Factors Determining Perspective

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“We see things not as they are but as we are.” Discuss this claim in relation to at least two ways of knowing.

“We see things not as they are but as we are.”

This statement can be interpreted in different ways, but the way I interpret it is that opinions and perspectives vary from person to person, due to the variety of personal factors that make up their identity. These factors can include personality, age, culture, race, life experiences, interests, career, and countless others. There are two ways of looking at this statement, literally and figuratively. In the literal sense, I will explore what factors cause differences in vision in people. In the figurative sense, I will discuss what factors play a role in differences of opinion and perspective in people.

In order to start discussing this statement, we must first define it. We are going to define “things” as objects, people, issues, and situations in the world around us. We are going to define “see” both in the sense of visually seeing with your eyes, and looking at issues from a different mental perspective.

You can think of this statement in a literal sense, where we define the word “see” as what someone physically sees with their eyes. This statement is true in that sense, in situations such as in that of a colorblind person, or a blind person. From a medical point of view, people having visual problems can be a result from illnesses or diseases such as glaucoma, optic neuritis, Ischemic optic neuropathy, or lobe tumors (1). These visual problems affect a person’s ability to gain knowledge through sense perception.

According to Plato, all of our knowledge is based upon perceptual experiences, such as seeing or hearing. Sense perception is a way of...

... middle of paper ...

...tive and their perspective are at all similar? I believe that our perspective is our reality, and our reality comes from what we experience.

The human mind is a complex matter and there are countless processes and activities that go on in our brains. To my knowledge, and through my life experience, I can say that reason, emotion, and past experiences are the majority of what determines my perspectives and opinions. Others may disagree with what I believe, but that is because they have a different perspective than me, because they have a different life than me. Thus, they have proven my point.

Word Count:

1550 (text only)

1613 including title and bibliography

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

(1) http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/sym/vision_changes.htm Site Accessed on Jan 23rd 2010.

(2) http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/01/060118205940.htm Site Accessed Feb 3rd 2010

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