Symbols and structure (aka there is no escape)

Preface: Ray is ill. He had an awesome time in Florida, then his immune system gave out. 3 words: Jenna's Jello Shots.

Alrighty then. Diving in at the wrong end (and hoping I won't injure myself in the process), let's start with p. 92--"...for a long time to a child a word is a property, rather than a symbol of an object." Simple, right? As always seems to be the case, yes and no. Earlier on the same page, Vygotsky quotes Wallon regarding children making words into attributes of an object. The fact of Vygotsky delineating these details means he thought them notable, but why? Here's my take; it's probably not his. i like to follow an idea outwards till it is concrete, absurd, or both. Bonus points if you know the technical term for this type of argument. Not recognizing the symbolic function of words is an immature form of thinking. This is applied to children in the text, but how often do we naively operate the same way as supposed mature adult intellects? I feel as if I'm dancing around what I'm trying to get at, mainly because it's difficult to generate a nominal example, so I will instead give a few adjectives instead.

Corrupt.
Dirty.
Traditional.
Pure.
Alien.
Attractive.

Ok. Pick the object you want to use any of the above adjectives on. If you (or I) do not recognize that the words are linguistic tools, culturally created symbols, we may pair up "Corrupt" and "Senator," making the adjective an inseperable part of the object's structure. This limits our thinking, strengthens the artificial limitations of our world, and makes us unable to see the possibility of any potential change in that sphere of our world.

This is even more powerful when we recognize that children (speakers generally) are capable of using a symbolic tool before recognizing it as one. Getting used to a limited set of these linguistic tools is the way we all start the process of verbal thought, but the acquisition of new tools allows the expression of more thoughts.

I'm trying to stick with short and sweet, so just ask me about the chimps on the "Planet Earth" video in class.