Meaning is not carried by the words, it’s carried by your mind. We assume that we assign the same meanings, but that’s a big assumption.
These online conversations, composed of words and only words, are arguably 99% us just talking to ourselves. Maybe even 100%.
All language is a fundamentally incomprehensible illusion of communication, and people have thought that for a while.
Makes for some banger songs though.
All language is not created equal. There is language with vast context (irl, face to face, between acquaintances, in a shared ultrarich physical environment) and language with minimal context (social media). That’s a big important difference.
For the record, I do agree. It’s worth occasionally thinking about the limits of communication, but it is the foundational technology of civilization.