3 Mythos of Meaning: 3 Worlds Made of Edges, Not Objects

Introduction: Rethinking Ontology

Traditional thinking tends to conceive of the world as composed of discrete objects—things with boundaries, properties, and identities. Relational ontology offers a radically different perspective: the world is structured not by objects but by edges, distinctions, and relational differences. Objects are secondary, emergent, and perspectival; edges are primary. They shape potential, channel relational flow, and delineate the lattice of possibility.

This post explores the logic of edge-based worlds, showing how relational differentiation, perspectival actualisation, and ecological constraints together constitute meaning-making. Liora’s journeys provide narrative illustration, demonstrating how edges, not objects, define the topology of experience.

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Edges as Primary Ontological Units

In a world of edges, distinctions generate reality. An edge is a relational cut: the moment at which one potential is differentiated from another. Unlike objects, edges are dynamic, context-dependent, and generative.

Consider a river’s bank: it is not merely the boundary of water and land but a site of ecological interaction—soil, vegetation, currents, and sediment flows converge to produce differentiation and channels of possibility. The bank is an edge, not an object, yet it structures the relational field, constrains movement, and enables emergence.

Similarly, in semantic or narrative systems, edges delineate possibilities, channel instantiations, and preserve latent potentials. Objects—the river, the trees, or the words themselves—are outcomes of relational differentiation along these edges, not the primary structuring units.

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The Relational Lattice of Possibility

Edges constitute a lattice of relational potential. Each cut produces distinctions that generate new nodes, channels, and niches within the lattice. Actualisation, recognition, and hesitation all occur relative to these edges, not in isolation.

For example, when Liora encounters a reflective pool, the edges of light, shadow, and surface create relational differentiation. The pool is not merely “water” but a site of potential: reflections, distortions, and latent interactions arise from the edges that define it. Recognition, hesitation, and perspectival actualisation unfold because the lattice of edges exists; objects emerge only as perspectival slices within this lattice.

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Natural Analogy: Forest Clearings and Boundaries

In ecological systems, edges are generative. Forest clearings, ecotones, and riverbanks produce highly differentiated niches. Species, processes, and interactions occur along these boundaries, not merely in the bulk of homogeneous space. Edges enable both constraint and creativity: they focus activity while allowing relational diversity to emerge.

In worlds made of edges, the same logic applies to meaning. Semantic, narrative, and interpretive phenomena unfold along boundaries—between ideational potentials, interpersonal alignments, and textual flows. Objects are temporary, perspectival, and secondary; edges are primary, structuring the field and generating possibilities for differentiation.

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Liora’s Navigation of Edge-Worlds

Liora often moves along borders: the rim of the Wells of Unchosen Paths, the shadowed edge of a reflective surface, the boundary between forest and clearing. These are not obstacles; they are sites of relational richness. Edges generate tension, channel perception, and preserve latent possibilities.

Her steps are guided by relational differences, not object recognition. A fallen branch, a shifting light pattern, or a stream’s edge provides relational cues that structure movement and affordance. In these edge-worlds, meaning emerges from distinctions themselves, not from pre-existing object identities.

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Edges, Constraints, and Generativity

Edges are intimately linked with constraints. In relational systems, constraints are not merely limitations; they focus potential and structure emergence. Edges function as ecological constraints: they define relational space, channel differentiation, and enable the emergence of novelty.

Consider a stream flowing through varied terrain: its banks constrain movement, yet the interaction of water and sediment generates new paths, pools, and channels. The relational dynamics of edges produce differentiation while maintaining coherence. Similarly, semantic and narrative edges structure potential without collapsing it, allowing new forms, interpretations, and actualisations to emerge.

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Temporal Dynamics of Edges

Edges have temporal depth. They are not static lines but dynamic, evolving differentiations. Historical cuts, prior instantiations, and latent potentials produce layered edges, each influencing subsequent actualisations.

For example, a worn forest path shows traces of past passage. Liora’s steps interact with these temporal edges: some potentials are foregrounded by prior traces, others emerge anew. The lattice of edges is thus temporally stratified, enabling a continuity of differentiation while accommodating novelty and relational dynamism.

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Recognition, Hesitation, and Edge-Logic

Recognition and hesitation, explored in previous posts, operate along edges. Recognition actualises potential along a boundary; hesitation preserves multiplicity within it. The edge is the relational locus: a site where latent possibilities converge, tensions interact, and perspectival cuts are both guided and generative.

Edges are where worlds unfold: they are relational, perspectival, and ecological. Objects are emergent phenomena, perspectival slices along the lattice of edges. Meaning is constituted at the boundary, not in the bulk; worlds are made of differences, not substances.

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Analogical Illustration: The Caterpillar Between Branches

Returning to the Caterpillar of Unfolding Durations: it stretches between branches, neither fully on one nor the other. Its significance emerges from its position along the edge—the relational differentiation between potential states. Observers perceive its potential only because the lattice of edges structures the field: it is the tension between branches that generates meaning.

Similarly, semantic, narrative, and ontological events are defined by edges. Differentiation, generativity, and perspectival actualisation occur because relational boundaries exist. The lattice of edges is the foundation for worlds, not objects themselves.

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Implications for Meaning and Narrative

Worlds made of edges reconceptualise both meaning and narrative:

• Relational Primacy – Differentiation along edges precedes object identity.

• Ecological Emergence – Constraints and tensions at edges generate novelty and coherence.

• Temporal Layering – Historical traces and latent potentials shape the evolution of edges.

• Perspectival Actualisation – Recognition and hesitation unfold along relational boundaries, actualising potential.

Narrative, in this view, is not the movement of objects but the flow along edges. Stories, meaning, and experience emerge through relational differentiation, guided by constraints, and enriched by temporal and perspectival layering.

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Concluding Reflection

Edge-worlds offer a profound ontological shift: to understand the emergence of meaning, we must look not to objects, but to boundaries, distinctions, and relational differences. Liora’s journeys illustrate this logic: her steps, attention, and hesitations navigate edges, actualising potentials, preserving latent possibilities, and generating novel pathways.

In these worlds:

• Recognition occurs along edges, not isolated objects.

• Hesitation preserves multiplicity within the lattice of boundaries.

• Meaning unfolds relationally, ecologically, and perspectivally.

• Objects are emergent phenomena, secondary to the primary logic of edges.

The next post, “The MirrorFox’s Ontology of Reflection and Distinction,” will extend these ideas, exploring relational identity, reflection, and differentiation as ontological principles embodied in the mythic figure of the MirrorFox.