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Relation: when differences lean on each other
Once we admit differences, something else quietly comes along for the ride: relations. Two things that differ are not just separate; they stand in some way with respect to each other.
From dots to distances
Go back to the sheet of paper with a single dot. Now add a second dot.
As soon as you do that, something new is present: a distance between them. You didn't have to draw the distance. It comes along automatically when there are two separate points.
You can now talk about:
- which dot is to the left or right,
- which one is closer to the edge of the page,
- what would happen if you joined them with a line.
The dots haven't changed. But the web they form has become richer.
Relations everywhere
The same idea shows up in ordinary life:
- Two notes in music: one can be higher, lower, consonant, or dissonant.
- Two events in time: one can happen before, after, or at the same time as the other.
- Two temperatures: one can be warmer or colder, closer to freezing or boiling.
Whenever you have differences, you also have ways of comparing, ordering, and connecting them. This is what IO calls relational structure.
Deeper insight: no lonely differences
It would be strange to imagine a "difference" that doesn't relate to anything. Different from what? As soon as you answer that, you have at least a pair, and therefore a relation.
IO takes this seriously. It doesn't treat relations as an optional extra you sprinkle onto isolated things. Things are already caught up in networks of relations simply by being different at all.
What to carry forward
From this step, keep one simple phrase in mind:
Where there are differences, there are relations. The world is not just a pile of separate bits, but a web of "in-between".