The Power Of Context

  THE POWER OF CONTEXT

 

 

Ever noticed how certain motivational quotes only appear useful when used in a particular context? 

Sometimes they even sound absurd in other situations which the creator didn’t intend them to be used in. Such quotes tend to be useful only in certain aspects and not in all aspects.

Take for example this quote I wrote a year ago

I wrote this quote with the intention of letting people do what they want in life without seeking the approval of others because according to me doing things with the need for approval limits your ability to work hard, especially when you don’t get the approval you seek. However, I was made to understand that one of the reasons that push people to work hard is approval and recognition. If you keep working hard to achieve a goal and in the end you finally achieve that goal but your followers or loved ones don’t approve or recognize your efforts you might feel discouraged about it and decide to quit. I myself I feel down at times when I spend time to come up with quotes which end up not getting as many likes as I expected but when I look back at this quote I have reason to keep moving. Another person in a completely different situation might not find this quote as a motivation like I did that is why we need to understand the power of context.

 

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY THE POWER OF CONTEXT?

First off, we need to address the meaning of context. Context refers to the surrounding circumstances, environment, background or settings that determine, specify or clarify the meaning of an event or other occurrence. It can also mean the text in which a word or passage appears and which helps to ascertain its meaning.

 Going back to our sub title “what do we mean by the power of context?”  This refers to the ability to understand the circumstances that clarify the meaning of an event or text. This ability is important because it not only makes us understand the meaning of words used in a particular context but it gives us the opportunity to express ourselves differently in different situations. 

The next question we need to ask ourselves is “How does context affect our understanding?”

HOW DOES CONTEXT AFFECT OUR UNDERSTANDING?

​The context in which a word was used can affects our understanding, not only of that word but the statement as well. Some people may disagree with me but let us take this statement for example; Kelly is so hot

Below we have two pictures picture A and B.

Picture A

 

Picture B

 

In picture A that is, in a hospital setting as can be seen above, Kelly being hot will just mean she has a high temperature or a fever where as in another setting that is, picture B, such as at a club or bar it just means she is attractive. 

Given these two scenarios one may take the word hot to mean two different things which isn’t wrong but the problem now is the context. If you don’t understand the context in which the word was used you won’t understand the statement at all. For a person to understand a statement in the right context he or she must take into consideration the environment or event which led to the making of a statement if not you’ll end up seeing a yes where there’s a no.

This issue of context brings about a lot of controversies due to the fact that a statement can mean two different things when used in different contexts. It is for this reason that most people turn to misunderstand motivational speakers. A motivational speaker might have made a statement which was supposed to motivate you in a particular aspect but when that same statement is used in a different situation it has a different effect and sometimes it doesn’t make sense.

Hope y’all found this helpful

Don’t forget to leave a comment on your thoughts about this write up.

Aside 

I know it’s been a while I last came up with something and for that I apologize. I’ve been busy with school and other commitments though that’s not an excuse to my inconsistence but I promise to do better. Yeah yeah I know I’ve been saying that for some time now but have some faith in me. Let’s just say my actions will do the talking from now on.