by how complex dictionaries are in relation to society (and I’m only half way through the course).

I have personally never considered that dictionaries are made by people. They are just databases that I use to look up how a word is spelled, and if it is, in fact, a word that I think it is. But like many other database they tend to reflect the people working on them. Noah Webster, for example, was a man who had done a lot with his life, and his dictionary is one of the most successful ones today. He helped establish copyright and created the first daily newspaper in NY. His dictionary was also propaganda to promote patriotism and increase the distance from the British culture while cementing Americanism. He coined          273
     XXV. BUCK LAUGHS AT FATE                        286
    XXVI. IRONY                                      301
   XXVII. THE WEB OF FATE                            313
  XXVIII. A BLACK NIGHT 