I don’t understand how so many people seem to understand the concept just fine. It sounds oddly complicated to me. The concept to me sounds like collectively concluded delusion or like if society collectively concludes something to be objectively real, that means it’s objectively real. Maybe I’m not understanding correctly?
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The meanings of words are a social construct. Take the word “apple” in English. It refers to the fruit. Tell me, where does the meaning of the word apple derive from? I don’t mean the etymology, I mean, through what mechanism do the collections of frequencies that make up the spoken word “apple” gain functional meaning? They gain meaning from a common, shared understanding that those sounds that form “apple” actually mean the fruit. Absent the existence of society or anyone to perceive those sounds, they have no such meaning. They’re just a bunch of frequencies and amplitudes that air happens to vibrate at.
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