Against the Collapse Metaphor

In quantum mechanics, it is often said that the wavefunction “collapses” upon measurement. This phrasing implies a sudden ontological event: a probabilistic fog condenses into reality. But relationally, nothing “collapses.” The wavefunction encodes potentiality, and measurement is the instantiation of relational patterns. Speaking of collapse obscures the continuity between possibility and actuality and perpetuates a dualistic illusion: that the world “exists as potential” and then “switches to reality.” Reality is always relationally instantiated, not suddenly created by observation.