meanings of symbols are as discoverable as the atomic weight of hydrogen or the function of the adrenal glands

Example of a simile drawing upon scientific concepts,

"The meanings that symbols, the material vehicles of thought, embody are often elusive, vague, fluctuating, and convoluted, but they are, in principle, as capable of being discovered through systematic investigation – especially if the people who perceive them will cooperate a little – as the atomic weight of hydrogen or the function of the adrenal glands."

Clifford Geertz (2000) Person, time, and conduct in Bali (first published 1966), in The Interpretation of Cultures. Selected Essays (2nd Edition). New York. Basic Books

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Author: Keith

Former school and college science teacher, teacher educator, research supervisor, and research methods lecturer. Emeritus Professor of Science Education at the University of Cambridge.