Well, if someone were to ask you, how will you answer those questions? Say you were to honestly answer that the cloth look good on him or her. Say you were to honestly answer that a certain someone is handsome. Say you were to honestly answer that a certain movie is interesting. What will happen? Well, some quarrel might arise if the one asking you disagree. Also, the level of intensity of the quarrel might differ from one to another.
Now. What if someone were to ask to you whether a certain politician is good or not? What if someone were to you whether a religion is good or not? What if someone were to ask you something more sensitive? Now, is there a right answer? If there is, then what if you don't know the right answer?
How should we answer such questions? Here are several things to consider when you're making an answer:
1. "My good and your good is different."
My friend love something spicy or sour. Me? I don't really like something sour, and I can't handle something spicy. When I ate something spicy with her, she always said, 'It's not spicy enough.' While me? I was sweating and my tongue was literally burning.
When I was on a vacation on a mountain with my family, they said the mountain is cold, while I thought it was cool. They wore thick clothes, while I wore something thin.
See? Everyone has their own standards. I have my own standards on several things. You have your own standards on several things. We have our own standards on several things. Can you measure the standard itself? While you can measure it, the measurement from a person to another might differ. My friend always says, 'Beauty is relative.' True! Remember. You have your own standards on several things. In other word, your standard for beauty and my standard of beauty may be different.
So? We need to think more about other's taste, not just fixated on our own taste. We can't judge the quality of something just by seeing it.
So? We need to think more about other's taste, not just fixated on our own taste. We can't judge the quality of something just by seeing it.
2. "'Good' and 'bad' are made by humans."
Yes! Human created the word of 'good' and 'bad'. Just like 'right' and 'left'. But we use them everyday! Why? Because they are agreed universally. 'Good'. 'Bad'. What determine something is 'good' and what determine something is 'bad'? John Stuart Mill and the theory of Utilitarianism say something is good because it is beneficial to the society. However, there are many other theories that might clash or contradict with the theory of Utilitarianism.
'You're not answering the way to determine whether something is good or bad.' Okay, that's very true. With so many standards or theories of good and bad, we have no choice but to choose. Well, to live is to choose after all. The simple evidence is that we choose what we want to eat and what we don't want to eat. Everyday, we choose, choose, and choose. We are not a robot which is coded to do the same thing again and again. Even robot has to make choice sometimes.
Now, we need to choose from so many theories and decided which is the most suitable theory to use. In other word, we need to choose what kind of good and what kind of bad is suitable for certain situation. We need to choose which is good and which is bad for certain situation.
While it's true that not everyone know such theories, we still have something we call heart. We can use our heart to determine which is good and which is bad. It's called moral.
3. "What do you mean?"
Conversation is not a process of asking answering. Conversation is a process of transferring a knowledge or information from a person to another. If we don't get what context the one your speaking is using, then you have to ask! True, asking something fundamental might sound stupid, and asking a stupid question is just...stupid. However. When we grasp what the problem is, we will be able to make a better solution. When we know what the true meaning of the question, we will be able to see the answer.
If we, however, don't look into a question deeply, we will always find more than one answers to it. For example, 1+1 equals to 2 in math. However, 1+1 doesn't equal 2 in group work. 1+1 can sometimes equal to 1 too! And that is the reason why we need to know what the question really is.
4. "What make you think like that?"
Why do you like eating something spicy? Why do you like that cloth? Why do you hate that cloth?
Again, conversation is a process of transferring knowledge or information from a person to another. Back to the 'does the cloth look good on them or not' question. Well? How is his or her reaction on your honest answer?
Your answer have to be backed up with a reason. Why did you say the cloth look good on him or her? Why did you say the cloth look bad on him or her? Now, can you think of a reason or two?
'You're not answering the way to determine whether something is good or bad.' Okay, that's very true. With so many standards or theories of good and bad, we have no choice but to choose. Well, to live is to choose after all. The simple evidence is that we choose what we want to eat and what we don't want to eat. Everyday, we choose, choose, and choose. We are not a robot which is coded to do the same thing again and again. Even robot has to make choice sometimes.
Now, we need to choose from so many theories and decided which is the most suitable theory to use. In other word, we need to choose what kind of good and what kind of bad is suitable for certain situation. We need to choose which is good and which is bad for certain situation.
While it's true that not everyone know such theories, we still have something we call heart. We can use our heart to determine which is good and which is bad. It's called moral.
3. "What do you mean?"
Conversation is not a process of asking answering. Conversation is a process of transferring a knowledge or information from a person to another. If we don't get what context the one your speaking is using, then you have to ask! True, asking something fundamental might sound stupid, and asking a stupid question is just...stupid. However. When we grasp what the problem is, we will be able to make a better solution. When we know what the true meaning of the question, we will be able to see the answer.
If we, however, don't look into a question deeply, we will always find more than one answers to it. For example, 1+1 equals to 2 in math. However, 1+1 doesn't equal 2 in group work. 1+1 can sometimes equal to 1 too! And that is the reason why we need to know what the question really is.
4. "What make you think like that?"
Why do you like eating something spicy? Why do you like that cloth? Why do you hate that cloth?
Again, conversation is a process of transferring knowledge or information from a person to another. Back to the 'does the cloth look good on them or not' question. Well? How is his or her reaction on your honest answer?
Your answer have to be backed up with a reason. Why did you say the cloth look good on him or her? Why did you say the cloth look bad on him or her? Now, can you think of a reason or two?
Conclusion...
Now, you might be thinking, 'What is the point of all of this?' We know that everyone thinks differently. Being different is good, but being different also mean we need more effort to know each other. Some problems or situations in our live are relative, not absolute. A present problem and the past problem which look alike might not be identical.
Every point I wrote tells us about relativity. Relativity, being the opposite of absoluteness, mean that everything we face is not set on the stone. Everything we face is something that we solve by choosing. Even when we are answering a question, we form the answer by taking many things into consideration. With this mind set, we will be able to answer a sensitive question easier. Why? Because we know we are not going to answer just by seeing the question from one side. We are going to see the question from multiple sides.
Every point I wrote tells us about relativity. Relativity, being the opposite of absoluteness, mean that everything we face is not set on the stone. Everything we face is something that we solve by choosing. Even when we are answering a question, we form the answer by taking many things into consideration. With this mind set, we will be able to answer a sensitive question easier. Why? Because we know we are not going to answer just by seeing the question from one side. We are going to see the question from multiple sides.
I hope this will be useful,
Luce
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