How We Communicate Abstractions through the Concrete

The process of "possession": an abstract concept anchored to a tangible object.

Since abstract objects lack a physical form of their own, the only way to make them understandable and communicable is through a process we can call "possession" or "anchoring".

This means that the abstract concept is anchored or positioned in one or more concrete objects in order to manifest itself.

For example, the abstract concept of "education" is intangible, but we can communicate it by grouping concrete objects such as a blackboard, an eraser, and a desk.

This collection of tangible objects becomes the vehicle through which the abstract idea of "education" acquires a perceivable and therefore communicable form.

Without this anchoring in the concrete, abstractions would remain locked in the world of individual ideas, without a bridge to be shared.

Example: The "sin" represented by an apple and a snake.

A classic example of this anchoring process is found in cultural and religious symbolism.

The abstract concept of "sin" is a complex theological and moral idea, without any physical form.

To make it understandable and transmissible across generations, Western culture has anchored it to two very specific concrete objects: an apple and a snake.

This imagery allows a deeply abstract idea of transgression and fall from grace to be visualized, narrated and understood in a much more direct way.

The apple and the snake are not the sin, but they have become its tangible representation, the concrete symbols that it "possesses" in order to be communicated.

Example: "Love" represented by a rose or a puppy.

The feeling of "love" is another fundamental abstract object in our daily communication.

In order to be able to communicate it or even "market" it, as a photographer would do, it is necessary to find a concrete anchor.

The photographer could capture the image of a couple kissing in a romantic way and present that postcard as the representation of love.

For him and for part of the audience, that concrete image is a valid symbol of the abstract feeling.

However, for another person, such as a child, the image of a kiss might represent "lust" or "something adults do."

For that child, a much more powerful and clearer symbol of love might be the image of a puppy running to greet him when he comes home, licking his face.

Negotiating symbols to reach agreement on the abstract.

The above examples reveal the final and most crucial step in the process: symbol negotiation.

Since each individual may anchor the same abstract concept to different concrete objects (a kiss vs. a puppy for "love"), effective communication requires that the interlocutors reach agreement, consciously or unconsciously, on the symbol they are using.

If one person tries to communicate "love" through a rose and the other only associates roses with funerals, the message will fail completely.

True communication about abstractions therefore involves active negotiation to find a common symbol that both can accept as valid for that interaction.

Without this agreement, we run the risk of arguing about the symbols rather than the idea itself.

Abstract

Since abstract objects lack physical form, we make them communicable through a process of "anchoring". The abstract concept is positioned on one or more concrete objects in order to manifest and be shared.

A classic example is the abstract concept of "sin," which Western culture has anchored to two concrete objects: an apple and a snake. This imagery allows a complex idea to be visualized and understood directly.

As each person can anchor a concept to different symbols (a kiss or a puppy to represent "love"), communication requires negotiation. A common symbol must be found that both accept as valid for that interaction.