Follow the Feeling

5COMMUNICATION AS A SYSTEM: How Does Communication Work in Society?

Ever heard the phrase “lost in translation”? I'm not referring to the 2003 movie starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson, but the phrase referring to a communication failure such as not being able to put something into words. In Italian, it's ineffabile, in Spanish, it's inefable, and in English, it's ineffable. It's in those moments when words can't express the depth and precision of feelings that we learn the limits of language, and bow to the power of emotions over vocabulary.

In the linguistic fight to win hearts and minds through the perfect brand name, tagline, positioning, value propositions, dialogue with customers, reasons to believe, proof points, and brand experiences, let's start with a discussion on the role of language in a communication system. Language, or, more formerly, lexicon, is the method of human communication consisting of the use of words in a structured and conventional way. As defined by the Oxford Dictionary, lexicon is “the vocabulary of a person, language, or branch of knowledge.”¹ From its earliest beginnings, language has been an artifact of developed societies and a primary foundation of civilization.

COMMUNICATION AS A “SYSTEM”

Communication is so powerful that it marks the advancement of society, and our very definition of a civilization. No civilization exists without some form of communication. It is as basic as the hierarchy of needs defined by Abraham Maslow, ...