Abstract

THE MEANING of a word is in the letters not like fruit in a dish but more like one’s reflection in a mirror. Just as a man sees himself by looking in the mirror rather than at it, so he enjoys insight into possible routes by inspecting the map instead of just glancing at it, and he understands meaning in signs and images. In our experience of living there is the problem of bringing order out of chaos, of taking the ‘1’ out of the world to transform it into a meaningful word. Art is the communication of society, and social dealienation depends on our creating and sustaining symbols of integration great enough to overcome the disintegrative forces of fear and weakness. Hence, man’s quest for the real meaning of words.