Friday, December 08, 2017

What is ‘value’?

Here’s another definition thing I don’t care for: that the word “value” is understood by a lot of people to mean “financial rewards”.

 Value is a very important word which means so many things beyond mere money. It can mean convenience, beauty, help, understanding, communication, anything which is a positive quality in life. If you understand it to only mean “money”, that’s just spiritual poverty.

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Why do I care about the changing meaning of this word, like I do with the word “literally”? Sure, languages change, but these words have something in common: 1, they are very important words and concepts. 2, we don’t have anything to replace them with. And we are much poorer without the concepts of ‘value’ and ‘literal’.

3 comments:

Foye Lowe said...

I swear, Eolake, you are beyond reach. I had decided it was time to get to know you more than I do from some of your photography, your DOMAI site, and writings there. Now, raising my nose from my own thoughts-to-silicon efforts, I raise the Google glass to my eye, and, Damn! here are all these philosophical musings, more wonderful photography, paintings, and a multiplicity of sites and postings! I am in complete agreement about value, and particularly the need for stable meaning of terms for critical concepts. I bow. Deeply.

Foye Lowe said...

Whew! Made it through that maze to actually post a comment. REALLY can't reach you, more literally than figuratively, going through those stiles and stairs.

Eolake Stobblehouse said...

Thank you kindly, Foye, really.

(Oddly I did not get the usual email notification about your comments. I really hope this does not happen often.)