PHILOSOPHER: Let’s figure this out step by step. First of all, we humans usually communicate through language, right? YOUTH: Yes. Like we are talking to each other right now. PHILOSOPHER: Then, what would you say is the goal, or objective, of communication? YOUTH: I’d say it’s transmission of intention—the conveying of what is on one’s mind. PHILOSOPHER: No. Conveying is nothing more than the gateway of communication. The final objective is the establishment of consensus. Conveying does not have meaning on its own. It is only when the content of what is conveyed has been understood and a
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