Ameliorative (or “analytical”) projects hence require actively making decisions about what to mean with our words. Familiarly, if we want to change the world, we may need to conceptualize it differently. This is particularly the case when it comes to social activities and practices: as social and self-conscious creatures, we are liable to conform to norms enshrined by our basic concepts, categories, and schemas. And when it comes to other people, we are prone to enforcing norms and expectations of which we are uncritical. For all of these reasons and more, ameliorative projects can be
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