On Truth

"...our opinions should be weakly held. And our pursuit of “truth” must begin with the acknowledgement that we are inherently biased".

We all see the world through tainted glasses.

Though many swear by their “objectivity” and devotion to the “truth”, the road to the “truth” is strewn with myriad influences that colour our perception of objective reality.

As a result, no one has a neutral point of view.

Whether we admit it or not, our perspectives are forged in the cauldrons of culture, religion, life experiences etc.

The seminal work of the philosopher, Richard Rorty, focuses on the “interphases” that mediate our interpretation of the “truth” (and shape how we see the world). He called these interphases our “final vocabulary”.  Rorty describes “final vocabulary” as a collection of stories, metaphors, narratives, discourses that people use to make sense of the world.

Many believe that acquiring more knowledge about a subject, brings them closer to the “truth”. Richard Rorty would disagree. He argues that even if you read a thousand books, you are not necessarily accessing the truth about a subject matter, rather, you are constructing a "final vocabulary" that enables you interpret the reality.

Rorty also contends that the reason we find it difficult to win over a person who disagrees with our point of view is because we are essentially asking the person to abandon their “final vocabulary” and construct meaning using OUR own unique set of experiences. You would agree that this is a tall order.

By recognizing the influences our “final vocabulary” have on our perspectives, we are less likely to cling to our perspectives with religious fervour .  

Because opinions are not formed in a vacuum, we must make peace with the fact that we are biased in some way. Therefore, our opinions should be weakly held. And our pursuit of “truth” must begin with the acknowledgement that we are inherently biased.