The World Is Uncontrollable Philosophy Essay

We know what we know through our interaction with the world. We gain insight with the world through our experiences. Children being told not to touch a stove will still have a curiosity as to why they shouldn't touch it, compared to if they experience the heat from the stove, the chances of them touching the stove again will be very slim. Spiritually personal experience could lead to one having more faith and being more spiritually inclined. Personal experience is the biggest and best teacher. Experience surpasses our ego and ignorance. It forces us to be exposed first-hand to the world. We all have had experiences which have contributed to our personality and outlook on life. This again could have had a negative or positive impact on the person. Many people experience the same situation but each one of their response or reaction is dramatically different due to their personality, background and upbringing.

Another more common way of knowing what we know is through interaction or people telling us. Throughout school and college one is learning through being told. Even our textbooks and syllabus' are compiled by people telling one what has happened in the past or how a law/theory works. Spiritually it is always someone who is telling a story or event through narration which over time has become a scripture. Most often the method of being told is not as effective as first-hand experience, discussed above. One with an ego will be more satisfied by experience. On the other hand one could see being told as an advantage. This is due to their personality. So whether one chooses to learn by experience or through being told is totally based on the individual's preference. In Agora the people were told not to believe in Christianity, but whether they believed in it or not was their choice.

Our eyes can be deceptive. What we see is not necessarily the truth or reality. Photoshop is a common example. The images after they are photoshopped are not real, therefore our eyes deceive us. This is proof that things do not seem as they appear. Believing what we see interlinks with our experience, if we know the scientific evidence as to why the sky is not blue we would not believe the blue coloured sky when we see it. We experience the world through our senses. They are sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell. Our senses can lie to us based on what we perceive to be true. Occasionally a sight may remind one of another similar sight one saw. Through smell one can tell what food has been prepared, provided one has tasted it or smelt it before.

One will believe a facility or persons whom one has interacted with before. One would believe their best friend over some random person on the street. Science facts over philosophy facts. Newspaper over verbal news. When most of our senses are involved one is more likely to believe what is being said or sold. For example if one goes into a bakery which has cakes being baked with irresistible aromas, one is more likely to purchase cakes even if they don't like cakes. These situations occur often at business, where the customer is persuaded into buying things they don't want or need. Who we believe also ties in with our perspective on life, if one is an atheist one would not believe any scripture or saint no matter how correct they were. We believe things if they are according to our values or belief system, and would more likely believe something if we agree with them. For example a person who loves milkshakes would be more likely to believe that there is a sale going on compared to someone who doesn't like milkshakes.

Living in a democratic society means to have freedom. Freedom of choice, movement, speech, etc. Having no discrimination of race, gender, cast or belief. In Agora they were told not to follow Christianity and if they did they were beaten. That is not democracy. Democracy also means to be able to make your own choices and by not being influenced by anyone. Having equal rights are one of the most important things in democracy and in Agora Hypatia's dad, Theon had power over everyone and could give clear orders which needed to be followed by everyone. That is not democracy and thankfully in today's society it is not as common although it still happens. In democracy a government does not have power to do as they please. There are constitutions that governments need to adhere to and follow.

In democracy ones basic rights are fulfilled. Some of the basic rights include shelter, sanitary, water and food. A democratic society is run by the people for the people. In a democratic society citizens choose who should be the president or who should be given power. Although after the president and parliamentarians are selected the citizens have no control as to how the country is going to be run or governed. Power also lies with who controls the wealth of the country. A democratic society will have a balance as to how the money is shared or spent. In a democratic society everyone has equal opportunity to be employed. Although we have rights, the government tries to limit them so we, the citizens do not abuse them. Laws are also passed to ensure that citizens do not abuse their rights. Along with rights come responsibilities because by having rights we are benefitting so responsibilities ensure that we give back and be courteous to our fellow citizens.

Human rights are believed to belong justifiably to every person. Human rights are given to all humans irrespective of race, culture, nationality, gender or background. Universal human rights are a law, and if at any point it is violated one can take legal action. Human rights are protected and promoted by different organisations. Human rights cannot be taken away, as a human one would always have human rights to ensure that one is treated in a dignified and civil manner. One can't be denied a human right irrespective of what crime they have committed, which would be ironic because they would have ignored someone else's human right. In Agora one could say that Hypatia's human right was ignored at the end when they wanted to stone her to death. Human rights are also the basic standard without which one can't live in dignity. In conclusion our view point and opinion on the world is based on our perspective of the world.

References and related links

http://www.creationresearch.org/crsq/articles/32/32_2a.html CRS Quarterly, by Lane P. Lester, Ph.D. 1995.

http://movies.nytimes.com/2010/05/28/movies/28agora.html By A. O. SCOTT Published: May 27, 2010.

http://www.ask.com/answers/41571381/what-does-it-mean-to-live-in-a-democratic-society Politics, by colourful-size. 1 year ago. Copyright 2013.

http://www.socialistrevolution.org/ideas/the-state/do-we-live-in-a-democratic-society/ Do we live in a democratic society? Copyright 2013.

http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/edumat/hreduseries/hereandnow/Part-1/whatare.htm Source: Adapted from Pam Costain, "Moving the Agenda Forward," Connection to the Americas 14.8 (October 1997): 4.