'Whose Reality' Final Cramming

[milkcarton]

What sources are you guys going to be using? In other words, what will you be talking about apart from the play, for those taking an expository stance in answering the prompt tomorrow?

[milkcarton]

YOU'RE ALL SICK. I'M ON BORDERLINE MADNESS HERE. PLEASE AID ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[darcy42]

Depends on the prompt I guess...
I often use Religious differences, specific examples of famous people, locational differences, effects of drug and alcohol use etc.
I have no idea to be honest, will see when we get in there. I hope the prompt isn't ridiculous. Some of them seem too narrow to milk a whole essay out of. yeah I went there.

[mmmmm]

Me too I'm screwed for it. What if it's a really hard prompt!
I guess Streetcar is really good for Whose Reality though!

[darcy42]

Yeah Blanche is perfect for Whose Reality. I've also tried incorporating Stanley from time to time, however it's not as simple as with Blanche.
Eric Cooke from The Shark Net is also really easy to write on.

[shinny]

Free essay!

‘There is an objective reality out there, but we view it through the spectacles of our beliefs, attitudes and values.’ Psychologist David G Myers’ musing clearly explicates the notion that we will have a tendency to perceive reality differently to others. Thus, it seems that is would be inevitable at times for the same event to provide very different versions of reality. Through the study of various sources such as literature, particularly Robert Drewe’s memoir The Shark Net, such ideas are illuminated.

The fallible nature of human memory is perhaps a reason why the same event can provide different versions of reality. For example, such ideas are reflected in The Shark Net when Robert Drewe describes the memoir as a ‘book of memory’ and in doing so, he attributes the events of his memory to the recollections ingrained in his memory. Nevertheless, when Drewe concedes that ‘memory may falter’, Drewe raises the idea that his recollection of events may differ to that of others, as their recollections of an event may diverge over time. The notion of memory faltering over time is also paralleled in Salvador Dali’s painting, The Persistence of Memory which depicts a landscape in which clocks are melting. Dali’s work seems to suggest the idea that over time, memory may melt and deteriorate, leading to a distorted and skewed memory of an event. Thus, in light of the tendency of memory to degrade over time, it appears that the same event may often provide very different accounts of reality.

Furthermore, the subjectivity with which we perceive our world appears to contribute to the creation of very different versions of reality from the same event. For example, in The Shark Net, Drewe states that ‘portraiture is a highly subjective endeavour’, and this notion of subjectivity is evident particularly in his highly antagonistic depiction of his father. Such a perception arises due to Drewe’s father’s acts of abuse and neglectful attitudes towards Drewe’s family. However, Drewe’s father may have perceived his actions to be justified by his position as a ‘Dunlop man’, and that he was acting only in the best interests of the company. Consequently, their recollections of such events may well be quite distinct given the difference in their views. The notion of subjectivity impacting upon our perceptions of reality is further shown in studies by Cornell University. Participants were told a story of a man who walked out on a restaurant bill; with half told he did so because he liked to steal, while the other half were told that he had received an emergency phone call. One week later, when participants were asked to recall the event, those who were told he liked to steal recalled the bill at a higher amount, whereas those who were told he received an emergency phone call recalled the bill at a lower amount. From this same event, it can be seen that the subjectivity of the participants caused by moral judgements resulted in them perceiving the same event differently. Thus, it appears that our subjectivity contributes to the development of discrepancies in our versions of reality from the same event.

Additionally, the personal physiological differences between us can cause us to provide different versions of reality for the same event. Consider in Drewe’s memoir the naivety with which he perceives the world. For example, when he first arrives in Perth as a child, he takes his mother’s sarcastic retort ‘It might as well be Africa’ to mean that his family had actually moved to Africa. Drewe then later confirms such suspicions when his father’s friend states to ‘watch out for the blackboys out there’. Such naivety in perceptions can then be juxtaposed against the evidently increased perceptiveness of Drewe as an adult in ‘but this reaction to a death sentence looked bloody insane to me’. Thus, the effects of factors such as age appear to contribute to creating different versions of reality for the same event. The effects of physiological difference is more evident when considering the impacts of people with sensory disabilities. Consider the renowned deaf-blind American writer Helen Keller. Given her lack of these senses, it appears inevitable that her version of reality may well differ from that of others for even the same event. Keller elucidates such as idea through her statement, ‘I can see, and that is why I am happy, in what you call the darkness, but which to me is golden’. From this, it is apparent that Keller’s accounts of reality would differ significantly to those who have the privileges of sight. Thus, it does appear that as a result of physiological differences between us, that a variety of versions of reality will propagate.

In essence, whilst the notion that the same event can produce different versions of reality seems obvious, fascinating ambiguities and complexities arise when delving into the reasons why. Perhaps by considering in contrary to Myers’ statement that there is not an objective reality, then the idea that the same event can produce different versions of reality seems inevitable – a concept epitomized by Friedrich Nietzsche in ‘There are no facts, only interpretations’.

[darcy42]

Yep, I love you shinny.

[shinny]

Some useful excerpts from my notes...

•   Factors altering interpretations
o   Memories
o   Time
o   Impairment to physical perception (senses; vision, hearing etc.)
o   Focus of senses
o   Personality (Attitudes, morals, behaviour)
o   Mood/frame of mind
o   Rationalisation
o   Context of the incident
o   Age
o   Gender
o   Culture


Miscellaneous Quotes
•   There are no facts, only interpretations - Friedrich Nietzsche
•   Reality is that which, when in you stop believing it, doesn't go away – Phillip K. Dick
•   You are not superior just because you see the world in an odious light – Vicomte de Chateaubriand
•   There is an objective reality out there, but we view it through the spectacles of our beliefs, attitudes and values – David G. Myers
•   People say they love truth, but in reality they want to believe that which they love is true – Robert J. Ringer
•   Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one – Albert Einstein
•   There is no reality...only perception – Dr. Phil McGraw
•   There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness –Friedrich Nietzsche
•   Illusions commend themselves to us because they save us pain and allow us to enjoy pleasure instead.  We must therefore accept it without complaint when they sometimes collide with a bit of reality against which they are dashed to pieces.  – Sigmund Freud
•   Common sense tells us that the things of the earth exist only a little, and that true reality is only in dreams – Charles Baudelaire
•   What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other word would smell as sweet – Shakespeare
•   Reality is a question of perspective; the further you get from the past, the more concrete and plausible it seems—but as you approach the present, it inevitably seems incredible - Salman Rushdie
•   That reality is ‘independent’ means that there is something in every experience that escapes our arbitrary control – William James
•   Reality is the name we give to our disappointments – Mason Cooley
•   Whatever is a reality today, whatever you touch and believe in and that seems real for you today, is going to be—like the reality of yesterday—an illusion tomorrow – Luigi Pirandello
•   What staggers me is not the persistence of illusion, but the persistence of the world in the face of illusion – A. G. Mojtabai
•   The human understanding is like a false mirror, which, receiving rays irregularly, distorts and discolours the nature of things by mingling its own nature with it – Philosopher Francis Bacon
•   Reality has become a commodity – Stephen Colbert (regarding Wikipedia editing)
•   Everyone wishes to have truth on his side, but not everyone wishes to be on the side of truth – Philosopher Richard Whately
•   In real life, unlike in Shakespeare, the sweetness of the rose depends upon the name it bears. Things are not only what they are. They are, in very important respects, what they seem to be – Politician Hubert H. Humphrey
•   A lie told often enough becomes the truth. — Vladimir Lenin
•   Believe nothing you hear, and only half of what you see. — Mark Twain
•   Only in quiet waters do things mirror themselves undistorted. Only in a quiet mind is adequate perception of the world – Hans Margolius

And something perhaps a bit more confusing, but nevertheless a good idea to talk about if you can understand it by the end of tonight...
•   Hyper-reality
o   Hyper reality is the inability for consciousness to distinguish between what is reality and what is not. This effect has been attributed primarily to the media and the internet, as information from these sources can be endlessly and perfectly replicated, to the extent that they seem ‘realer than reality’. 
o   Hyperreality is formed upon a foundation of a ‘chain of unaccountability’, as the forwarding of information does not imply that an individual is the source. This effect compounds and eventually, the source of information cannot be identified. Thus, a habit of passing on information with no regard to its authenticity is common, as there is no need to accept responsibility for its inaccuracy.
o   The end result is that things that are seemingly not real in the objective reality are actually manifested due to the majority of people believing in it.
o   EXAMPLES:
   Media distortion:
•   Negative portrayal of Israel in the Gaza conflict
•   Usage of images of Nepalese police from previous conflicts in reports about Chinese police abusing Tibetans
   Economy:
•   When Bill Clinton re-ran for president in 1996, he received 35 positive reports, and 6 negative reports for his economic standing. When George Bush re-ran for president in 2004, despite him having even better economic statistics, he received 6 positive reports and 38 negative.
•   46% of Americans believed they were in a recession in late 2007, despite the fact that by definition they were not. However, in terms of economics, it is the consensus mentality that matters. If enough people believe they are in a recession, and behave like they are in one in terms of spending patterns etc., then a recession can and will truly begin.
   Internet hoaxes:
•   Due to the dynamic nature of the internet, interesting, but often incorrect information can spread very fast. An example is the ‘Dihydrogen monoxide’ hoax which involved an email warning about the practical dangers of this ‘toxic’ chemical. This led to millions signing a petition to ban the chemical in the United States, and the city of California proposed a ban on this chemical. That is; until they found out dihydrogen monoxide is another name for water.
   Wikipedia
•   Many have criticised the reliance of society on Wikipedia currently as many claim it does not represent an objective truth in many articles on the subjects it deals with. This reliance has caused what many claim to be the manifestation of utter lies in the physical reality due to the consensus believing in such ideas. In addition, companies such as Microsoft have admitted to paying ‘objective’ authorities to edit articles in their favour; thus creating a situation where truth can be bought.

[kyzoo]

Ok hyperreality was one of the terms I learned at the start of the year...and I STILL HAVE NO IDEA HOW DO YOU APPLY IT TO A CONTEXT ESSAY =.=

[brightsky]

Ok hyperreality was one of the terms I learned at the start of the year...and I STILL HAVE NO IDEA HOW DO YOU APPLY IT TO A CONTEXT ESSAY =.=

You can probably relate it to the idea that, in the modern age, humanity has distorted reality in all sorts of ways through technology, etc. such that it truth and fantasy seem ever the more parallel. So the question Whose Reality? becomes increasingly augmented in this way; 'lies' are so profuse that they essentially become the truth (as we consciously associate it with truth).

[kyzoo]

>.< I am confounded

[taiga]

kyzoo no pressure, but if you dont get 50 ill slap ya

[m@tty]

kyzoo no pressure, but if you dont get 50 ill slap ya

+1