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How to think
Opinion: Do we really question everything?
Whenever I tell people that my university major is philosophy, I tend to get some sort of amusing reaction. Most are somewhere between bewilderment and curiosity. Invariably however, someone pops up with a favourite of mine: a variation on the statement "Pah! I don't need to go to college to learn how to think!” Frankly it’s hard to argue with the logic. We all know how to think. Don't we? Well, no. We don't.
To think constructively and clearly is an art frequently ignored by many. We all know someone who describes themselves as "strongly opinionated" and who "never backs down in an argument". Such phrases I have found are red flag signals for the more accurate description "usually wrong". I had a professor who introduced his lecture on the ethical issues behind euthanasia by claiming, "If you find yourself flat out in favour of or against euthanasia, you don't understand the entire dilemma". Not understanding the dilemma or refusing to take account of each side are the principal stumbling blocks in the art of proper thinking.
To think, very simply, is to reflect on a question. Perhaps every thought can be boiled down as an attempt to answer a question. To think, then, is to question. Asking the right questions is the foundation of clear thinking. The right questions shed light on every forgotten detail of a subject. In this little reflection then, we find the value of what is a maxim of our generation: Question Everything.
We think ourselves as the generation that will ask the awkward question. We think we subscribe to the values of punk in refusing to meekly accept authority without question. We think we live these values by chastising our politicians and exercising our free choice in which clothes we buy. We wish we could spread our values of freedom to North Korea where they wailed at the death of their dictator and to the religious extremists who unquestioningly throw away their lives in service to their leaders. We wish everyone had democracy and freedom of speech. We wish everyone could and did question everything like we do. We wish, in short, that the entire planet shared our noble values.
Something we never do, however, is question whether we really do question everything. Is democracy so great? Do we rule ourselves? Do we have freedom of speech? Why am I so emotionally invested in the Arsenal result last weekend? What is so wrong with the North Korean way of life? Are we free to dress how we want or do we dress how our social group expects us? Is choosing between H&M or Forever21 a true show of freedom? What about McDonalds or Burger King? Meteor or Vodaphone? Why is the log-off button on facebook more difficult to access than the "find friends" button when the former is by far more commonly needed? Is there a God? Can He create a stone so heavy that nobody He can create can lift? I will admit that I don't know the answer to most of these questions and in a way I hope you don't either.
We need to embrace our ignorance and throw away the dogma of being "strongly opinionated." Socrates was wise because he realised his own ignorance. It’s high time we begin to realise our own ignorance and start to truly 'Question Everything'. Not to just memorise quotes from Fight Club in the hope of attracting girls.
By: Gary Doyle
