Blog Post 4

The principal is that there is a correct use for every word. Literary excellence is when one uses a word in its correct way. The exact meaning or function of a word cannot be determined when secluded from other words. The writer also argues against Old forms of Rhetoric study, because, according to the writer, it had many conflicts.

The writer states that meanings are decided by how the word is used in a sentence and not ingrained in the word itself. Words are therefore defined by people, differently. The excerpts focus on the study of the meanings of words, how words can be misunderstood, and how to set this right. We can decrease these misunderstandings by understanding how the meaning of words change in a conversation. The writer explains how communication is lost when not done correctly. These problems occur, for instance, when people communicate by using arbitrary words.

These readings relate to our discussion as even sentences, consisting of various words and their meanings, are essentially remixes. The process of copying other words, combining and transforming them to create new written work, whether the meaning is intentionally or accidently changed, occurs daily. The relationship between thoughts, words and things is depicted in the diagram in the reading. Whenever a statement is made, it can be analysed to have three main factors involved: the symbol, thought and referent. The relation between a thought and a symbol is described as “correct”, symbol to reference would be “true”, while thought to referent only “adequate”. Communication evokes certain images, providing personal meaning based on experience.

The diagram and its description depicting the relationship between words, thoughts and things was particularly confusing to me, but the reading as a whole was somewhat challenging.