Jeremy Bentham, 1832-2032

Charles Ogden (1889-1957) is best known as the senior author of "The Meaning of Meaning", the inventor of the 850-word system of Basic English and the expositor of the writings of Jeremy Bentham. Bentham's work had confirmed Ogden in the conviction he had nurtured for 20 years: that language, for all its pitfalls, could be controlled, thus ensuring effective communication and international understanding, perhaps even preventing war.