--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is commonplace to talk as if the world…" description: "\"“It is commonplace to talk as if the world \"has\" meaning, to ask what \"is\" the meaning of a phrase, a gesture, a painting, a contract. Yet when thought..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/dean-barnlund-103773_language_it-is-commonplace-to-talk-as-if-the-worl_1252813.jpg" --- # It is commonplace to talk as if the world "has" meaning… ![“It is commonplace to talk as if the world "has" meaning, to ask what "is" the meaning of a phrase, a gesture, a painting, a contract. Yet when thought about, it is clear that events are devoid of meaning until someone assigns it to them.” quote by Dean Barnlund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/dean-barnlund-103773_language_it-is-commonplace-to-talk-as-if-the-worl_1252813.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/dean-barnlund-103773_language_it-is-commonplace-to-talk-as-if-the-worl_1252813.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/dean-barnlund-103773_language_it-is-commonplace-to-talk-as-if-the-worl_1252813.jpg) > ““It is commonplace to talk as if the world "has" meaning, to ask what "is" the meaning of a phrase, a gesture, a painting, a contract. Yet when thought about, it is clear that events are devoid of meaning until someone assigns it to them.”” Dean Barnlund ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Meaning is not inherent in events; it is assigned by observers. **In simple terms:** Events lack meaning until we label them. Key Takeaway Create meaning actively. Themes semantics interpretation language meaning perception Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - reading - art criticism - daily decision making - teaching - personal reflection Key Concepts philosophy lingistics cognitive science Questions to Reflect On - What meaning do you assign to daily events? - How does language shape your perception? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on assigned meaning can ignore objective facts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Meaning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaning/) [Thoughts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thoughts/) ## Related quotes > [You and I have the courage to say to our enemies, 'There is a price we will not pay.' There is a point beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/you-and-i-have-the-courage-to-say-to-our-enemies-there-is-a-price-we/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [I can negate everything of that part of me that lives on vague nostalgias, except this desire for unity, this longing to solve, this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/i-can-negate-everything-of-that-part-of-me-that-lives-on-vague/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Nothing takes place in the world whose meaning is not that of some maximum or minimum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonhard-euler/nothing-takes-place-in-the-world-whose-meaning-is-not-that-of-some/) [Leonhard Euler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonhard-euler/) > [“We shouldn’t ask if life has a meaning, we should ask to whom life has what kinds of meanings”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-sever/we-shouldn-t-ask-if-life-has-a-meaning-we-should-ask-to-whom-life-has/) S.E. SEVER > [Our words are the blueprints of our thoughts and have amazing power to manifest into our reality. It also convenes different meanings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemmy-nola/our-words-are-the-blueprints-of-our-thoughts-and-have-amazing-power/) [Kemmy Nola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemmy-nola/) > [The world is nothing but 'world-as-meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/the-world-is-nothing-but-world-as-meaning/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [There are only two worlds - your world, which is the real world, and other worlds, the fantasy. Worlds like this are worlds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/there-are-only-two-worlds-your-world-which-is-the-real-world-and/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [In a world where meaning is often absent or imposed, reading offers a dialogue with ourselves, with society, with history, and with the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/in-a-world-where-meaning-is-often-absent-or-imposed-reading-offers-a/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Relating a person to the whole world: that is the meaning of cinema.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-tarkovsky/relating-a-person-to-the-whole-world-that-is-the-meaning-of-cinema/) [Andrei Tarkovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-tarkovsky/) > [First, believe in the world-that there is meaning behind everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/first-believe-in-the-world-that-there-is-meaning-behind-everything/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [When the heart opens, we forget ourselves and the world pours in: this world, and also the invisible world of meaning that sustains everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-housden/when-the-heart-opens-we-forget-ourselves-and-the-world-pours-in-this/) [Roger Housden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-housden/) > [And people get all fouled up because they want the world to have meaning as if it were words... As if you had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-people-get-all-fouled-up-because-they-want-the-world-to-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It might be possible that the world itself is without meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/it-might-be-possible-that-the-world-itself-is-without-meaning/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [The world shows up for us, but it doesn't show up for free. We must show up, too, and bring along what knowledge and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alva-noe/the-world-shows-up-for-us-but-it-doesn-t-show-up-for-free-we-must/) [Alva Noe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alva-noe/) > [I don’t know whether this world has a meaning that transcends it. But I know that I cannot know that meaning and that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/i-don-t-know-whether-this-world-has-a-meaning-that-transcends-it-but/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) ## More by Dean Barnlund > [“The world each person creates for himself is a distinctive world, not the same world others occupy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-barnlund/the-world-each-person-creates-for-himself-is-a-distinctive-world-not/) Dean Barnlund Explore all 2 Dean Barnlund quotes ## More Language quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez > [Usually male directors have to use foul language to get the job done. But I never came down to that level as being a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-khosla-kumar/usually-male-directors-have-to-use-foul-language-to-get-the-job-done/) [Divya Khosla Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-khosla-kumar/) > [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/) [John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/) > [A man walks down the street. It's a street in a strange world. Maybe it's the third world. Maybe it's his first time around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/a-man-walks-down-the-street-it-s-a-street-in-a-strange-world-maybe-it/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [“I only have two words to say More or Less”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timbur/i-only-have-two-words-to-say-more-or-less/) TimBur > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [I am attracted to looking at the different things language can mean even in one sometimes quite ordinary utterance. Writing is partly about listening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-armantrout/i-am-attracted-to-looking-at-the-different-things-language-can-mean/) [Rae Armantrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-armantrout/) > [What is music? Music is language. A human being wants to express ideas in this language, but not ideas that can be translated into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-webern/what-is-music-music-is-language-a-human-being-wants-to-express-ideas/) [Anton Webern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-webern/) > [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [The world has a soul and whoever understands that soul can also understand the language of many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-world-has-a-soul-and-whoever-understands-that-soul-can-also/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“The words for what I want to say right now don't exist. Everything sounds…so cliché.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelly-crane/the-words-for-what-i-want-to-say-right-now-don-t-exist-everything/) [Shelly Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelly-crane/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Words can kill you trust towards someone, mind you language people, every reaction had its consequence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/words-can-kill-you-trust-towards-someone-mind-you-language-people/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Finxerunt animi, raro et perpauca loquentis. (To action little, less to words inclinded.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/finxerunt-animi-raro-et-perpauca-loquentis-to-action-little-less-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [For comedy action, I must know the language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammo-hung/for-comedy-action-i-must-know-the-language/) [Sammo Hung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammo-hung/) [Browse all 21,951 Language quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is commonplace to talk as if the world \"has\" meaning, to ask what \"is\" the meaning of a phrase, a gesture, a painting, a contract. 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