The Meaning of Meaning

we are concerned about the creation and interpretation of words in business language.

Literary theory

Formal methods of interpretation of text are discussed in the landmark work and a milestone in literary criticism by C.K.Ogden and I.A.Richard, The Meaning of Meaning [1].

In the scientific track, Richards is followed by a long line of literary critics who have explored the problem of interpretation and formulated new criticism,“which emphasized the close reading of a literary text as a self-contained and self-referential object”. Jacques Derrida made a difference; he analysed text by deconstructing it and posited, ‘words have meaning only because of contrast-effects with other words’. [2]

Neurolinguistics

Neurolinguists study how the brain reads and speaks and processes language. Many areas in the brain are involved in speech production and comprehension.

Researchers used to relate damages to areas in brain to deficiencies in intellectual performance and develop theories. From such studies it is known that Broca's area is involved in the production of speech and Wernicke’s area is involved in comprehension.Now using advanced scanning facilities it is possible to construct an atlas of the brain for language processing. We can't say that language is 'in' a particular part of the brain. It's not even true that a particular word is 'in' one place in a person's brain; the information that comes together when we understand or say a word arrives from many places, depending on what the word means. Our brains are somewhat plastic – that is, their organization depends on our experiences as well as on our genetic endowment. This is still a nascent field of study. [3]

When words hide truth

Words mean a world in philosophical world. But in the business world it is almost admitted that occasionally we do not mean what we say. In those circumstances we use words as camouflaged codes. We also have distanced ourselves literary elegance and have treated ourselves to devious ways of interpreting words. While reading reports we are driven to read between the lines. While attending meetings we see a need to read body languages. In both the cases we fear that language is used as an instrument to hide truth.

Resistance to change may appear as a misleading euphoric verbal support for the new idea: People say “Excellent idea. We should adopt this at once”. Truth is this statement translates into “It is a horrible idea and I don’t like it.”Resistance happens when people say yes but really mean no.[4]

Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn essay a brilliant satire on how bureaucrats hide truth in Yes Minister:

A sample of verbal exploits is here.

There are two official replies to the Minister's correspondence.

1. Jim Hacker: What's the difference?

Bernard: Well, "under consideration" means "we've lost the file"; "under active consideration" means "we're trying to find it".

2. How to guide ministers to making the right decisions

Sir Humphrey: If you want to be really sure that the Minister doesn't accept it, you must say the decision is "courageous".

Bernard: And that's worse than "controversial"?

Sir Humphrey: Oh, yes! "Controversial" only means "this will lose you votes". "Courageous" means "this will lose you the election"!

An extremely difficult task is interpretation of some legal terms. Legal experts are jargon mongers. Law specializes in circumlocution. It also uses vague abstract nouns, making it difficult to understand. A sample:

A supplement to the draft or final EIS on file will be prepared whenever significant impacts resulting from changes in the proposed plan or new significant information, criteria or circumstances relevant to environmental considerations impact on the recommended plan proposed action.  [5]

Some parts of international standards are written in obscure language and need experts to interpret them for practitioners. The drawback in using over cautious language is that it limits the reach and use of standards. What is difficult to understand will become even more difficult to implement.

For the professional world we need to use language in straight forward manner, build transparency into the text in order to give readers the freedom to interpret. After postmodernism, literary approaches have changed. For example, even though interpreting literary works often requires and benefits from critics, according to reader-response theory, the reader creates meaning.

Words without commitment

A problem more serious than ambiguity, natural and cultivated, is the lack of commitment. Words delivered should be backed by commitment. Promises must be kept. Words have an inherent permanence and U turns do not go well with this spirit. Going back on words seems to be a creation of modern life shaped by laws of convenience and loosely held ethics.

Verbal agreements and oral contracts are generally valid and legally binding as long as they are reasonable, equitable, conscionable and made in good faith. Although most people associate contracts with legal documents printed on paper for the purpose of getting them signed and stamped by notaries, the fact is that only a few types of contracts are required by statute to be written.[6]

In modern life employees have to argue it out in courts when employers fail to honour verbal agreements. In oral traditions a verbal promise is holy. Earlier, words are even invested with prophetic power. Words prevail.

“Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts.”

 ― Patrick Rothfuss, The Name of the Wind

“There exists, for everyone, a sentence - a series of words - that has the power to destroy you. Another sentence exists, another series of words, that could heal you. If you're lucky you will get the second, but you can be certain of getting the first.”

 ― Philip K. Dick, VALIS

“Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.”

 ― Rudyard Kipling

Even written contractual agreements, easier to enforce, are violated. The concerned parties have to seek court intervention. Whatever happened to those words?:

Employee employer relationship is very similar to wedding vow – it must be kept so. A good enterprise offers lifetime employment, like illustrated in some exemplary societies. However we get used to a hire and fire culture. Broken marriages and fired employees are becoming more common.

When people take care while choosing their words and honour the delivered words the need for legal intervention would disappear. It will then be a conflict free enterprise.

The philosophic dimension

Through the ages philosophers have stood for restraint in usage of words. Poet Thiruvalluvar, in his immortal work Thirukural, cautions that faulty words would bring disgrace to the speaker. He likens harsh words to poison. In an oft quoted metaphor he says fire burns could heal but scars from harsh words may not.

To understand each other, I think it is necessary that we should not be caught in words. So it is almost impossible to communicate with each other unless both of us have the intention of understanding and going beyond mere words. And can the mind be both neurologically and psychologically free of these words?

- Jiddu Krishnamurti

Religions attach a great value to words. In Christianity it is overwhelming. Citations about power of words found in the Bible may be seen in [7]. A wide range of treat of word and its power may be seen in the Bible, from a guidance in Matthew 12:37“For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” to a sublime elevation in John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

Buddhism presents ‘the right speech’ as part of the Eight Fold Path. [8]

First a definition,

"And what is right speech? Abstaining from lying, from divisive speech, from abusive speech, & from idle chatter: This is called right speech."

Further, about delivery,

"The Right Speech  is spoken at the right time. It is spoken in truth. It is spoken affectionately. It is spoken beneficially. It is spoken with a mind of good-will."

Buddhism promises “Self-purification through well-chosen speech.”

Keeping one’s word

It is a matter of honour. Margaret Paul, relationship expert and best-selling author presents “5 Reasons to Do What You Say You Will Do”: [9]

1.   Integrity

2.   Trust and Reliability

3.   Respect

4.   Self-Worth

5.   Personal Power

Every culture has its folklore praising great men and women, kings and the common, who kept their words against odds. Perhaps the most well remembered is the spirit of the American poet Robert Frost who wrote

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,  

But I have promises to keep,  

And miles to go before I sleep,  

And miles to go before I sleep.

-     Robert Frost in Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

When Frost passed away American president John F Kennedy said:          

The death of Robert Frost leaves a vacancy in the American spirit. He was the great American poet of our time. His art and his life summed up the essential qualities of the New England he loved so much: the fresh delight in nature, the plainness of speech, the canny wisdom, and the deep, underlying insight into the human soul. His death impoverishes us all; but he has bequeathed his Nation a body of imperishable verse from which Americans will forever gain joy and understanding. He had promises to keep, and miles to go, and now he sleeps.

Keeping one’s word is difficult. Somehow situations evolve that force breakage.

“The problem with promises is that once you've made one, it's bound to be broken. It's like an unspoken cosmic rule.”

 ― Bree Despain, The Dark Divine

One way to avoid false promises is to follow the golden principle: “We should not say yes when we ought to say no.”

“A graceful refusal is better than a lengthy promise.”

 ― Hazrat Ali Ibn Abu-Talib A.S

“A 'no' does not hide anything, but a 'yes' very easily becomes a deception.”

 ― S?ren Kierkegaard

Vows and Oaths

In the far end of the spectrum of words we have vows and oaths, which are specially designed.

Vow is a solemn promise.

Oath is a solemn promise, often invoking a divine witness, regarding one's future action or behaviour.

– Oxford Dictionary.

It is yet another poignant story when even vows are broken and oaths are forgotten. How marriage vows are maintained or broken is a case in point. Marriage vows have variants. In the United States, Catholic wedding vows may take the following form:

Due to ‘inevitable’ reasons marriage vows are broken; it is a rising social problem. Divorcees seem not to care about vows; they are forgotten.

In a court of law people take an oath:

I swear that the evidence that I shall give, shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God. Affirmation: I solemnly affirm that the evidence that I shall give, shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

After this swearing some people still tell clever lies professionally helped by lawyers to hoodwink the jury. Violation of the oath is so well institutionalized that people have taken it for granted.

Limits of words

The limitation of language is a fairly well understood problem. [10] Language does not provide words for all concepts. 

As if foreseeing the problem, the book Meaning of Meaning has an opening quote from the Chinese philosopher Lao Tse:

“He who knows does not speak, he who knows does not speak”.

Philosophers in other cultures have resonated. For instance there is a Tamil saying,which could be roughly translated as:

“He who saw It doesn't speak of It. He who speaks of it hasn't seen it”.

That Truth exceeds words is the concern for authors.Linguists would argue that language is arbitrary and words are mere signs of ideas. As Ana Maria Barrenechea notes thought is condemned to the mediation of language; and languages can only be oversimplification of reality. Mauthner says “Knowledge of the world through language is impossible”

“Philosophy lives in words, but truth and fact well up into our lives in ways that exceed verbal formulation.”

 ― William James

“The ultimate Truth is beyond words. Doctrines are words. They're not the Way.”

-     Bodhidharma

Final thoughts

Language is a tool with several limitations. While speaking and writing we should avoid ambiguous words and lies and should never mislead people. While listening and reading we should apply intelligence and understand what the communicator is trying to say instead of going literally by the words. In both the cases we should strive to represent truth.

References

[1]     C. K. Ogden and I. A. Richards,“The Meaning of Meaning: A Study of the Influence of Language upon Thought and of the Science of Symbolism”,Harvest/HBJ, 1923.

[2]     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deconstruction

[3]     https://www.linguisticsociety.org/resource/neurolinguistics

[4]     https://leadershipfreak.wordpress.com/2016/07/10/16-expressions-of-underhanded-resistance-pt-1/

[5]     Bryan A. Garner, “A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage”, Oxford University Press, 1987

[6]     https://thelawdictionary.org/article/is-a-verbal-agreement-legally-binding/

[7]     https://www.openbible.info/topics/power_of_words

[8]     https://www.accesstoinsight.org/ptf/dhamma/sacca/sacca4/samma-vaca/

[9]     https://www.huffingtonpost.in/entry/keeping-promises_b_2519691

[10]   https://www.aswedeingermany.de/50LanguageAndWriting/50 The Limitations Of Language.html

Your feedback

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts.