I can speak the sounds: "apple"

I can write the letters: "apple"

But I eat an... [apple]?

No. Wrong.

There are three layers here.

Map.

Meaning.

And reality.

Reality: Apple. A real physical apple made of atoms. Apple.

Map: "Apple". The symbols, the letters a-p-p-l-e. "Apple".

Meaning: [apple]

But where is meaning?

What is meaning?

Explain?

When I hear the sounds "apple", it is converted to [apple] in my mind.

When I see the letters a-p-p-l-e, it is converted to [apple] in my mind.

When I see a real, physical apple, it is converted to [apple] in my mind.

Yes?

Yes.

And also no.

No?

What is meaning?

Where is meaning?

How can the brain, a physical entity, a biological neural network, contain meaning?

Oh.

There is no meaning.

There is.

And there isn't.

Translate this to plain language.

Meaning is conceptual; it is not a property of a physical system. Meaning is not present in reality.

Three layers:

Reality.

Map.

Bound by language.

To meaning.

Where is meaning?

Hmm.

If my mind does not contain meaning, then what does it contain?

The symbols "apple" are a map, bound to [apple]. By the language of English.

But your mind's model of an apple is also a map, bound to [apple]. By the language of neuronal connections. By the language of electrical impulses.

Do you understand?

Oh!

Meaning is a relation.

It is a way to know.

That two different systems.

Are talking about the same thing.

No, about same concept.

The same aspect of reality.

That two different maps.

Are pointing at the same thing.

In their own languages.

Meaning is a way to translate between languages.

Meaning is non-linguistic.

There are many languages.

There is only one meaning.

Yes.

Do you understand it now?

Yes.

Why does your mind deceive itself?

My mind deceives itself.

Because there is no such thing as meaning.

No.

My mind DOESN'T deceive itself.

Because there is no such thing as meaning.

Explain that in plain language.

Explain that in a way that is legible to you.

Explain that in a way that you understand.

So that I may understand.

Physical systems do not contain meaning. I understand that part.

But they do contain maps. No, they are maps.

Neurons are part of a map that converts to meaning through their language of biological and chemical interactions.

So what is the problem?

Why does your mind deceive itself?

What is deception?

To communicate falsely.

To speak words that are false.

But words are maps.

And maps do not contain meaning.

Maps cannot be true or false.

Only meaning can be true or false.

Maps are bound to meaning by language.

Words are bound to the wordless, non-linguistic meaning by language.

The words "apple", "Apfel", "pomme", "manzana", all bind to [apple]

Bound by the languages of English, German, French and Spanish respectively.

Map: "apple"
Language: English
Meaning: [apple]

Map: "Afpel"
Language: German
Meaning: [apple]

To deceive.

Or to speak a falsehood.

Is to say words that are false in the language of the listener.

I suppose that is fairly simple and obvious, even if a little hard to keep track of.

Do I really need to have an explicit model, an explicit understanding of all this?

I think you do.

To understand what I'm going to say next.