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 Polarization, Generalization, Normalization, Escaping the push to Categorize and Conform
valkyrie
post Jul 20 2008, 01:36 AM
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Before i go on...please check out desteniproductions on youtube...its pretty interesting what this kid has got to say. even if you dont agree with him, he is a philosopher no doubt, and i believe he deserves some credit in context of this thread. if you watch his video on Beauty particularly, he made some outstanding points that inspired me to start a new topic on this forum.


Now I believe this topic is pretty self evident, but i will take some time to explain the general idea.

Human beings are apt to Define things, almost instantaneously separating and comparing and contrasting whatever the subjects of our attention may be in a single moment. This reaction is included in our general perception of our environment, things, people, abstract thoughts...etc etc. Every little thing that has come to our attention we have categorized. And still, we search for new things to discover and assign concepts to. I assume this is human nature (not restricted to humans of course) , because i have not, personally, found another way of analyzing...and no one i know has introduced another habit of thinking to me, in a way that i could possibly comprehend or retain.

The truth is our awareness is limited, because otherwise we can have no developed sense of self versus all that surrounds us, because categorizing eliminates a full understanding of each object we perceive and instead cuts away "unnecessary" information that could otherwise take up some much needed space in our noggins. BUT. People are quick to dismiss what they perceive as correct, and this is where limitation becomes handicap. Understandably, survival requires a degree of confidence in our ability to perceive correctly at first impression. Nevertheless, we grow comfortable, and dare i say lazy? in said ability. Awareness, also, is rarely at maximum capacity and therefore any given person's perception is corrupt most of the time. Not only do we become less aware when comfortable, but we also tend to overgeneralize. We are programmed to automatically recognize systems and patterns. So when we are less aware, and more confident in our generalizations...it is very easy to overlook inconsistencies and even to perceive something else entirely. Individually we have these faults. But various perspectives together might suggest, incorrectly, a stronger likelihood of noticing inconsistencies. Not so. We are even less aware when we are in groups then when we are alone! This is where handicap becomes curse.

Not only do we take for granted our individual perceptions, but we condemn them. Instead we act against instinct, to normalize ourselves and conform and worse of all to Polarize everything surrounding us. It is lazy. Humans are lazy creatures. I am lazy and im human so i'm aloud to say it! It is lazy to attach a good and bad to everything. the idea of opposites really is quite ludicrous. just how is Salt opposite from Pepper? Just how is Death opposite from Life? It proves that humans are being lazy when we default to what is easiest and most comfortable to understand. It proves that our perceptions of reality, even in the most generalized state, are concentric to Our condition as a race and are not accurate nor remotely factual and unbiased. We are lazy conceited individuals.

Its become a lifestyle, and possibly an addiction.

How to break free?

I want thoughts on this, so dish out please!

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