Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Plato
I think Plato is trying to tell us that everyone has different experiences. They may be good they my be bad, it all depends how you look at them, and how you face them. Some times you have to be more optimistic about certain things in life. You have to be a strong person for your self and others in your life at times. As you look at life and the experiences that you have you need to better understand why they happened, and take a deeper look. As you do this you may notice that its better than what could of happened or better than where you were in life. It also has impact on your knowledge and your openness to learn.
Plato:The Allegory of the Cave
In Plato's: The Allegory of the Cave he Expreces some ideas i feel that are true but leaves out part of the idea leaving me with question. This may be because of my beliefe or even just because of the way i read and understood the text. To start off he talked about the feeling of the slaves. Yes i do believe if a slave was unleashed and aloud to go and view the world they would at first be suprised and they probubly would not enjoy it at first, but latter adapt because as humans we are known to adapt. Eventually not wanting to return to the cave that once was all they new, and even feeling pitty for the people still stuck as slaves. But i also believe that each slave would feel different about the situation, just like when a high school senior graduates and is alound to finaly leave the house, some are ready and open to the new "real world" others arent yet prepared, and soon return home. Every human has their own opinion that we form from our life experiences, and that makes us who we are. I think that is what Plato was saying, we live life by the knowledge that we hold and how we view it then also how we use it. Some people when they gain new knowledge they go with what they now know and live a better life. But others gain knowledge and persist on living the old way. That said the more knowledge the avrage person gains the better the life to be led. Like in the writing the slaves gained knowldge of the "real world" and had what they thought to be a better life.
Plato
Experience lies in a persons circumstances. As in the story of the people in the cave, they experienced where they were at in that moment in time. We are subjected to our experiences by our position. Say that person in the cave was deeper down or had others blocking their view (as in wealth or location today). Would not his experience be different if not quelched than those who are closer? Now if a person coming out of the light were to realize objects or 'shadows' more quickly than another would that be dependant upon what that person was subjected to? Each person learns differently, yet has the same structures in which to use their learning. Plato suggests that there is a higher intellect once an individual 'sees the light' but how can each person come to the light if not for their experiences and how they were subjected to them. It is how they are presented to the person and that makes all the difference, in my opinion. What Plato presented was stated to be all good but not everyones experiences are good. Also how they interpret that experience isn't the same. Some may have experienced something not good but that goes back to every ones subjectivity and how they were exposed to their learning or lack their of.
Plato: The Allegory of the Cave
I believe that everyone has experiences ,"good and bad" ,it is whether we are "strong" enough to look at it for what it "really" is and learn by them. Some people would rather go through life with their head buried in the sand then to face reality. I believe that is what Plato is trying to put forth in his writings.
Plato's "Allegory of the Cave"
I believe that Plato is saying that when your trapped in one way of life then changing it. It may hurt, but it will be better then the way you were living your life. Once you break free you will pity those in your past. who controls you? A greater power? Everything you do in life is a habit weather it is a good one or a bad one.
Plato appears to break down experience into two main categories- experience that is instinctive or biological and experience that is intellectual. He uses the example of the cave dwellers who are in chains against the cave wall for several years of their lives to demonstrate biological/instinctive experience. Because of not being able to turn their heads to see light, their eyes develop so that their pupils are only used to accepting, most likely, the reflections of the fire and shadows of those passing through the cave. Also, their hearing development would largely be contributed to what echoes they heard, versus clear and accurate sounds. Thus, Plato is identifying experience, in this sense, as being based on environmental conditions. Also, Plato references the topics of reality and truth, in relation to this type of experience. What is seen and heard by the people in the cave- the sights of the shadows and sounds of the echoes, are what are true and real to them.
As far as intellectual experience, Plato first addresses the comparison of what is true to those who would come out of the cave versus those who live outside the cave. This, I suppose, represents how intellectual experience can mesh with biological experience. A person who comes from the cave finds that looking at bright light, after a period of time, is positive. In contrast, a person living outside of the cave may realize that it is not good to look directly at bright light, so thus doesn't think it to be positive.
The second type of intellectual experience that Plato identifies deals with the return of people to the cave. This, to me, represents the clashing of beliefs, largely on an intellectual basis. For example, while a person coming out of the cave may believe, as Plato noted, that the sun is the ruler of all, someone living outside of the cave already may know that this is not true.
Plato's beliefs about experience seem to be quite subjective. He suggests that experiences can be derived from both biological and environmental aspects. He then demonstrates the issues that arise from both.
As far as intellectual experience, Plato first addresses the comparison of what is true to those who would come out of the cave versus those who live outside the cave. This, I suppose, represents how intellectual experience can mesh with biological experience. A person who comes from the cave finds that looking at bright light, after a period of time, is positive. In contrast, a person living outside of the cave may realize that it is not good to look directly at bright light, so thus doesn't think it to be positive.
The second type of intellectual experience that Plato identifies deals with the return of people to the cave. This, to me, represents the clashing of beliefs, largely on an intellectual basis. For example, while a person coming out of the cave may believe, as Plato noted, that the sun is the ruler of all, someone living outside of the cave already may know that this is not true.
Plato's beliefs about experience seem to be quite subjective. He suggests that experiences can be derived from both biological and environmental aspects. He then demonstrates the issues that arise from both.
Introduction
Online persistent worlds: "4" Please have patience with me. This is the first time I have ever blogged. I'm not even really sure if I am typing on the right page so this is going to be kind of short so i can check to make sure it gets posted correctly. As I read other people's posts I am feeling a little better because i also do not have much experience with gaming. My brothers love their game systems and from time to time I have enjoyed trying to pass a football on one of there Madden games. One of my brothers just got an I Touch and I spent about 2hrs playing Line-Up on it while back in Ohio visiting them. I'm not sure if that would be considered gaming. Other than that I am a 22yr old nursing student who enjoys swimming laps at the pool. Perhaps from taking this course I can gain a better understanding of what people find so fascinating about gaming.
Introduction
Like others have stated, I didn't have much experience with gaming consoles and such when I was a child. I do recall buying one of the early Need For Speed games for PC at around age 12 or 13. After this, I began to further my interest in computer games. I honestly haven't had much interaction with gaming consoles though. The most I believe that I have used a console would be when I was around 8 years old, and would play Zelda on my cousin's Nintendo 64. :) In high school, I had a strong interest in the Grand Theft Auto (GTA) games for computer. What I really appreciated about those games was the creativity in regards to layout. For example, the game starts out with one city/map that you can navigate around, but as you work your way through the game, other maps are "unlocked". Each new map that can be unlocked has a unique layout. In addition to this, one thing I really enjoyed about the GTA games was how customizable everything is. When playing on the computer, for example, you may add your own music for the radio stations, change players/vehicles, and manipulate the playing environment to function as you wish. This, I believe, I thoroughly enjoyed because you can make the game more realistic to everyday life.
Since starting college, I honestly haven't had much time for gaming. In regards to myself and how electronic gaming has affected me, I believe there is a correlation between the creativity of the map layouts and the art world. I feel that, through the layouts of various games I've played, I have increased my appreciation for spontaneous design. This could be for both electronic forms, such as graphic design and digital photo editing, as well as with freehand sketching and artwork.
Since starting college, I honestly haven't had much time for gaming. In regards to myself and how electronic gaming has affected me, I believe there is a correlation between the creativity of the map layouts and the art world. I feel that, through the layouts of various games I've played, I have increased my appreciation for spontaneous design. This could be for both electronic forms, such as graphic design and digital photo editing, as well as with freehand sketching and artwork.
Playstation and Plato
Plato's "Allegory of a Cave" reinforces knowledge that we as a society have slowly learned: an individual's experience and reality is largely based on their perception and recollection. How is one supposed to expect reality to be any different from what they are currently touching, tasting, smelling, hearing or seeing? And of course our perception of whatever we are experiencing is so colored by numerous other factors that what we think we are remembering is much different than what may have been reality.
Holding this knowledge as our basis, it is only logical to look at electronic games along with other media as having the ability to shape our perception of reality and change what we think of experience. Plato explains to us that what we experience-- defined as that which can be felt through one of our five senses, shapes what our reality is. He says that reality is subjective, based on the owner's experiences and knowledge. The prisoners have a vastly different version of reality when faced away from the light than they do once they have been exposed to the light and allowed to see freely.
The philosopher referred to the fact that the prisoner who had to return to the darkness may not have truly been fortunate in being permitted to see the light as he had previously thought, because he was then forced to endure a reality that he had previously accepted but now knew was incomplete. We can see this as it may apply to games: many people suffer crippling addictions to various forms of gaming, which may be because the reality offered within their gaming world is much more attractive to the gamer than the everyday life they are in possesion of outside of their game of choice. Perhaps these people would have been happier if they had not played their game at all, if the reality and experiences offered by the games had never changed their perception.
Holding this knowledge as our basis, it is only logical to look at electronic games along with other media as having the ability to shape our perception of reality and change what we think of experience. Plato explains to us that what we experience-- defined as that which can be felt through one of our five senses, shapes what our reality is. He says that reality is subjective, based on the owner's experiences and knowledge. The prisoners have a vastly different version of reality when faced away from the light than they do once they have been exposed to the light and allowed to see freely.
The philosopher referred to the fact that the prisoner who had to return to the darkness may not have truly been fortunate in being permitted to see the light as he had previously thought, because he was then forced to endure a reality that he had previously accepted but now knew was incomplete. We can see this as it may apply to games: many people suffer crippling addictions to various forms of gaming, which may be because the reality offered within their gaming world is much more attractive to the gamer than the everyday life they are in possesion of outside of their game of choice. Perhaps these people would have been happier if they had not played their game at all, if the reality and experiences offered by the games had never changed their perception.
Plato Stands Alone
It was great to see all the postings yesterday on the Blog. Remember that if you missed yesterday please try and make it up as missed posts count against your final average.
Anyhow, back to Plato who was is the topic of discussion today. The great thing about philosophical debate is that it never really ends unless science is somehow able to decide the debate in a final way. While Plato uses the Allegory of the Cave to explain the movement from ignorance to knowledge, and from knowledge to ultimate truth; we are merely concerned with a smaller part of that argument here.
I think most of us could agree that the prisoners in Plato's cave had some kind of knowledge of the world whether it was flawed or not considering that even the shadow representations they were shown had origins in a "real" world. This illustrates two important points:
1. Knowledge is imperfect. We all know what a Zebra is and what it looks like and could probably draw an accurate picture of one if we had the artistic talent. But how many of us have actually seen a "real" Zebra? I would bet that in our class it is around 1% or less. Does that mean I have no real knowledge of a Zebra? No, on the contrary we have knowledge similar to the prisoners in Plato's Cave. We are witness to shadows of reality constantly in out society. Much of what we "know" is second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth, hand removed from the source. This separates us from the "truth" that Plato would have us believe is attainable and is a fact of living in an information society where the amount of information available is greater than the potential experiences we might have in a lifetime. If we lived cloistered, sheltered lives that people did 5,000 years ago it far more likely that we could experience more in our lifetime than we might read or obtain from outside sources. This is not to make you feel helpless in the face of an unknowable reality, only to point out that a fact of existence is reliance upon thoughts and information to construct "reality". This leads to my second point:
2. "Reality" is subjective. If we are creating a reality based on imperfect knowledge it only makes sense that no one perspective is "right" on every subject, since no one can have an experience of the truth of everything. As i touched on in my introduction yesterday, everyone lives in a slightly different version of reality, which are all equally "real". Plato's prisoners believed their reality was true until they had a new experience which altered their perspective. A paranoid schizophrenic may have hallucinations which are "real" enough to make them take action and put themselves and others into harms way. Given this it is a small step to propose that many of today's video games, as massive as they are, can be considered alternate realities.
This is what i would like to explore the first week of the course. Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) exist. How "real" are they?
For tomorrow please take a look at this article on New Empiricism and this article on video games and the brain. My goal is not to judge the validity of these claims just yet, only to entertain them as possibilities until we have had our own experience to reflect on.
Anyhow, back to Plato who was is the topic of discussion today. The great thing about philosophical debate is that it never really ends unless science is somehow able to decide the debate in a final way. While Plato uses the Allegory of the Cave to explain the movement from ignorance to knowledge, and from knowledge to ultimate truth; we are merely concerned with a smaller part of that argument here.
I think most of us could agree that the prisoners in Plato's cave had some kind of knowledge of the world whether it was flawed or not considering that even the shadow representations they were shown had origins in a "real" world. This illustrates two important points:
1. Knowledge is imperfect. We all know what a Zebra is and what it looks like and could probably draw an accurate picture of one if we had the artistic talent. But how many of us have actually seen a "real" Zebra? I would bet that in our class it is around 1% or less. Does that mean I have no real knowledge of a Zebra? No, on the contrary we have knowledge similar to the prisoners in Plato's Cave. We are witness to shadows of reality constantly in out society. Much of what we "know" is second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth, hand removed from the source. This separates us from the "truth" that Plato would have us believe is attainable and is a fact of living in an information society where the amount of information available is greater than the potential experiences we might have in a lifetime. If we lived cloistered, sheltered lives that people did 5,000 years ago it far more likely that we could experience more in our lifetime than we might read or obtain from outside sources. This is not to make you feel helpless in the face of an unknowable reality, only to point out that a fact of existence is reliance upon thoughts and information to construct "reality". This leads to my second point:
2. "Reality" is subjective. If we are creating a reality based on imperfect knowledge it only makes sense that no one perspective is "right" on every subject, since no one can have an experience of the truth of everything. As i touched on in my introduction yesterday, everyone lives in a slightly different version of reality, which are all equally "real". Plato's prisoners believed their reality was true until they had a new experience which altered their perspective. A paranoid schizophrenic may have hallucinations which are "real" enough to make them take action and put themselves and others into harms way. Given this it is a small step to propose that many of today's video games, as massive as they are, can be considered alternate realities.
This is what i would like to explore the first week of the course. Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) exist. How "real" are they?
For tomorrow please take a look at this article on New Empiricism and this article on video games and the brain. My goal is not to judge the validity of these claims just yet, only to entertain them as possibilities until we have had our own experience to reflect on.
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