The simple point is that that object reflects the experiences in the
minds of individuals or groups of individuals of the objects.
mando
On Oct 5, 2009, at 11:28 AM, Michael Brady wrote:
William wrote
Meaning is what we project and is affected by how we use external
reality, even the realities we ourselves make or manipulate like a
painting or musical composition.
As I've said before, I believe that artifacts contain in them
structural properties of one kind or other that lead to consistent
interpretations by individuals. There is something there, in them,
in artifacts, that distinguishes them from the random detritus of
nature. There is a form in them that is significant, that can
signify to someone, who can then interpret the signifying.
The person, btw, doesn't "project," doesn't throw something out
onto the object. That has a bit of metaphorical expansion to it.
Rather, the person receives it in such a way that it "makes sense"
to the person. That's the interpretive part. A very important
aspect here is that the thing out there and the person's receptive
mechanism in here are two different things, and they can be
separated, if the person chooses to do so. That's the manipulation
William speaks of. It is how the meanings of words slide around,
and how maps work.
All in all, there are two basic conditions here: terminus and
correlation. The terminus is the place where one thing ends. It can
be clear, definite, precise, or it can be fuzzy, vague, and
unstable. But it is important to us that something terminates,
ends, stops--that a thing can be *determined*--so that we can
distinguish it from other things. And there is correlation, the
method of mapping and of representation ... and of art. "This <-->
that." [Cheerskep: note the absence of a verb.]
When William says that meaning can be manipuated, he implies that
his knowing of somethign can be determined (limited) and that it
can be arbitrarily *and willfully* correlated to something (A <-->
C or A <--> E, etc.).
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Michael Brady
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http://considerthepreposition.blogspot.com/
http://thinkinglikeadesigner.blogspot.com/
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