|
Good thread.
As something of a wordsmith, I'm pretty free with my words. I don't believe they are the actual content of our communication. If I were to state my own view of the significance of context as a determiner of meaning/comprehension, I'd say it is 100% determinant of the meaning/comprehension of words.
Words in one context mean one thing. In another context they mean something else. Context is a much more complex and unpredictable environment to create, operate within, and participate in than simply speaking or typing.
I believe we focus on words because they appear to be the raw data of communication and are easily categorized and defined. This is our big mistake. We believe it is the words we use that create meaning and comprehension. I do not see that happening.
What I do see happening is that the context in which words are used conditions meaning/comprehension in human beings. It is as if the actual communication is not noticed because we have a tendency to focus on the words that we and others use when we go back to analyze what was said and how it was understood.
Perhaps you can think of examples of this. If so, looking at human communication in this way may make a lot more sense of the way it proceeds than does focusing on the specific words that are used...
__________________
create evolution
|