Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Subjectivism and Objectivism

     When I talk to myself (which I think is very healthy), I keep catching myself being amazingly subjective.  Instead of saying something like, "The world is a beautiful and wondrous place," I say, "To me/For me the world is a beautiful and wondrous place."  I think that the distinction between the two is cavernous.  The first depicts a world as a truth inevitable.  There is right and wrong in this kind of world.  If, to fit the example, one would disagree with the notion that the world is indeed beautiful and wondrous, he or she would be incorrect without possibility of revision.  But all should ask themselves, is a sunny day beautiful?  To me, rainy and overcast days are beautiful.  So obviously total objectivism is not valid in this world.  At the other end of the spectrum, total subjectivism can't be correct either.  If we think of "correctness" as a morally acceptable (which opens up a whole bunch of cans of worms, but I'll take it here as an assumption), then those with antisocial personality disorder, who think stealing and killing are OK, are also correct (or at least not wrong).  Are their motivations really OK?  No.  Obviously either extreme end of the spectrum is a bit much.  Like most things, living or working somewhere in the middle is better . . .  it provides a level of comfort, adaptability, and safety that most people thrive on.

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