How something appears is always a matter of perspective

Khaos

where the wild things are
Messages
1,101
I was thinking about this today actually.

flame.jpg


Take this flame for example. Some people might find it scary, others might find it warm/hot, others might find it beautiful. Its all a matter of how we perceive something to be.
 

TnWatchdog

Senior Member
Messages
7,099
Do you see a young or old woman? This sort of brings back memories from when I was younger...but I won't get into that.

 

wyldberi

Junior Member
Messages
76
I've always seen the old woman in this picture; I have to work at it to see the young woman.

But that's the way it is with us old souls. :)

As for the original proposition: Things are never what they appear to be to us.

All of our perceptions are filtered through our individual sensory gathering and processing systems. Right away they get filtered through our understanding that is mediated by whatever the consensual reality happens to be today. Then our experience gets filtered through our memory, which contains the record of everything we've ever experienced. Of course, a large part of those memories are suppressed below our level of awareness, and reside in our unconscious. When the new experience comes out the other side, we finally manage to "see" or "hear" the experience in whatever format it happened to have been transmitted in. But I can pretty much guarantee you, what you perceive at that point won't be anything like what really took place.
 

Rosco..Jones

Member
Messages
363
As in the Checkershadow Illusion, the TV show Brain Games shows how the mind often interprets things erroneously. As wyldberi said, our experiences build filters through which we analyze future experiences. Essentially we each live in a unique reality tailored to the experiences we have throughout our lifetimes. For the most part we agree on many aspects of the reality we share.

But, even when communicating with each other the ideas being conveyed do not mean the same to different people. If I were to say, "Picture a dog", the dog I picture is not the same as you. "I know you think you heard what I said. But, what I meant is not what you heard." Ten eye witnesses to a crime event will each remember it differently because they focus on different aspects of it due to their personal filters. To each their version is the reality and the others must be mistaken. As this topic suggests, "How something appears is always a matter of perspective."
 

Top