" In defence of obscure words"-- by Will Self

You've got to read this essay by author and journalist Will Self. The subject has been on my mind lately, after a reviewer constantly flagged what I consider mildly "difficult" words in my friend's academic essay, suggesting that he use more commonplace alternatives. But also, Mr. Self's reference to Damien Hirst's Tate Modern exhibition--in which the artist presented his new, painfully shallow, gargantuan, dotted canvases--aptly illustrates what has happened to contemporary "high" art: the triumph of the cult of scaling up. Pretty much of this work is "high" art only because it fetches high prices in the art market.Not because they aspire to the condition of "difficulty," or because they have the capacity to even merely shock the viewer.

BBC News - A Point of View: In defence of obscure words