Limitations of Line Structure
3.3 Limitations of Line Structure
The line structure is the first step of cognition transitioning from “undifferentiated” to “judgable.”
It enables us to act quickly, but at the same time exposes the inherent limits of human cognition.
1. Constraint of Single Judgment
At any given moment, subjective intention can only activate one line structure.
This means we can only make a single “yes/no” judgment at a time, and cannot process multiple dimensions simultaneously.
This restriction makes cognition efficient, but also inevitably crude.
2. Binary Outcome Limit
A line structure can only generate two poles (such as “good/bad,” “do/don’t do”).
Within this framework, all complex situations are forced into a binary choice.
This not only simplifies the world but also makes it difficult to grasp the true “gray states.”
3. “Multiple Choice” Is Only Confusion
Humans often mix results from multiple line structures and mistakenly believe it forms a complex three-way or multi-way choice.
For example:
- “Go out / Don’t go out” → one line structure;
- “Come in / Don’t come in” → another line structure;
- “Stand at the door / Don’t stand at the door” → a third line structure.
When the outcomes of these different line structures are placed together, it creates the illusion of “three options.”
But in structural language, each line still contains only a binary split.
The impression of “three choices” is simply the confusion of multiple line structures.
4. Cognitive Limit Insight
The line structure reveals the boundaries of human cognition:
- Our thinking cannot skip binary judgment; it must cut step by step.
- Our judgments cannot cover multiple dimensions at once; they must be processed sequentially over time.
In other words:
The line structure is both the starting point and the shackle of cognition.
It enables us to act for the first time, but at the same time defines the extreme boundary of human thought.