Should_a_Knower’S_Personal_Point_of_View_Be_Considered_an_Asset_in_the_Pursuit_of_Knowledge,_or_an_Obstacle_to_Be_Overcome_

Should a knower’s personal point of view be considered an asset in the pursuit of knowledge, or an obstacle to be overcome' Knowledge is the information of the world in which we acquire by our perceptions, interpretations, the different ways of knowing, points of view, and many other ways. Nevertheless, knowledge is more than that. We have to take into account how and when we apply our knowledge in our everyday lives. We can take into account that truth is the objectivity of knowledge, whilst our opinions are the subjectivity of knowledge. Before we divulge into the aspects of points of view and how it influences our pursuit of knowledge, we must consider what can also influence our opinions. Whether it is an obstacle or benefit, our points of view influence us to a large degree on how we thrive and search for knowledge. Using evidence and logical reasoning cannot be sufficient in every case, our views and beliefs must also play a role in determining and defining the knowledge of the world. In different areas of knowledge such as natural sciences and ethics, we can see how opinions can present many limitations. However, we also see the importance of opinions. Throughout this essay we will be able to see to what extent our points of view affect our acquiring and interpreting of knowledge in our everyday life. Natural sciences are geared by the scientific method. The scientific method is a process in which many steps are followed to arrive to a certain truth regarding science. In this case, the steps must be followed accurately so as to not disturb the outcomes of the experiment that could then inflict the final “truth” which is being sought. Personal points of view could (and have) be an obstacle in following through these steps. Evidence, facts, reason, and logic are the main methods and ways of knowing which adhere to the scientific method; points of view and personal opinions do not comply. Confirmation bias, which is the device that people use to favor their particular opinions and disregard or ignore others, can be detrimental to the scientific method and thus interfere with the outcomes (or the “truth). Albert Einstein, a revered scientist of the 20th century, was a religious man who dealt with many theories that opposed religion. We can see here that although his work could’ve lead him to the “truth”, may it be with or without a god, he nevertheless kept his religious convictions aside and sought to seek information which could improve humankind. With this area of knowledge there must be a line drawn between personal points of view and the objectivity of the experiment or situation. Nevertheless, it is also important to see that we cannot simply disregard every point of view entirely. Our perception of the experiment or situation must be kept in an un-bias way, however by having previous knowledge and opinions about said experiment or situation we are able to make conclusions which could in turn allow us to broaden our minds and have new perceptions and thus new points of view. The line should be drawn, yet not be walled in. Our points of view are determined by our experience throughout our life, our culture, our beliefs, and by many other aspects. Some people have grown up with ethics and morals, which shape their view of the world. Normative knowledge claims are related to our ethical and moral points of view. We, as human beings, tend to classify life situations as either “good” or “bad”. However, one could claim that ethics are determined by society and how a society should operate. Therefore, ethics can be relative to different cultures and societies. For example; stem cell research is a controversial issue that involves the idea of studying embryonic or fetus cells to find answers or solutions to many medical problems or disorders. Many people consider it “killing humans” because of the use of embryonic cells, which are necessary for human development. However, there are people who state that it is beneficial for scientific research and to provide answers for many medical problems such as cancer. In this case, we can see how our ethics and morals become a conflict in regarding whether or not this medical research is worth it. Our points of view can be an obstacle when determining the moral and ethical part of a situation; such as the stem cell research, which could enhance medical research and help solve many issues such as cancer. On the other hand, ethics provide us with order in our everyday life. Our points of view, which can stem from our ethics, allow us to make “sensible” decisions as opposed to rash and drastic ones that can lead to chaos. With this in mind, we can see that our opinions are important to keep in mind. We should never disregard them completely; ethics provide us with behavior standards that can allow our societies to operate successfully. If we did not have any opinions regarding ethical issues, we could find ourselves at a moral crossroads, where what we stand for is no longer apparent; thus leaving chaos and disorder in our lives. Nevertheless, ethics can influence (at times) our search for knowledge and thus impede us to get the objective wholeness of the situation. The culture of an individual is an important factor, which plays many roles in more ways than one. Culture is all the aspects of a society in which a person gains knowledge, experiences, morals, and other features. As a bicultural student, my points of view are different than many other people who have not had the same experience. For example, my different cultures have allowed me to see different facets of everyday life situations, such as stereotyping. In Latin cultures, sometimes the view of Westerners is rather distorted. This could be due to the fact of the history between these civilizations that affected the culture of many Latin American countries. At times, Western societies are viewed as imperialistic and power-crazy. Making these judgments can allow for a more general overview of the Western society, instead of interpreting every specific detail of the Westerners. However, in making these interpretations we limit ourselves in acquiring the “truth” about this society. Does this validate our reasons to not “deal” with this society and its culture' Although we might feel reluctant in dealing with people who are known as “imperialistic” or “power-crazy”, our opinions about this society can impede us to properly behave to the features of this society; which in turn could’ve been helpful and useful in allowing us to have new perceptions and interpretations. Nevertheless, stereotyping is not the sole aspect of culture. Our culture can give us the correct tools to make decisions based on our opinions. For example, our culture can help define who we are as human beings. What we learn from our culture can give us an identity as a person and thus influence how we interpret the outside world. We can take into account how a yo-yo in Western culture is a game, whilst in the Philippines it was a weapon. The interpretation of that object was based on the culture, and served as a purpose for both. However, at the end of the day, our culture can limit us in our pursuit of knowledge by impeding us to learn the full facets of the object or “truth” we are trying to define. It can sometimes solely allow us to see one side of a situation and disregard the other; and help us choose an easy generalization such as stereotyping, even though it is not always correct. In conclusion, our opinions form part of our day-to-day life and we cannot deny this. It’s important to recognize the necessity of acquiring truth and knowledge and also how we use this knowledge once we gain it. Truth is the objective part of knowledge, whilst our opinions are the subjective part. It is important to be able to distinguish both; and draw the line to be able to balance it out properly. In many cases, our opinions can affect how we perceive the real world and all its elements. As we saw before in the examples above, there are many obstacles that our points of view put up as we pursue knowledge. However, it is important to be open-minded and to allow new interpretations of situations be presented to us. This way we can critical think about the knowledge we are receiving and the usage of the latter. At the end of the day, it is our readiness to accept new points of view that will allow us to pursue and search for knowledge successfully.