When deciding what one’s path should be, they are faced with both doubt and certainty, but it is a matter of how or if both of these notions coexist. William Lyon Phelps and Bertrand Russell both have separate thoughts on the roles that certainty and doubt play in our lives. With Phelps saying that if you believe in yourself one hundred percent you will be able to accomplish anything you desire and Russell saying that with anything you do you must have doubt. Both doubt and certainty have to be balanced in our lives in order for a person to set themselves on a right path in life. Independently, both doubt and certainty are necessary in our lives, but too much of either of them can cause things to awry and bring unforeseen consequences or prevent a person from participating in events that can shape their life. Though they have Certainty gives you confidence and it gives you the drive to reach new goals. When you are certain of yourself, you can also start to have doubt. Doubt leads to questions which can lead to a new understanding of the world around you. A new understanding can lead to personal success and the ability to see things from other people’s perspectives. Both doubt and certainty are necessary for growth and understanding. Once you grow and understand your surroundings you are able to move forward to the next chapter of your life. Both doubt and certainty need to coexist inside a person for that person to move on to the next part of their life. Though both doubt and certainty are strong concepts on their own they need to be balanced together in order to grow and they are both equally as important. Though they had two contradicting ideas, both Phelps and Russell introduce to us just how doubt and certainty can change people’s lives. Though opposite in meaning, both doubt and certainty hold a similar role in our lives and both determine our path in
John Patrick Shanley stresses doubt to be something “that changes things” (Preface To Doubt) rather than its typical depiction of disadvantageous in present day society. Growing up with a very Catholic background, Shanely’s childhood was marred with the belief that “We [Catholics] would all believe the same thing.” (Preface to Doubt). This relates with Shanely’s theory on our “culture of dogma” (Meanwhile: I am) which expresses how many choices we make today are influenced or even based on the authoritative figure(s) in our lives. However, Shanley urges you to not let respected figures in life sway your original opinion or response on a matter (Meanwhile: I Am). Furthermore, Shanley believes that without doubt (and living with complete certainty),
The book A Prayer for Owen Meany brings forth various themes and questions that can't be answered easily. One of these questions is "Can religious faith exist alongside doubt, or are the two mutually exclusive?" There are several different possible takes on this question may be answered. How a person answers this question is related to their belief in faith.
portrays is one of uncertainty and one which has a lack of self control. Faith
The first concern that develops when views are notably different from individuals is self-doubt. Dr. Dalrymple shows his uncertainty by stating his thoughts upon his evaluations
While buried, so deep beneath the cavity of adversity, finding hope is nearly impossible. But, it is the ability of decisions that aids as the last gleam of hope retrievable. After facing many struggles, it becomes almost involuntary for someone to put up a guard. With using that strategy, and the transgression of time without progress, there’s a certain ignition of comprehension. Change needs to occur, and a complete remedy of that
uncertainty when he says, " I found myself embarrassed with so many doubts and errors
In the first Meditation, Descartes states that our experience of the world cannot provide an assured foundation on which all knowledge can be based. Throughout life we often learn that what we have been taught are usually prejudices and a product of our environment or culture. This should make an individual question whether all things we think are obvious, might in fact be completely incorrect. This is the foundation for Descartes doubt, and the creation of his method of doubt. Descartes suggests that we use a method that will limit errors by tracing what we know back to a solid foundation of indubitable beliefs.
...ir problems or uncertainties. When people realize that they are capable of knowing the truth, they are able to overcome the illusions and to help others break their own boundaries.
William Lyon Phelps, an American educator, journalist, and professor, believed, “If you develop the absolute sense of certainty that powerful beliefs provide, then you can get yourself to accomplish virtually anything, including those things that other people are certain are impossible.” Phelps believed that certainty is the key to overcoming the impossible. He believed that absolute certainty and confidence in oneself will allow one to accomplish anything he or she put her mind to. It is common for underdogs in different competitions to side with Phelps because they are told that it is impossible for them to win. These competitors use the doubters claims as fuel to motivate themselves and become absolutely certain that they can and will overcome the impossible. On the other hand, Bertrand Russell stated, “I think we ought always to entertain our opinions with some measure of doubt.” Russell, a British author, mathematician, and philosopher. believed that doubt will allow to people to adjust their opinions and envision what their decision may or may not lead to. He believed that nothing is ever truly certain; therefore, there would always be a period of doubt in the decision-making process. This view was extremely common in the minds of people in scientific or academic fields because they know that in the process of perfecting an idea includes multiple trials, errors, and periods of
Montaigne and Descartes both made use of a philosophical method that focused on the use of doubt to make discoveries about themselves and the world around them. However, they doubted different things. Descartes doubted all his previous knowledge from his senses, while Montaigne doubted that there were any absolute certainties in knowledge. Although they both began their philosophical processes by doubting, Montaigne doubting a constant static self, and Descartes doubted that anything existed at all, Descartes was able to move past that doubt to find one indubitably certainty, “I think, therefore I am”.
More often than not, the outcomes of events that occur in a person’s life is the product of the idea of the self-fulfilling prophecy. It is that which “occurs when a person’s expectations of an event make the outcome more likely to occur than would otherwise have been true” (Adler and Towne, Looking Out, Looking In 66). Or restated, as Henry Ford once put it, “If you think you can, you can. If you think you can’t, you’re right!” This brief research paper touches on the two types of self-fulfilling prophecies, those that are self-imposed and those that are imposed by others. Additionally, it gives a discussion on how great of an influence it is in each person’s life, both positively and negatively, and how it consequently helps to mold one’s self-concept and ultimately one’s self.
Philosophical context: I shall use Descartes’ Meditations 1 and Blackburn 's “Think” to discuss the question and my initial answer. In Meditations 1, Descartes sets out to destroy all preconceived notions from his childhood and establish a new foundation for the sciences -- a lasting foundation and explores methods of doubt to his own senses and how to deal with them properly.
Certainty and doubt ultimately go hand and hand. When there is certainty there is always a bit of doubt; and when there is doubt there is always a bit of certainty. Certainty ultimately sets us up for success. If we go into a situation with a confident and certain mindset, the outcome will almost always be success. If we go into a situation with multiple doubts and an overall negative attitude the outcome will almost always be failure, it is a simple mind over matter process.
Many psychologists have attempted to explain or categorize individual ambiguity tolerance. Tolerance of ambiguity is referred as the tendency to observe uncertain situations as desirable. On the other hand, Intolerance of ambiguity is the tendency to observe uncertain situations as sources of threat. According to the Tolerance of Ambiguity assessment, my tolerance of ambiguity is moderate scoring 88. People with high tolerance accept uncertainty as a natural part of life, whereas the people with low tolerance consider uncertainties as threats. As I am neither high nor low in the tolerance of ambiguity, which means I do not take uncertainty as a natural part of life nor consider uncertainties as threats. Unlike the low tolerance of ambiguity people, I do not worry about my future, I go with the flow, let whatever has to
When undecided I was scared to branch out, and commit to a daily task. I was afraid to work every day, afraid to give up unhealthy habits, and scared of the failure. Although, the ironic part about the indecisiveness was that I was failing doing that as well. I was scared to try and fail so I would just barely try and barely succeed. Had I just focused on the hard work, I would have easily succeeded. I still have friends from high school who I still talk to and there is one in particular that is lost in the world. He had never planned for the world outside of high school, and I realize that indecisiveness rules his thinking. The reason I say this is it is easy to just stay home, sleep in, and do nothing day after day, but I believe that after a while a feeling of dissatisfaction is develops and we slowly dislike ourselves. Somewhere inside of our minds we want to succeed so we must fight through the indecisiveness, and pick what it is we wish to do. When determination sets in, it instills a confidence that allows me to do things that i never thought I could do. When completing these tasks I feel confident, and as if I am