Technical contradictions
Winkletter • 16 Jun 2025 •
It’s possible to think of writing as a form of technology. For example, you used to have to choose between writing in third-person or first-person. But then free indirect speech was invented and you could mix subjective thoughts directly into a third-person narrative.
Sir Rupert pointed his sword toward the dragon. Even if no one stood beside him, he would hold the line here.
Techniques are invented. In the book I’m reading the author says, “An invention is the removal of technical contradictions.” There are physical laws to contend with. If you want to increase speed it often comes at the expense of something else, like maneuverability. Invention tries to mitigate those trade-offs.
Free indirect speech resolves the contradiction between the external perspective and a subjective experience.
- A subjective experience cannot show what happens outside of that experience
- The external perspective is limited to the surface of things
Then an author realized they could drop subjective statements into a third-person perspective and it worked fine. The reader would understand the shift and the story could go anywhere in time, space, and even into minds.
This has me wondering if there are other writing techniques yet to be invented. There must be because there are still unresolved contradictions.
Comments
Precisely. If there is no contradiction, there is no problem.
“It’s necessary to achieve such-and-such a result.” This is only half the problem. An inventor must see the second part: “To achieve something without losing this-and-that.”
– Genrich Altshuller, The Innovation Algorithm
I love the resolving contradiction angle. As part of my Bridge the GAP framework, I realized the importance of setting our own constraints on the goals we want to pursue. For example:
This goal can lead to achieving wealth, while compromising our health and relationships. So it’s important to state the goal as:
This got me thinking about trying to resolve such SEEMING contradictions, because the contradictions only exist based on the existing technologies. “Iron that doesn’t rust” seems to go against reality. But it’s a demand for a better material. Hence, steel was invented.
“Glass that doesn’t shatter” feels like a contradiction, but only before the existence of tempered glass (and other innovations in glass development).
Trying to resolve contradictions is a great way to pursue innovative solutions to our problems.