Underlying Issues in Tectonics

I've always thought of details as minuscule and crafty. And although I know that not all details are minuscule, it just seems to bring to mind those two words. I do not necessarily believe that a detail informs the whole design, on the contrary, I believe that it is a byproduct of the design, a means to make the design "prettier," per say. I do think that they arise from the construction process, they are a means to underline that fact, or better yet to make one aware of the construction process. For example, looking at the columns of an old japanese temple, and the joints that hold the wooden beams, one is aware that wood is stacked on top of each other to create a joint that cantilevers, to a point, and that creates a beautiful detail. Now, do those details inform the whole building? No, it is merely a byproduct of the construction process. It would be rather odd if the building were to look like detail, all stacked on top of each other. There is, however, another way to look at this. If we were to look at the building as separate details, in other words, make each piece or each room a detail of the whole design, then that would constitute something completely different. That detail would inform the design process as well as the design aesthetics and flow of the building. Because now you are looking at the design as a whole, and not putting details on as secondary, or tertiary characteristics that arose from the construction process. If we were to make each room, each hallway, each entrance, and each window a detail, then that would add on another characteristic that would change the role of detail, because now you have to mesh everything together into a cohesive whole. No longer is the detail just a characteristic, but a whole idea. You can now worry about the joints and how they will be put together to create the design. That is a way in which a detail decide everything.