in layman's terms

I am reading a great book right now, wherein one character describes human interactions in math terms, "absolute value" being the one I remember best right now. This character is usually rather flippant, so when his companion stopped for a beat after this explanation, I expected her to respond about the unusual depth and understanding he showed. Instead, she was completely confused by the terms and application. I laughed at myself when I realized my misunderstanding. That passage was intended to be confusing! But then again, I think of life through economics vocabulary. Nora knows that my favorite phrase is "sunk costs are irrelevant." To me, it is a moral about foresight, against grudge-bearing, and in favor of change, among many others. So even if I am a little bit off from the average layman, I at least have sympathy with a flippant god of bravery. I like the book better now.