It’s difficult to tell if I’m being serious
A
lot of people have a difficult time reading me – am I being serious? Am I being sarcastic? Am I trying to be funny? There’s always a serious point to be made,
and there’s different ways to make that point.
Some people think I’m trying to be funny; others don’t. Some people think I’m being serious; others
don’t. Some people think I’m being
sarcastic; others don’t. For some
reason, I usually leave this unclear, perhaps to reflect the uncertainty
inherent in reality. Some people really
don’t like that.
Be careful with your words, because words give shape to reality. At least according to Parmenides, the ancient Greek philosopher who had a lot to say on the topic of "nothingness". He maintained that to name something means that it must exist. Taken another way: without names (or without words), nothing exists. Words therefore convey meaning and existence. So, if you intentionally remain vague in your intent, what are you creating? Choose your words wisely and you can shape or reshape reality.
ReplyDeleteGood points - thanks for sharing. It brought to mind a lesson I learned in a course I took with Craig Nelson of Indiana University-Bloomington, who introduced me to William Perry's work described in his book, Forms of Intellectual and Ethical Development in the College Years. It resonated with me, as I quickly realized that students were looking at me as an authority, and what I was saying as true, and what I really wanted from them was to think and create understanding from the information at hand, rather than shortcut and adopt something I (or anyone else) said. I wanted to help them move beyond dualism, and my being vague seemed to be working to some extent. I also wanted to help them be comfortable with uncertainty, and partial information, and hold tentative positions, subject to modification if new valid information warranted it. Yet, there are some things important enough to be declarative about, and I hope I will do so, in such instances. Thanks again.
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