Earlier today, I was working through an idea presented by theorist Kenneth Burke. The idea isn't the important part of this post, so I won't share it here. What is important, is the discomfort I felt in trying to wrap my head around what he was saying. It was almost a physical feeling, perhaps similar to being on the edge of straining a muscle. Strain is the key word here, and it seems fitting. Strain is what happens when an existing system is pushed beyond what it is accust