Should everything try to be defined ?

April 27, 2008, 12:54 PM

Should everything try to be defined ?

The cannon of terminologys ?

April 27, 2008, 1:22 PM

Of course everything should have a definition. I know it's fun to think abstractly, but without definitions, we'd still be in the dark ages. What else is language but a series of definitions and labels? Definitions make life easier and allow us to communicate more precisely.

April 27, 2008, 1:49 PM

each of us has his own view about this life. and that view may gives us a definition. but there are things can not be defined such as friendship, love, feelings, and a lot of things.

Quote:

Erythritol

Definitions make life easier

i disagree with that becuse in our lives there are things that complcated our lives just be tring to define them look at the examples above.

April 27, 2008, 1:51 PM

No, because some things are beyond the comprehention of language.

Sure, we may know what something is, but what if the thing in question is more of an ideal, or an emotion? Some things that are acctually more like concepts are hard to define because alot of time there are so many aspects of the thing in question. The more complex something is, the harder it is to outline and define it.

Defining something gives it category, a precise meaning that doesn't have any grey/fuzzy lines. That works for alot of things, but i think there are some concepts beyond a basic.set definition.

Also, if we allow ourselves to think outside of set standards, we are then able to meditate on it, and understand all the angles presented to us. Keeping an open mind about certain things acctually HELPS us to create a suitable definition.

April 27, 2008, 1:55 PM

Without definitions, everything would essentially be meaningless. Language would not exist and we would not be able to exchange information. We would still be sitting around in caves. I know it's romantic to believe that feelings cannot be described, but it's not true. Everything can be explained and described. While not everyone has the same definition of certain things, that isn't the debate at hand. The debate is whether things should have a definition at all. Of course they should, unless you want to completely forsake language and communication.

April 27, 2008, 2:00 PM

but sometimes when we try to defne something we put ourself or our friends in dangure or we might hurt them. i think that it is better to somethings to not to be defined becuse a lot of bad things may happened either to us or someone else. but that doesn't mean that we have to leave it.we try to understand a little about it so we can make a better future.

April 27, 2008, 3:34 PM

There are a few things you can't define--subjective terms. We think we know what "good" and "bad" are, but they are define relatively and not absolutely because every person has a different interpretation of what "good" and "bad" are. You can try to define things that will have a more objective meaning, but you can't define something that doesn't apply universally to people. You can't define all morals because everyone has a different take on what's moral and what's not moral, insanity is also difficult to define, as are certain other things subject to opinion.

April 27, 2008, 3:52 PM

Okay, so if the question is, "Should everything be defined?" then my answer would be a definite yes. Words are created with a definition simply because it helps us determine and understand most of the things around us, how something works, etc. That's just a common view that people have.

But then it is also true that complications arise relatively to this subject because of the fact that word definitions are created by humans, fitted for us to comprehend what a human mind can only easily understand - words and definitions that only exist in our world. But I won't get into that since that's a different subject, and one which is more complex than the topic at hand.

Again, "So should everything try to be defined?" Yes, as much as possible. What would be the purpose of having a word that has no definition at all...? And how in the world would it be used...?

April 28, 2008, 6:48 AM

I honestly don't know. I think the vast majority of things should have a definition/be defined. As definitions are essential to proper communication, and knowledge requires that things be defined.
In chemistry all elements are measured in mols. Without going into great detail, it is a way of working out how much one element is worth of another. In that example a definintion is essential.

However all things being defined would make the world more quantifiable. Less romantic. Which I can't say I find desirable