When Absolute Truth Gives You Lemons,
Make Subjective Lemonade!
By Zac Heyer
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"The inquiry of truth, which is the love-making
or wooing of it; the knowledge of truth, which is the praise of it; and
the belief of truth, which is the enjoying of it, is the sovereign good
of human natures."(Durant, 112) This inquiry, as praised by Francis Baccon,
has lead philosophers to divide truth and beauty into three categories:
absolute, relative, and subjective. Absolutists, such as Plato believed
that truth is not based on its utility to the observer. Relativists and
subjectivists hold that truth and beauty are based on utility as viewed
by an observer. Although it may seem a miracle and impossible, all three
categories of truth and beauty are valid and true; subjective and relative
truths are based on the individual's importance, and absolute truths are
merely barriers which individuals must try to learn and use to their advantage.
"Truth is one species of good, and not, as is
usually supposed, a category distinct from good, and coördinate with
it. The true is the name of whatever proves itself to be good in the way
of belief."(Durant, 512) William James is correct to the extent that this
is true for subjective truth. Subjective truth "is a process, and 'happens
to an idea.'"(Durant, 512) This is useful to individuals because modern
day subjectivism, or "pragmatism . . . turns the face of thought
to action and the future."(Durant, 512) Pragmatism does not cancel out
the absolute and relative truths of the universe; it merely serves as a
definition on how we all perceive the world around us. This is because
its father believed "a rule of thinking which would absolutely prevent
me from acknowledging certain kinds of truth if those kinds of truth were
really there, would be an irrational rule." (James, 77) Pragmatism is the
subjective view which says that something of truth and beauty (which are
the same) are directly related to the utility of an object. This makes
sense when trying to describe how different people react to the same event.
Not too long ago, my friends and I were walking
around in the hills surrounding Irvine and each of us related our perceived
surroundings. Kyle saw the cars, buildings and everything off in the distance
as small. They could fit between his fingers when he held them up and viewed
between them. For all intensive purposes this was true. I too tried to
see it his way and realized that he fit in between my hands which were
less than a foot apart. This was true to my perception. When I asked my
three other friends we all agreed it was beautiful. It was useful to have
things a great number of sizes due to our position in relationship to them.
Our conversation was much more interesting and we could thoroughly enjoy
the view. As this happened I always knew, and held in my head at the same
time the absolute truth that Kyle is bigger than me, has been for as long
as I have known him, and that he could never fit between my hands. Each
of us felt our height was the true measurement, and each of us saw the
other as smaller than ourselves. These truths were contradictory, and yet
O.K. by the rules of pragmatism. This perspective truth has no problems
with two conflicting truths.
Pragmatism holds that beauty is in the "eye of
the beholder." In the movie, Purple Rose of Cairo, this can be seen as
apparent. Sicillia, a working wife during the Great Depression, is rescued
from her daily boredom by a man who steps out of the movie screen. She
appreciates his beauty but questions, "what good is he if he's not real?"
To her it is pragmatic to return to her awful husband, because of the fact
that he is real and that is important to her. Tom Baxter, the character
who steps out of the screen is also pragmatic in his assessment of beauty.
He is a lover of the real world and anything new and different from his
role in the movie are useful and good. He finds the cross in the church
to be beautiful because it is new and he does not "know exactly what it
does." Because pragmatism says any truth is your truth and therefore pragmatic,
then relative truth or absolute truth is also pragmatic. "Science says
things are; morality says some things are better than other things; and
religion says essentially two things.
First she says that the best things are the more
eternal things . . .
The second affirmation of religion is that we
are better off now if we believe her first affirmation to be true." Truth
and beauty cannot be not ranked by their importance; they are merely to
be recorded or dealt with. Depending on each situation I decide which subjective
interpretations I make. One can appreciate beauty or can have hir own truths
that don't agree with the absolute or relative but are as valid. The only
problem may come when one has to decide between two equally pragmatic beliefs.
If it is pragmatic an individual could flip a coin, or s/he could look
to relative or absolute truths for an answer.
Admiration of the opposite sex is a clear example
of relative beauty. The last few decades have had completely different
guidelines on who is beautiful. This is a portrayal of relative beauty.
Any guy growing up in these time periods would have a different appreciation
of the beauty of women he meets. A teenager who grew up in the 50's would
usually appreciate a more conservative woman who stayed at home. A man
of the 60's and 70's would generally like the more plain and beautiful,
but independent woman. A man of the 90's will be able to have his pick,
knowing that women chose who they are now. This judgment has its roots
in utility just a pragmatism did. A man will chose a beautiful woman on
the basis of his observations. These could be unbiased by his surroundings,
and therefore only based on beauty of character, and furthermore a subjective
decision. I am attracted to women who are independent; women of this type
are abundant. I know of two in particular. One is totally into school,
work, and college. The other is a creative spirit. I find them equally
beautiful based on what is their usefulness in my life and interests. I
do, however, find the second more beautiful because she prefers to be more
of a "hippie" type girl. The way my parents and my good friends (were I
find my culture and time) observe this to be useful and beautiful. When
faced with two or more equally beautiful women of his pragmatic beauty
one may then go on to the biases of his surrounding culture and time. His
truth and beauty would then be relative. Mill held that "we believe that
2 × 2 = 4 only because we have again and again . . . in the socially
transmitted experience of the race, felt or seen 4 as the result of 2 and
2."(Durant, Pleasure . . . ,17)
Two educated people who had watched the movie
Immortal Beloved were of two different cultures and had different
opinions of the film. William James would say that both musician Lawrence
Teeter and Ph.D. Person-Lynn are correct in thinking respectively that
Beethoven was a good person and that he was indeed black, because it is
pragmatic for each of them to believe in their own version of Beethoven.
This goes further. It does not matter what they believed individually.
Here their pragmatic beliefs were based on the relative truth as judged
by their colleagues. Musicians hold that this musician genius was not a
cruel person due to his loss of hearing, because the musician culture cannot
have an Idol who is faulted. African Americans, and humans in general,
always strive to have recognition as an achieved group of people who wish
this musician to be one of them and a hero. It does not matter to these
pragmatic people (nor to me because I only enjoy Beethoven's music) what
actually happened in his life. The relative truth we know as history says
that Beethoven was not black, and may have had a less than proper life.
Each society since Beethoven has had a relative and useful interpretation
of him which they called history and was their truth; at the same time
each person can have their own true Beethoven. History is based on relative
truth and is written by the victors and the powerful; it should, however,
be based on the absolute truth of Eternity. The pragmatic truths and relative
truths, which are truths of perception are to be used for your daily life,
and its meaning. The truth of the Eternal is something to react to and
as a scale on which to put the truths of Perception.
The eternal question, "if tree falls in the forest
and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?", I find to have
a simple answer. I say that it absolutely fell. Subjective truth, and relative
truth would say that the answer should be "no" because there was no observer,
and it would not be useful to hear it unless, for example one had microphone
equipment s/he wanted to test. Absolute truth or beauty is a definition
which holds that no matter what any observer believes there is an absolute
rule which nature follows. Perceived truths also say any observer is correct
in hir observations and judgments. The subjective truth to me is that I
didn't hear it, and if it was useful for it not to fall this would be my
truth. Relative truth says that this is terrible for the environment to
have so many trees always falling, and that it did fall. When measured
on Eternal scale it fell. All of these truths exist and do not cancel each
other out.
Plato believed in only absolute truth. In his
"Allegory of the Den" he has us picture "human beings living in an underground
den" who are chained in a way as that they can only see the shadows of
real things.(Plato, 5) They are quite expert at identifying the shadows
as reality, and recognize the echoes as voice. One of them has a chance
to rise out of the cave and see the true sun and things. "And when he remembered
his old habitation, and the wisdom of the den and his fellow-prisoners,
do you not suppose that he would felicitate himself on the change, and
pity them?"(Plato, 7) Well, yes, Plato believed that this absolute truth
should always replace shadows " . . . and to endure anything, rather than
think as they do and live after their manner."(Plato, 7) The freed man
should "rather suffer anything than entertain these false notions and live
in this miserable manner."(Plato, 7) Plato believed that "in the world
of knowledge the idea of good appears last of all, and is seen only with
an effort; and, when seen, is also inferred to be the universal author
of all things beautiful and right . . . "(Plato, 8) This is an accurate
picture of absolute truth. There are things which man can mistake for truth
and find later are only false notions. The reason that this does not cancel
out pragmatism and relative truth is that one absolute is that there are
these conflicting truths.
This is one of the two important absolutes of
absolute truth. We owe René Descartes for the other. He is responsible
for the proof of why we all exist as measured on the Eternal scale. First
he imagines "that body, figure, extension, motion, and place are but the
fictions of my mind."(Descartes, 11) He thinks that he does not exist.
He then is thinking so he exists. "'I think, therefore I am; cogito,
ergo sum,' is so certain, so assured, that all the most extravagant
skepticism is incapable of shaking it."(Descartes, 11) He could however
be deceived, and must question where his mind comes from. It comes from
God. He "must inquire whether there is a God. And, if I find that there
is a God, I must also inquire whether He may be a deceiver."(Descartes,
12) "God necessarily exists as the origin of this idea I have of Him .
. . "(Descartes, 12) God, the whole image as something that can create
consciences, is perfect. God cannot deceive. If God created his mind or
anyone's mind and s/he cannot deceive, then each of us exists. Eternal
truth will find that you did exist, although if you thought you didn't
that would be true, also, because Perceived truths do not nullify Eternal
truths.
Beauty is found in creation, and not always in
the actual object. Added to the definition of beauty is the way each thing
was created. The more difficult to make the more beautiful things such
as calculus can be. Beauty is also found in pure talent. Statues of perfect
things are almost more beautiful because they were created by a mortal.
Imperfections can also be beautiful, and interesting. For the relative
and subjective, Croce feels, "Art is ruled uniquely by the imagination."
(Durant, 473) How useful art is in entertaining us is the beauty of the
Perceived. When something is beautiful, and yet, is only entertaining because
of its beauty, it represents Eternal beauty. Immanuel Kant thinks the beautiful,
" . . . is anything which reveals symmetry and unity of structure, as if
it had been designed by intelligence."(Durant, 279) Spinoza had a similar
opinion based somewhat on science. "And as with good and bad, so with the
ugly and the beautiful; these too are subjective and personal terms, which
, flung at the universe, will be returned to the sender unhonored." "I
would warn you that I do not attribute to nature either beauty or deformity,
order or confusion. Only in relation to our imagination can things be called
beautiful or ugly, well-ordered or confused." " For example, if motion
which the nerves receive by means of the eyes from objects before us is
conductive of health, those objects are called beautiful; if it is not
those objects are called ugly."(Durant, 174)
This goes to say that perfection is beauty. Beauty
is of the things that last. Nature is the only eternal beauty which is
everything and the start of all. All atoms in nature and all light from
all the stars will pass through a tree, be part of a tree and leave a tree.
This is eternal perfection. Life is eternal perfection. Chaos and motion
as well as static things are eternally beautiful. The beauty of the absolute
is difficult and abstract. But "an interest in the beauty of nature for
its own sake is always a sign of goodness."(Durant, 279)
The reason that this is not the only beauty is
because it is useful for imperfections and man made objects to cause enjoyment
and be beautiful, both subjectively and relatively as well as have absolute
beauty. I added extra truth and beauty to the poem "E=mc²". I took
it to mean that although there is absolute beauty and truth that your relative
and subjective truth can be important to you. This is because energy is
matter and matter energy. The relevance of this is that anything can be
anything else. Science was the first to admit that explanations only go
so far and then it is just up to you to live. My peers took the equation
to signify that man would be destroyed by the knowledge of the recipe for
an atomic bomb. The Eternal meaning is that intended by Morris Bishop,
the author. The contradicting Perceived truths exist with the Eternal.
Absolute truths, subjective truths and relative
truths are absolutely existing. Truth of the Eternal and beauty of the
Eternal are pillars and true records of events as from the perspective
of God; these contrast but do not eliminate the truth of the Perceived,
both subjective and relative which are based on utility. So, what? Each
person needs to seek out truth, question it, and understand it. Knowing
which rules to apply to apply to each truth is greatly helpful. I judge
truths of Perception, and Eternal truths as life long journeys. My final
goal is to use in the most useful manner to Eternal truth, and to take
heart my and other individuals' Perceived truths. I will appreciate aesthetics,
nature and art. As for finding a wife I will judge her beauty from the
outside, because after all "I'm tired of all this nonsense about beauty
only being skin deep. That's deep enough. What do you want - an adorable
pancreas?" (Jean Kerr)
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Bibliography
Durant, Will, The Pleasures of Philosophy,
Simon and Schuster, New York, New York, 1981.
Durant, Will, The Story of Philosophy,
Pocket Books, New York, New York, 1961.
James, William, "The Will to Believe", Philosophy,
Contemporary Perspectives on Perennial Issues, ed. Klemke, E. D., St.
Martin's Press, New York, 1994.
Kerr, Jean The Snake has all the Lines
, 1958.