Concept in Definition ABC
Miscellanea / / November 13, 2021
By Cecilia Bembibre, in Jul. 2009
The word tension can be used in very different ways and for very different situations. Hence his complexity. Normally, the term tension maintains in almost all cases a meaning that something is tight and not relaxed, whether the word is used for questions of physics, of biology, of art or the social. According to the central definition of tension, we can say that it is the situation in which a surface or element is at its greatest moment of stretching and tension. This situation is always generated by the action of a force that exerts its power over that element and that removes it from its state of relaxation.
If we understand the word tension as the stretching of a surface such as a thread, a cable or a chain, then we are talking about a phenomenon studied by physics. It is this tension is produced by the effect of a pulling force normally external to the object itself.
This elementary proposition of physics has been used to create elements and instruments in which permanent tension or the alternation between tension and relaxation are responsible for the
functioning of said device. Such is the case of the strings of an instrument: they must be properly tensioned so that the human being can obtain notes and melodies from them. This principle also applies a lot to the engineering, the architecture. For its part, in art (whatever its representation) there is always a competence between the tension of lines or shapes and their relaxation.Tension can also be brought to the biological-anatomical plane and this is when we refer to muscular tension. This phenomenon may be the product of a movement unnatural or from the accumulation of effort on a muscle. From this, the muscle tenses and stretches more than normal, generating pain and discomfort.
Finally, the word tension can also be applied to different types of social situations. Here, tension has to do with the generation of spaces, moments or experiences in which individuals do not are relaxed or calm, but, on the contrary, show traits of nervousness, stress, rigidity and even anguish.
Issues in Tension