Friday, September 26, 2014
Earlier we were talking about how Nietschze sees the rational and intuitive man, how they are, and how they see themselves. So often when getting to know people we ask trivial question like where they're from what their major is et cetera. We often consider knowing about someone and knowing someone to be synonymous. I feel like the way most people get to know each other is pretty superficial and even somewhat of an illusion. I think someone who knows nothing about another person's background but understands how someone thinks, all of their delusions and irrational trains of thought, knows that other person much person than if it were the other way around. How do you guys feel Nietschze's views of how we can go about understanding ourselves can carry over to getting to know each other?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I think that there can be a harmony of sorts between the rational man and intuitive man for most people. It is the rational part of us that celebrates when we achieve something that we have been working towards, and the intuitive side of us that smiles for no reason other than it is a beautiful day. To understand ourselves better, we must work on integrating both within ourselves. If one is only rational, only celebrating our achievements, then there is an imbalance, for when one is working towards those goals, one cannot take pleasure in anything other that that which they are focused on. It is the intuitive side of us that allows ourselves to free ourselves from the stress and anxiety of the rational, and to be fully present in life. I think that when we get to know each other, it is important to have an understanding of both aspects of yourself. Someone who has completely different priorities is not probably going to become a good friend, because our priorities have been shaped over the course of our lives, and shape our lives now. So just because we like the same hockey teams and listen to the same music, wouldn't mean that we would necessarily get along with someone. But through an integration of those things that define us that from both our rational and intuitive sides, we can better get to know others.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Caitlin in that there is a harmony and combination of the rational man and intuitive man. As we talked about in class, a person cannot be exclusively one type or the other. We only see the mixture of both. Caitlin also lists many good examples where having just one causes us to be worse as people and therefore it is better that we are not exclusively one or the other. I believe that we need to find people who think in similar ways to make the best friends because often our priorities lie in the way we think and process life. If you have someone who just has things in common with you, but goes about doing those common things differently, then that person is not a good match as a friend. To use Caitlin's example, if you have someone who likes the same hockey team and music, but one person thinks obsessively about those things and another person is a bandwagon fan. The obsessive fan may not exactly become friends with the bandwagon fan. Therefore it is necessary to understand the process in which we view things in order to make friends. All in all, knowing how a person thinks and sees the world gives you a better understanding of who they are as a person, and therefore makes you closer to them and better friends.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Caitlin and PJ. The idea that people are not solely rational or solely intuitive is easier to understand and wrap one’s head around because it shows that humans don't have to fit a mold of being either rational or intuitive, it is a mixture of both. Of course, some may be more rational or more intuitive, but everyone is a mixture. Caitlin’s point about how important it is to recognize the imbalance within ourselves yet to make an effort to bring both parts to the surface was interesting because it brings to light the idea that both parts will help benefit us in society. Rationality has a negative connotation; people assume rational people are rigid. Intuition also has a negative connotation and people assume intuitive people are lackadaisical about life and the important responsibilities that come with it. Recognizing the balance of rationality and intuition and bringing to light that the connotations are incorrect is an important step in the success of relationships between people and one’s self-identity, as Caitlin mentioned, because it leads to stronger relationships with others.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what everyone has been saying above. I do not think every person can be categorized as a rational man and an intuitive man. To me it suggests that the person is assuming humans can be simplified into two categories. Which I do not think they can, we are too complex. The idea of the rational man and the intuitive man is quite similar to the idea of left and right brained people. People say they are more of a left brain then right brain, but they can never say they are one side. Saying that would make no sense because you would be suggesting that you only use half of your brain- which we know not to be true. When talking in the sense of being a rational or intuitive man or left or right brain it comes down to strengths and weakness. Someone who is left brain dominate has a strength in analytical thinking and is weaker in creativity or subjective thinking. That is all humans, we have strengths and weaknesses. If we want to become better people or strive for something higher, we have to be aware of what our strengths and weaknesses are and learn to compensate or improve our weakness and use our strengths whenever possible. Also, in order to become good friends with someone I think you need to understand and agree, along some lines, with their thinking. You can have friends that are the opposite or different from you (you are very messy and they are clean), but I think you can find a connection between them through common values. Everyone has a code of values they live by and we all have lines that we won’t cross. This goes along with the idea someone could be a thief, but would not commit murder. In order for people to become close friends, though, I believe their core values or what they value most must align in some way. It does not mean that you have to be aligned in everything, but everyone has their key values they look for in a friend.
ReplyDeleteI think there is almost too much of a divide between our perception of ourselves and the persona we have with other people. We don’t often sit down and define ourselves; and even if we do, sometimes our ideal definitions don’t match reality. We look at what we do and with what intention we do it with, and that becomes our ideas of ourselves. However, this doesn’t differ much at all from how other people understand us. They look at what we do in certain situations and with what attitude we do it, and that is their perception of us much like it is the perceptions we have for ourselves. Actions make a person, is what I’m trying to say. An introverted, boundary-seeking person could think they contain some irrational aspects of man all they want, but unless it’s acted on, its not true. So by understanding that our perception of ourselves and the perceptions other people have of us are brought about in the same way, these definitions become synonymous.
ReplyDeleteDrake, I think our ever changing technology is at the very core of your argument about how we fail to truly get to know one another. Social media sites such as facebook and instagram force us to put our "best" image out for instant judgement. We have one picture or 180 characters to prove to someone that we are worthy of their attention. People only see our best pictures or opinions, so when they see our inevitable flaws in person, they will always be dissapointed. In addition, social media allows us to have countless more "friends" than was possible before. With so many people to keep up with, how can we truly become close to a few? Knowing a few friends on the deepest level is much more valuable than knowing hundreds on the surface.
ReplyDelete