Friction and Ambiguity
Systems thrive on regularity. They are tuned to respond to predictable conditions, to satisfy constraints, to stabilise behaviour. Meaning introduces friction.
Friction is the gap between expectation and interpretation. Ambiguity is the space in which multiple readings coexist. Both slow down coordinated activity. Both threaten the system’s integrity.
Systems resist this because survival depends on reliability, not reflection.
Predictability Over Sense
Predictable behaviour is not accidental; it is functional. Systems operate efficiently when each part acts according to rules, thresholds, and local feedback. Any insertion of interpretation, deliberation, or value threatens that efficiency.
Meaning, by its nature, is unpredictable. It cannot be formalised without being reduced. And reduction strips it of the very qualities that make it significant.
Interpretive Drift
Where meaning is tolerated, interpretive drift occurs. Participants begin to prioritise personal readings, aesthetic preferences, or relational considerations over functional constraints. Coordination falters. Outputs diverge from intended design.
From the system’s perspective, meaning is noise. From the semiotic perspective, it is surplus — and potentially generative.
Resistance as Function
Systems do not resist meaning out of malice. They resist because stability and efficiency are paramount. Resistance is a mechanism, a necessary constraint, not a moral judgement.
Understanding this is critical: it clarifies why semiotic and symbolic systems often operate in tension with biological or technical coordination systems.
The Cost of Integration
When systems attempt to integrate meaning, the result is compromise: slower response, weakened robustness, increased resource use. Semiotic excess becomes a liability. Coordination is impaired. Predictability is reduced.
Yet for humans and other sentient agents, this trade-off is unavoidable. To live with meaning is to accept inefficiency. To preserve relational and ethical potential, systems must be tolerated in their vulnerability to interpretation.
Implication
Recognising why systems resist meaning prepares us for the next step: examining how meaning actively destabilises coordination, and why this destabilisation is not a flaw, but a condition for care, creativity, and ethical action.
The tension between coordination and semiotic excess is the ground on which value, attention, and care emerge. Understanding resistance is the first step toward navigating it.
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