In theory, perfect communication can only be established without the intervention of a medium. Which means the ideal way to transmit information would be through telepathy – straight from one mind to an other, free of distortion. Anything that needs a medium (speech, writing, signal, etc.) is subject to what communication theorists call ‘noise’.
In plain English: no one ever truly understands what you really mean.
This is mainly caused by what is known as different ‘fields of experience’ (certain words in a given context can have several meanings depending on the individual and how that word relates to that individual’s existence.) So just imagine how complicated an entire conversation really is.
The best example I can think of at the moment is poetry. Take a poem and have someone read it, then have him explain to you what he got out of it. Chances are it’s something completely different than what you deducted. Why? Because you have individual triggers. Different things catch your attention.
It gets really good when even you yourself can’t figure out what you are trying to say and instead of weighing out your thoughts properly, you spew out incoherent blather in spite of yourself. That’s the thing about words – once they leave the confines of your mouth (or are no longer a mere draft), there’s no sucking them back in. Perhaps for some, turning one’s tongue seven times in the mouth before speaking might not be enough.
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