Why do you lose perception in a Group?: Philosophy Forums

Philosophy Forums » Social Sciences » Why do you lose perception in a Group? » Why do you lose perception in a Group?

Why do you lose perception in a Group?
On the movie "Blindness."

Page: 1 2

Why do you lose perception in a Group?

jsawvel
Assistant Professor

Usergroup: Members
Joined: Jan 25, 2009

Total Topics: 109
Total Posts: 273

Posted 10/03/09 - 04:05 PM: Subject: Why do you lose perception in a Group?	#1
I recently saw the movie ""Blindness." In the movie, almost everyone is blind from some sort of virus. The only person who could see was one women. So, people would ask her, "What does that flower look like, where should we go etc," because they couldn't see. One of the qoutes from the movie was that she could "see for the first time." When she was the only one who could see, she had to percieve the world with her own viewpoint, her own perspective. At a certain point in the movie, people start to gain their sight again. And just as quickly as her individual viewpoint of the world had come, it went away. Just as everyone gained their sight, she lost hers. Why do we lose our individual perpective and viewpoints in a group? And why is it that when we are on our own, we see with our own eyes?

treemanshope
Assistant Professor

Usergroup: Members
Joined: Sep 11, 2009

Total Topics: 8
Total Posts: 268

Posted 10/03/09 - 07:39 PM:	#2
That is a very good question. The pillars of perception are shaken every time you walk out your front door. Hopefully, every now and then you are knocked off. "in the land of the blind the one eyed man is king" The blind would have to have total faith in you and of course totally dependent on your perceptions of reality. No way would they accept your perceptions as empirically tested proofs from their own perceptions devoid of light. treeman
The words of peace are just words, it is man that gives them flesh. Bring peace into the material world. Or, bring something else. treemanshope.

alz3eeam
Aspirant

Usergroup: Members
Joined: Jun 16, 2009
Location: USA

Total Topics: 7
Total Posts: 21

Posted 10/03/09 - 09:49 PM:	#3
One of the fundamental aspects of the social phenomena is group prospective. Each individual has their personal prospective of the world and each will try to influence that overall social prospective. What we end up with is a collection of many individual prospective that at least satisfy the broad ideas of individuals. This explains why there the many controversies of everyday issues. I'll try to see that movie
Moderation is the center wherein all philosophies, both human and divine, meet.

welkin rogue
Aspirant

Usergroup: Members
Joined: Jan 18, 2008

Total Topics: 7
Total Posts: 26

Posted 10/04/09 - 03:13 AM:	#4
Surely your actual perception of visual reality doesnt change, only the values attached? (Then again how we value things can change our perceptions - but only in specific, neurotic cases like anorexia maybe.) Or are you speaking metaphorically?

Rilx
Student

Usergroup: Sponsors
Joined: Jan 16, 2009
Location: Finland

Total Topics: 2
Total Posts: 92

Posted 10/04/09 - 04:08 AM:	#5
welkin rogue wrote: Surely your actual perception of visual reality doesnt change, only the values attached? (Then again how we value things can change our perceptions - but only in specific, neurotic cases like anorexia maybe.) Or are you speaking metaphorically? An "actual perception of visual reality" doesn't exist, until the values attached make it. Think of these ambiguous images. What's the reality? Edited by Rilx on 10/04/09 - 05:47 AM
"In the life, there are no solutions. There are forces in motion. Those need to be created, and solutions follow." - Antoine de Saint-Exupery, Night Flight

Arkady
Assistant Professor

Usergroup: Members
Joined: Jul 29, 2009

Total Topics: 16
Total Posts: 459

Posted 10/04/09 - 04:57 AM:	#6
jsawvel wrote: I recently saw the movie ""Blindness." In the movie, almost everyone is blind from some sort of virus. The only person who could see was one women. So, people would ask her, "What does that flower look like, where should we go etc," because they couldn't see. One of the qoutes from the movie was that she could "see for the first time." When she was the only one who could see, she had to percieve the world with her own viewpoint, her own perspective. At a certain point in the movie, people start to gain their sight again. And just as quickly as her individual viewpoint of the world had come, it went away. Just as everyone gained their sight, she lost hers. Why do we lose our individual perspective and viewpoints in a group? And why is it that when we are on our own, we see with our own eyes? I'd suggest you read up on the 'Stanford Prison Experiment' for a good example of human group behavior and for a demonstration of how quickly we fall into prescribed roles and form an 'in-group vs. out-group' mentality.
"Sit down before fact like a little child, and be prepared to give up every preconceived notion. Follow humbly wherever and to whatever abyss Nature leads, or you shall learn nothing." -T.H. Huxley

welkin rogue
Aspirant

Usergroup: Members
Joined: Jan 18, 2008

Total Topics: 7
Total Posts: 26

Posted 10/04/09 - 05:28 AM:	#7
Rilx wrote: An "actual perception of visual reality" doesn't exist, until the values attached make it. Think of these ambiguous images. What's the reality? The reality as you said is ambiguity – a quirk of human psychology. I don't understand where the social influence is?

Rilx
Student

Usergroup: Sponsors
Joined: Jan 16, 2009
Location: Finland

Total Topics: 2
Total Posts: 92

Posted 10/04/09 - 06:10 AM:	#8
welkin rogue wrote: The reality as you said is ambiguity - a quirk of human psychology. I don't understand where the social influence is? Think of the duck-rabbit image. If you live in a culture where no rabbits exist, you cannot see a rabbit. The phenomenon can be expanded to wider social connections. For instance, if you "find God", you begin to see God's influence in connections you haven't seen it before.
"In the life, there are no solutions. There are forces in motion. Those need to be created, and solutions follow." - Antoine de Saint-Exupery, Night Flight

welkin rogue
Aspirant

Usergroup: Members
Joined: Jan 18, 2008

Total Topics: 7
Total Posts: 26

Posted 10/04/09 - 04:48 PM:	#9
Rilx, I think we are arguing at cross-purposes. To more address the OP, Given that we want to belong, a fear of rejection because of perceptual dissimilarities seems enough motivation to go along with how the group describes reality. (But not all aspects of reality are included in group discussion and its influence can only extend so far, this is what I was trying to point out – the simple fact that the qualities of objects like colour, line, texture, shape etc don’t change due to social context. Whether or not you see the rabbit because you’ve previously encountered one is separate to social context – that is, it would be the case whether you were an ‘individual’ or not.) After a while, being masters of self-deception, we make ourselves believe certain stories about things – it becomes our viewpoint if you like. Why the group would reject dissimilarity I’m not entirely sure – it could be useful to have multiple pictures of reality in some situations, like how in markets its desirable that different firms have different expectations (if not, and the single expectation is wrong, whole industries can collapse). But the streamlining effect or herding effect probably has its origins in the need for group cooperation – it’s easier when we’re all talking about the same thing and have the same ideas about things etc... Edited by welkin rogue on 10/04/09 - 10:16 PM

Desidude666
Assistant Professor

Usergroup: Members
Joined: Jun 17, 2007
Location: Singapore

Total Topics: 0
Total Posts: 334

Posted 10/05/09 - 12:14 AM:	#10
Because of the weakness of your own belief. Conformity is a critical human behaviour, and should you want to conform, you then sacrifice your own ideal view. If you are strong enough, you retain your view, or better enough, get everyone else to acknowledge it.
What you are, you are by accident of birth; what I am, I am by myself. There are and will be a thousand princes; there is only one Beethoven. - Ludwig van Beethoven

Page: 1 2

Sorry, you don't have permission to post. Log in, or register if you haven't yet.