ABSTRACT
An important component of the security concept is its intersubjective and ideational construction, which implies an active role of the agent on the structure. Where are security concepts to be found empirically? How can one search the minds of the elites? Whether hard facts or soft variables like norms, values, and ideas can better explain reality and how to empirically detect and prove their respective causal or explanatory power are fundamental questions inflaming never-ending debates and guerres de plume. Implicit in these discussions and exchange of writings is the role of words, language, and communication. Is language a mere mirror of reality, or is it a constitutive component of its construction? Is it a connecting pipe, a functional means, or does it deserve to be treated as an end in itself, as an integral and essential element of the “world out there”?
