Definition

I’m still hung up on the importance of words and their meaning.

As I discussed yesterday, when trying to exchange perspectives, or ideas, the most important aspect to the conversation is how the terms are defined.

Specifically I cited how the word “god” is thrown around in arguments. Before it can even be debated as to whether or not this is an actual being, or phenomena, my experience has shown people at times aren’t even agreeing on the concept itself. For instance some think of god being a force, or energy, yet others think this word is describing a person. But then some would even argue the term is just an expression of something unknown.

Ultimately my point was, if there is failure to agree upon the very term being discussed, the exchange of ideas will be an act of futility. However, I don’t want to get stuck here right now.

Rather, I’d like to share a quote I found earlier while scrolling Facebook.

“The basic tool for the manipulation of reality is the manipulation of words. If you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.”-Philip K. Dick

That statement makes my point exactly. And this is why simply skipping over the practice of defining words is not beneficial to having a productive discussion. Whether it’s religion, politics, or whatever, the most important thing that needs to be done up front is for all parties to agree on the definition of the main terms.

Otherwise what you have is one person trying to control another by essentially bullying them into accepting their understanding of a specific topic. And in the end this does not serve the purpose of building a strong dialog but instead destroys the ability to establish rapport.