Types of Perspectives
A perspective is our point of view. It is constructed from a –
- Physical Perspective: A physical point in space-time.
- Mental Perspective: An amalgamation of biological and ideological point in a person’s life. A mental perspective comes from our previous experiences, influences in life, physical and mental states and even genetic factors, up until the moment an observation is made and processed. It is the point in our experience or personal development ladder when we come across the subject.
A complete human perspective is an aggregation of both physical and mental perspectives.
Research suggests that our brain receives around 11 million bits of information every second. However, it is only able to consciously process about 50 bits of information. This means that much of the information received is selectively discarded, and the rest is weighted and consumed based on our previous experiences, prejudices, understanding of the subject, state of mind, our mental and physical conditions and even our genetic predispositions.
We may observe a building from a certain vantage point. However, our complete perspective is made up of both the physical location, that determines what we see, hear, smell, taste and touch, and our mental state that determines the relevance of the received bits of information. A happy person or a person who is prejudiced towards certain architectural elements will have a different perspective from another person who is unhappy or is prejudiced against those same architectural elements. Thus, the perspective of a building is made up of both the objective image (and sensations surrounding the building) and our individual subjective likes, dislikes and expertise on the subject. Two people may stand at exactly the same physical location observing the same building, at exactly the same moment, yet, they will have two different perspectives because of the differences in their mental perspectives.
Two friends may read the same book on philosophy, for instance. However, the weights they provide to different sections will vary based on their interests or their agreements or disagreements with the contents of those sections. Even the information that is easily retained, consumed or processed by each from that book, will depend upon their interests and biases. Thus, each will have different perspectives on the same book.
Two friends may, witness the same event, see the same news, yet, they will each have different perspectives due to their past influences, interests and biases.
Additionally, a person, witnessing the same subject at a second instance in their life under exactly the same physical conditions will also have a perspective that is different from their first. Because, during the elapsed time, they have accumulated more understanding and experience. They may also have a different outlook, have a different set of interests, and may be in a different mental or physical state that alters their perspective.
Each of us experiences this world from our own unique perspective. A perspective that is molded by our unique positions; both, physical and mental, at the time of observation. That perspective has a profound impact on how we understand the subject.
Types of Subjects
Subjects are the items, thoughts or events that are being observed by us. They may be categorized based on their types –
- Physical subjects: Buildings, sculptures, architectural elements, works of arts, books, people, groups of people etc.
- Ideological subjects: Philosophies, religious ideologies, political ideologies, beliefs and faith etc.
- Incidental subjects: Incidental subjects are events such as wars, conflicts, political changes, weather events etc. They are almost everything we hear in the news and witness as we go about our lives.
Subjects may also be categorized by their ability or inability to act –
- Reactive Subjects: Reactive subjects are sentient beings that are capable of reacting to actions performed by others. People, groups of people, animals etc. belong under this category.
- Non-reactive Subjects: Non-reactive subjects are subjects that cannot directly respond to actions performed by us. Inanimate objects, non-sentient beings, ideas or incidents, philosophies, ideologies etc. belong under this category.
NOTE:
Non-reactive subjects cannot respond to actions. However, reactive subjects who are patrons of, or who have an interest in the non-reactive subject may react to actions performed by a person towards a non-reactive subject. For instance, a religious symbol may be non-reactive. However, any perceived actions of disrespect against the symbol may result in a reaction by patrons of the religion.
To be continued …
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