat does not achieve its complete signification until it is used in a sentence.

“Wow, look at all those little goats. So cute.” This sentence may, in fact, refer to goats on a farm; however, since the relationship between referent and symbol is random from the start, this scene may describe elementary students running around at recess. Or a young team of soccer players running around like a herd of goats.

Aside from their role as units in our ever-evolving slang language, let’s look at the Way of the Goat, as is, and apply it to our lives. Why not? First of all, to me, goats just want to munch around and have fun. Amidst the pressures of society, the economy, our spouses, and parents, don’t we all just want to roam around and explore? When I'm stressed, the last thing I want to do is think about what stresses me out. So I think about goats instead. Usually, this brings laughter. What would [a] Goat do? Probably munch out, kick it, go for a walk, and play with some other goats. I'm down.

Goats, like humans, are also creatures of habit. Although they may wander around from farm to farm or pasture to pasture, they tend to fall into herds and grow to love their surroundings. On a personal note, I have the spirit of a wandering goat, but the internal desire for a farm connection: only time will tell whom and where I shall settle.

Most importantly, like humans trying to fit in within their supposed circle of friends or colleagues, goats tend to mimic speech, and even randomly spit when they disagree with a point. Now, if that’s not the ultimate freedom “from” the man, then I don’t know what is.

In terms of eating habits, goats are both extremely curious and extremely picky. They will explore and sample almost anything, but are ultimately very choosy regarding what they put into their mouths. Boy, can I relate.

All in all, goats are mysterious creatures, and I wish to leave it at that. If I go any further, I fear that they will lose any and all meaning, and you will have just wasted five minutes of your life reading this absurd and seemingly baseless argument as to why goats are cool and why you should appreciate them.

Let’s remember: even though language is made possible by biological organs, it is a social function, goats. We are socially molded by the way in which those around us speak, and we, too, have a part in molding society through our words.

Do your part. Adopt a goat. Or don’t. Please, actually, don't. Let them be.

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