From our Perfectly-Timed-Explanations series (formerly Just-Wait-Sh*t-Will-Happen series)
Verantwortung, noun, f., meaning responsibility.
The word Verantwortung may look like a compound because of its length or because you recognize "antwort" (response) in the middle but the online dictionary Duden is silent on the etymology.
Wikipedia does tell us that it is thought to be a translation of the Latin "respondere", which neatly explains "antworten".
The suffix "ung" is used in German to turn a verb into a noun. You can make your own by removing the ending of a verb ("en") and adding "ung". This creates a feminine noun, and with a little bit of luck people will understand what you mean.
The prefix "ver" is noteworthy in that it has a strong meaning of negativity or difficulty. Using a bit of the logic commonly applied by evil philosopher mastermind Heidegger, you take a prefix and play with it. An example is in the post German 4 Dummies: Sensation.
So, take "negative", "difficult", "movement of an object" and the verb "respond" and have fun.
As an abstract concept, Verantwortung requires some explanation, and my personal introduction to its meaning went as follows.
My father and I went to buy a replacement wheel for the family wheelbarrow. As we left the store, he handed me the bag and said: You carry the wheel, I carry the responsibility.
This was one of his better explanations of the world.
Years later, I realized on my own that he had introduced a second level of meaning without telling me.
Someone is left holding the bag. And that someone is not the person who carries the responsibility.
Unlike other abstract concepts, like money or happiness, Verantwortung is mandatory for any career oriented adult. Tied to hierarchy, responsibility grows as you move up. In the workplace, your regular performance reviews will talk more and more about responsibility.
Don't get fooled, though. As long as you still receive a periodical performance review, you don't really have responsibility. In a performance review, the mention of responsibility denotes its absence (take that Heidegger). In terms of dad's explanation, it means you are the one holding the bag.
If you soar and lose the shackles of performance reviews, you have attained the true nirvana of responsibility. You can talk about it all day, you can and will use it to justify any action or inaction.
Feel like annihilating thousands of perfectly good brain cells or thousands of strangers?
Drink responsibly, conduct a responsible foreign policy.
Do we have any advice on what to do with this post?
Hm, how about think responsibly?
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