Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Why I might be a post-modernist

Forgive me friends, but I can't help but still ponder the question of truth and it's definition. What can we know? Is anything absolute or universal, or is it strictly relative to each individual's experiences? These, quite possibly, are questions that cannot be fully answered. However, for the sake of writing something just to keep this dying sport of blogging alive, I must share my opinions. For the longest time, I can remember believing in absolute truth. Something that is universal, in which, all the world can clearly see as such. Perhaps it has alot to do with my up-bringing, perhaps other factors or conditions were involved as well, but I stood strong in the fact that there was truth that was unshakable, unmovable, and undeniable. Now, I'm not so sure. My life has taken different turns and as I have grown up, I've noticed how much each experience along the way effects my life and how I view it. I've started to reflect on my pass and discovered why I believed some of the things I believed, and why I believe what I do now. Is it all subject to change? Of course, which kind of leads me to my theory. That is, it would seem to me that life brings with it conditions and experiences, which, in turn, shape our very existence and provide us with the things that we can know, or call truth.

I explained in a blog earlier as to why I see truth as relative to our experiences, so I won't go too deeply into that, however, I will simply reiterate that each experience that effects our lives points us in a direction and causes us to believe or see something about the world that we may or may not have seen before. Each of us, as individual's, have different experiences and conditions that are personal, effecting us differently than they might someone else. Even sometimes people who have the same conditions and experiences as one another can be effected in completely different ways. Both discover their own truths that they can relate back to those experiences and conditions. Therefore, I tend to be skeptical about whether we can know if a truth is absolute. Now, I am not arguing against the existence of absolute truth. It very well may exist and, in fact, I would hope it does, inorder that we would not be left to what would eventually lead to utter chaos and confusion. I am simply arguing that we cannot know! If one believes that something is an absolute or universal truth, they believe that because of some life- changing experience that effected them, personally. Could not somebody else have an experience that drastically effects their life and causes them to believe something different? Is either belief more universal than the other? Certainly not. It would seem arrogant for one to assume that their truth, which they came by through a personal experience, is somehow universal, and that someone else should accept their truth, even if their experiences led them somewhere else.

I guess my point is I don't think we can know. We can believe with all of our hearts, but we can't really ever know. Okay, my brain hurts. I hope this made some sense and even if you vehemently disaggree, and are starting to plan the intervention as we speak, I would love to hear your thoughts on the subject. I guess the interesting thing about labels and views are that they can change at any moment. We are continuously evolving in our thinking and I suppose that one day, my skepticism could turn into utter assurance. You never know:)