This picture is commonly used to argue that meaning is found in the reader who is free to interpret words or symbols based on his/her perspective. But this ignores what the author intended when he/she wrote the word or symbol in the first place. In everyday communication, meaning always originates with the author and the context of their writing.
If two people are looking at the same word or symbol and have opposing views, the first thing that should be done, if possible, is to contact the author and ask what was intended. If that’s not possible, then one should seek to orient to the word or symbol by looking at surrounding words or symbols. For example, if one sees the numbers 5 and 7 on either side of the number in question, then that means it’s a 6. If the nearby numbers are 8 and 10, then the number in question is a 9. Or, perhaps the number is in front of a building, in which case, the observer is helped by facing the front of the property.
Again, authorial intent and context always determines meaning. This is true when listening to a supervisor’s instruction, reading the words on a medicine bottle, following the speed limit on the freeway, paying one’s taxes, or reading the Bible.
If one does not have enough information to make an informed decision, then it’s best to suspend judgment rather than provide a dogmatic guess, or argue from one’s limited perspective.
Dr. Steven R. Cook