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| Images courtesy of http://www.isolatedinternationals.com & http://www.toptenz.net. |
Nothing is more mysterious than another person’s
worldview.
— Deepak Chopra, Leonard Mlodinow
- What are your values with regard to your relationship with Nature (the world around you)?
- What are your values with regard to your relationship with your own body (i.e., exercise and activity)?
- What are your values in terms of your relationship with your inner self (the psychological you)?
- What are your values in terms of your relationships with the people in your life?
- What are your values in terms of your relationship with the Divine or “the unknown mystery of life”?
First off, a worldview expresses the
power of both our intellectual and imaginative perspective-taking through two
lenses: collectively, as the expression of a culture’s beliefs and values, and,
individualistically, as the expression of one’s own personal beliefs and
values. The magic is in how each worldview shapes or reshapes our perception of
reality. “Wait, . . . you mean reality isn’t objective?” Well, yes and no. If
you’re talking about what we experience through our five senses then, to a
degree, it is quite objective (yet our senses restrict and constrain our
experience as well). But if you’re talking about: Why do we exist?; who are
we?; and how are we supposed to live and prepare to die?—these
questions are subjective, and their answers are dependent upon a worldview. And
the application of those answers varies from person to person; that is the
mystery.
Secondly, considering the diverse
relationship existing between the spiritual perspective and the scientific
perspective, which one best describes your own worldview, or do you find
yourself somewhere in the middle? How might you characterize your culture’s
worldview using these terms? Is there a discrepancy between your culture’s
worldview and your own personal worldview? If so, what, and why?
Next, instead of continuing to
contrast these viewpoints, think about how they intersect, overlap, and,
possibly, complement one another? In addition, how has experience changed your
worldview over time? For instance, consider the following quote from The Mythic Imagination by Stephen
Larson:
Keleman wrote,
“Experience is connected to myth. Being immersed in self-experience is living
one’s own myth, one’s own life story. . . . As our connectedness to living
deepens, we learn that experience is the teacher. And experience cannot be
programmed. We are our own mythmakers, knowingly or unknowingly.”
Surely, we do not think the same as we
did when we were infants, for with experience comes both new life-lessons and
perspectives, changing our view of what it means to be human, to be ourselves.
However, if you’re still having
trouble finding a place to start, list and categorize some of the changes you
would like to see in the world (the external) as well as in your personal life
(the internal). This process will soon reveal key aspects of your worldview.
It’s also helpful to engage others’
beliefs through a pattern of disagree/agree to challenge what you yourself
really believe. So, on what points do you agree with one of the authors, and
where do you disagree, and why? Remember that when you invite someone to
understand your worldview it is more beneficial to approach them in a manner of
respect and discovery, not of war (consider the rhetorical approaches that the
authors have used in this book so far).
All in all, how do you embody your
worldview in your social life and work life? And what does your worldview say
about your major/career choice: Is it spiritually fulfilling, scientifically
fulfilling, or both?
Furthermore, how can an analysis of a
person’s or character’s worldview be useful for understanding the purpose and
intent of a text?
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