Philosophy Now Forum

Books are meaningless. Books only gain meaning if some one reads them. ETC ETC

-1- wrote: ↑Fri Nov 30, 2018 9:48 am Books are meaningless. Books only gain meaning if some one reads them. ETC ETC

Gross over-simplification ignoring the importance of shared context in relation to meaning.

Q.E D What did you think of this book?

-1- wrote: ↑Fri Nov 30, 2018 9:48 am Books are meaningless. Books only gain meaning if some one reads them. ETC ETC

I'm not sure if I'm being too harsh or not, but your post asked for it since its stated so empirically.
I seems like you are saying our society would have somehow been better off, if the Gutenberg printing press had never existed in medieval history. Wow, it seems to me that you may be in need of a book. I have to ask, how many books have you read? Just curious! And if you didn't read, from where does this great insight come?

Mortalsfool wrote: ↑Mon Dec 10, 2018 6:20 am

-1- wrote: ↑Fri Nov 30, 2018 9:48 am Books are meaningless. Books only gain meaning if some one reads them. ETC ETC

I'm not sure if I'm being too harsh or not, but your post asked for it since its stated so empirically.
I seems like you are saying our society would have somehow been better off, if the Gutenberg printing press had never existed in medieval history. Wow, it seems to me that you may be in need of a book. I have to ask, how many books have you read? Just curious! And if you didn't read, from where does this great insight come?

I(t) seems like you are saying our society would have somehow been better off, if the Gutenberg printing press had never existed in medieval history.
I can't deny it may seem like that to you. But that is not what I meant to say, and that is not what I said. If you would please re-read the entire post, not just the first sentence I had written. My original post is not long, you don't have to exert yourself too much. True, you have to read a second sentence, and that may prove to be too much for the attention span for some of the readers.

Since your original premis is wrong, I don't need to answer the rest of your corollaries.

The meaning of a book, which is independent of its use, is the purpose for which it is designed.

In other words, a book can be used as a doorstop, or the pages can be ripped out for fire starter or for wiping this and that, but that is not the designed purpose of the book, therefore that is not the meaning of the book.

Whether or not it has been identified, everything that exists has a purpose, or else it would not exist.

Crack open a book and discover the purpose (meaning) of the book, which is to communicate with words, numbers, and various graphics.

-1-, are you saying, in effect, something like knowledge is not knowledge without a knower?

One can buy fake books to decorate the shelves of one’s “library”, but if someone were to attempt to read one of the “books” that would destroy its intended meaning and purpose.

Or one can buy real books to serve a similar purpose. Handsome leather bound editions of poorly translated classics or au courant titles left unopened, carefully arranged in a casual manner on coffee tables.

For those without money to spend on such things, name dropping is much more economical, but not without risks.

-1-: Are you trying to uncover the meaning of, you can't judge a book by its cover?

Hi,-1-, I think I got it! Modifying your quote, "Cars are meaningless. Cars only gain meaning if some one drives them. ETC ETC"

INANE! Straight out of the Troll's handbook.

save the planet, paper production is forbidden

read what google tells you to read

obey

-Imp

-1- wrote: ↑Fri Nov 30, 2018 9:48 am Books are meaningless. Books only gain meaning if some one reads them. ETC ETC

You are correct with your observation. Meaning is the creation of mind which gives rise from the forms we perceive. Form by themselves carry no meaning.

-1-:

I think I know you well enough to assume you are getting a good chuckle out of all of this. Yes?

Thank you all for your meaningful replies. I read them all, so I can assure you they have meaning. Or at least they had a meaning, your replies had a meaning, when I was reading them. I can't guarantee that they still have a meaning. Maybe you should read them, too, and then you will find out.

"If a written sentence falls in a forest, and there is nobody around there to read it, does it still have a meaning?"

The opening post was meant to be (meaning?) a corollary on somebody else's similar opening post in this same forum, but I forgot now whose it was, and what its title was.

Walker wrote: ↑Mon Dec 10, 2018 7:30 pm -1-: Are you trying to uncover the meaning of, you can't judge a book by its cover?

Thanks, Walker!! A good one.

It's true, books are meaningless unless they're read. Without readers books are just paper whose pages you can use to wrap fish in or in case you run out of toilet paper.