Map–territory relation: Difference between revisions

The '''map–territory relation''' describes the relationship between an object and a representation of that [[Object (philosophy)|object]], as in the relation between a geographical territory and a [[map]] of it. Polish-American scientist and philosopher [[Alfred Korzybski]] remarked that "the map is not the territory" and that "the word is not the thing", encapsulating his view that an [[abstraction]] derived from something, or a reaction to it, is not the thing itself. Korzybski held that many people do confuse maps with territories, that is, confuse [[conceptual model|models]] of reality with reality itself. The relationship has also been expressed in other terms, such as "The model is not the data" or [[Alan Watts]]' "The menu is not the meal."