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Where reality meets fantasy..
| Philosophy 101 |
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Where reality meets fantasy.. |
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Tal Junior Member
since 1999-10-05
Posts 27Singapore |
Umm.. I'm a newbie here, so I hope no one minds if I post somethng I think others would a bit silly. Reality is fluid. I derive this concept from the theory that reality is actually perception, what we perceive. Since our perception is always changing, therefore reality changes as well. I happened to read this in a book and I am very intrigued by this concept of fluid reality. Also, this theory also gives way to the fact that there are multiple realities. Since many people's perceptions are different, then multiple realities spring forth. An example would be, say, when I was a child. Then, fractions were as difficult as licking my nose with my tongue. But now, when I am grown, fractions are simple. This change in perception due to increase in age and intelligence(I hope!) has caused reality to shift. But, I suppose, shift for me only. My reality has shifted, leaving the old one behind to feed the Langoliers(Only people who have read the book or watched the show will know what I mean). So, what is the truth? Even I find this theory a bit unstable but the ulitmate question is this: What then is Reality? Once again, many apologies to the people who find this whole thing ridiculous and a waste of good space. ------------------ PAX! Tal57 |
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| © Copyright 1999 Tal - All Rights Reserved | |||
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DreamEvil Member Elite
since 1999-06-22
Posts 2396 |
Reality may not be fluid only your perceptions might be. ------------------ Now and forever my heart hears ~one voice~. DreamEvil© |
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doreen peri Member Elite
since 1999-05-25
Posts 3812Virginia |
I don't have time this minute to expound on this, but I want to do that later. Just thought I'd bring this up to the moderators that this particular question would be better placed in Philosophy 101 forum.... y'think? In any case, I will be looking for it later, Tal, and put my two cents in.... sounds like an interesting discussion is starting.  dp |
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Ron
Administrator
Member Rara Avis
since 1999-05-19
Posts 8669Michigan, US |
Doreen has a good point (though it may end up back in The Alley ). Moving ---> |
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Skyfyre Senior Member
since 1999-08-15
Posts 1906Sitting in Michael's Lap |
Rather than saying that our perceptions render reality mutable, I would assert that our perceptions affect the way that we, as individuals, interact with reality. To me, "reality" is comprised of measurable quantities ... wavelengths, masses, gravity; reality is defined by those things that most of us agree on, despite unique perceptions, because we can see them in action, and they behave consistently and predictably. Fantasy, on the other hand, is mankind's most precious gift ... it gives us not only the ability to imagine things that have not come to be, but it can be the impetus which compels us to change reality ... to create something which has meaning and/or presence not only in our own minds, but in the real, measurable world. In essence, every invention ever conceived of is a fantasy given form. This is a very interesting topic, I'm glad you posted it ... welcome to Passions, by the way ... Nocht [This message has been edited by Nochtdraco (edited 10-06-1999).] |
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Brad Member Ascendant
since 1999-08-20
Posts 5705Jejudo, South Korea |
This is a really difficult topic: reality? Does something outside perception change as we perceive it? I don't know but certain quantum physicists certainly seem to say things like that. Does reality-through-perception change? Mine does, certainly. Nochtdraco, I like your point about fantasy but if reality is what can be measured, then what or who does the measuring? Is it outside reality? If it's outside, does that mean we are outside? If we are outside, does that mean we're talking about reality anymore? Whether or not there is a there there is an interesting question but, I think, ultimately unanswerable. In order to see there, we would have to go outside ourselves which would either mean we no longer could perceive it or move into another form of perception which could then be questioned or doubted. The only other alternative would be 'Godhood'. If you're God then you know what reality is. If we're not, then we just have to guess and interact with 'it' as best we can. That's, of course, where fantasy comes in. The ability to imagine alternative possibilities, the power of creation, is the true strength of humankind. In other words, if we could ever conceptualize a finite totality, we could immediately move beyond it. It's the way we think. Brad |
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Tal Junior Member
since 1999-10-05
Posts 27Singapore |
Well.. I'm glad that the topic arouses some interest. Just like to point out a couple of thing here. To DreamEvil, your statement is one of the things that blows the theory apart. However, the bit about what is reality, you still haven't explain. To Nochtdraco, if reality is made up of "measurable quantities", then what of the other things that are immeasurable, or what people disagree on? Your point on fantasy though I completely agree with, fantasy has always been my most precious gift ever, and it can give way to reality in the form of inventions. To Brad I think that the concept of reality can be ccaptured and brought to light. It's just that we have not acquired the wisdom neeeded to understand what makes reality, reality. Thank you, everyone for your posts and ..um.. that's all.. |
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Brad Member Ascendant
since 1999-08-20
Posts 5705Jejudo, South Korea |
Just curious what that concept might entail and if you have any ideas on how to get there? Do you mean attempting to understand infinite or some finite totality? I'm not kidding. Really wonder if you have any ideas? Brad |
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Skyfyre Senior Member
since 1999-08-15
Posts 1906Sitting in Michael's Lap |
OK, let's see if I can expound on what I've already said ... I said that reality is made up of things that are measurable; this does not infer that we have managed to measure everything, nor that we have even discovered all the quantities that can be measured. As far as who does the measuring, well, that depends on where you're standing ... thanks to the magic of safe and efficient means of travel, communication technology which allows us to send our thoughts as words over long distances, and the efforts of (primarily) the scientific community to standardize things, we have developed a means to measure just about every physical quantity known to man. The units of measure in themselves are artificial, of course; but some standard had to be created so that measured quantities could be compared to one another. The most diehard of scientists might try to tell you that we will eventually discover a means to measure every quantity, be it a person's mass or his breadth of imagination. I, however, believe that this will never come to be because humans are unique in that they are greater than the sum of their parts. We have, for lack of a politically correct word, a "soul" which transcends our biochemical makeup. This is why the more abstract subsets of human psychology are still in their infancy, despite many years of evolution; we can see the behaviors, tabulate and correlate them, but in the end we have no idea what makes the mind work (or not work, as the case may be; while we have established some connections between certain disorders and specific physical abnormalities in the brain, we are still essentially inferring the cause from the effect without much proof). Argh ... this is becoming an essay, I'd better desist before Ron revokes my ranting license ... Still intrigued, Nocht [This message has been edited by Nochtdraco (edited 10-07-1999).] |
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