We normally think of words as a tool for describing the world around us. A helpful shorthand or label for expressing meaning. But words have power. The way we describe things affects how we see them. But worse still, words, by directing attention, can act as off-switches for the mind, limiting a broader understanding of a situation, argues Nick Enfield.

How I see an image is a private matter. But how I label it is an imposition upon others. Think about this when you are next in an art gallery. The plaque next to each exhibit contains words that constrain how you view the exhibit. Inversions and reversals are familiar from the abstract imagery of Gestalt Psychology. We all know the trophy-faces image: 

If the above image were labelled “Faces”, this wouldn’t mean that the trophy can’t be seen. But it would mean that somebody with authority—the artist, in this case—has claimed one of the available construals as the correct one.

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Even when you have no interest in misleading people, as with the trophy-faces image, you have no choice but to pick one way of seeing things at a time.

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This is linguistic framing. It is one of the things that language is especially good for. Framing is not just a different way of viewing a scene. It is an act of influence. It uses language to direct people to see things in one way as opposed to the other ways they might have seen them. This tends to shut off our awareness of those other ways of seeing. Framing can be used intentionally to distract from other available frames. But even when you have no interest in misleading people, as with the trophy-faces image, you have no choice but to pick one way of seeing things at a time.

Framing can reveal our moral evaluation of a situation. If I say Kim is thrifty, I’m saying two things: (1) she doesn’t spend much money and (2) that’s a good thing. An alternative framing would be that she is stingy. This would also describe a person who doesn’t spend much money but the framing is negative.