Misunderstood

When I was 14, I would spend copious amounts of time in the library. Mostly the philosophy and religion sections. I clearly remember one of these sections. There was a thick book - I have no idea the author or name of the book - but it clearly dealt with the individual and society. I don't remember really the words, but I remember what I took from reading a few of the passages. (It was a decision to be neither a leader nor a follower.)

Several years later, I went back to find that seminal (to me) book. To remember and read the entire thing, to know the author, to acquire a copy of the book for myself. But when I went back and found that book - and read the same passage - the words were different from what I remembered. I wondered, how could I have so misunderstood the author those years ago. Reading them then, they had the opposite meaning from what I remembered. So much for the rally cry I had heard in my head.

I placed the book back on the shelf and left that library - never to return. (I had moved to another town.) But I wondered, how did that just happen? How can one read a book at one time, and then at a later time - and the book means different things? The words do not change; however I do. And the same words can have different understandings, as you change.

Comments

[Jef Allbright]

It's an important realization that *words do not have meaning* in themselves. They always only trigger changes in some observer, who then ascribes some meaning to them. Context is everything, and even silence, within a particular context, can be full of meaning.

As a person with, shall we say, systems-thinking tendencies, you may want to consider Bateson's "Information is a difference that makes a difference."

Also relevant to this subject is a comment that I made last summer at "the mansion" (you were there) when one of us made a presentation on the value of information services and I said something to the effect that "the value of information corresponds not to what is communicated, but rather, to the amount of processing that otherwise would have been required to achieve the same result." The response to my comment was many blank looks and JS nodding his head.

If you want to dig into this further, I recommend a very readable book, The User Illusion, by Tor Norretranders.

[heather]

Jef - I remember that comment. I think it was one of my first "official" introductions to systems thinking. I still feel this is something I need to learn a great deal about, however, yes, intuitively to me, this makes sense.

I just looked at The User Illusion and it looks fascinating and I immediately ordered it. Thanks for the recommendation!

ps. I remember when I first had the realization that things meant differently to me when I read them later. I wrote this blog post to remind myself of this. :)