One of the most defining human characteristics is conversation. This is how we know each other best. In the presence of another, all our languages can be spoken in chorus. We have the words and sounds of our mouth, our expressions, our eye contact, our body movement, our scent, our fashion, how we've prepared our setting, and of course, all the symbolism and cultural references that any of our languages can invoke.

Conversation is role-playing's primary medium. In fact, the most characteristic aspects of role-playing is the way participants shift between being in character and being themselves. For this reason, I believe that the study of conversation gets us to the heart of what it means to role-play.

Who a person is will rarely be spelled out directly. Only the most humble and self-aware people can hope to understand themselves truthfully and succinctly. And yet, you can never know if you've done so because we are blind to ourselves and our own nature. So how do we share ourselves in spite of our self-misunderstandings?

And being able to portray oneself satisfactorily is impossible, thus our need for art. All minds are alien to each other, passing thoughts without their context. Rendered down to humble messages that we apply our own meanings to, we can never break down the barrier.

But we understand ourselves by comparison, and that's what makes role-playing such an important endeavour. The goal is to not only understand differences intellectually, but to experience through emulation what we haven't or can't feel in our own lives. It's true that in some sense, noone will ever really know anyone else, but we can certainly try.

The way people talk is generally chaotic.