The idea I’m about to discuss is better experienced than explained, so I will begin with the experience first before I jump into the nitty-gritty.
Describe the color red to someone the next time you get a chance. You could try and describe what your bedroom looks like back home. Describe anything you like, it really doesn’t make a difference to the point I’m about to make.
Even if you perfectly painted the picture in your head, down to the very last detail, the person who is on the receiving end of your description will never be able to see the picture in your head. We are all effectively blind to your thoughts. These situations are brought about by the qualia within human language.
.....What?
Qualia, singular quale, are situations or identities that cannot be described because we each experience sensations differently.
Yeah yeah, ok, but what about things I don’t see, what about touch?
Ok! Describe how it feels to run your hands through your hair, or how it feels to pet a puppy.
When I say we all experience sensations differently, I mean that the external world, while objective in its existence is not objective in our interpretation of it. Because we have consciousness, we are all capable of experiencing the world differently from other people. This difference is only compounded more when you consider that we aren’t all exposed to the same objective experiences, and therefore build a background of subjective experiences that differ greatly from one another.
That was a lot of subjective-objective hoity-toitiness, but let me explain it with another anecdote:
Consider a set of conjoined twins, each person is identical, biologically, but both have their own distinct personality, despite that they have been in the same environment and had the same interactions most of their lives. Why does this occur? Because even though their DNA is the same, their “filing system” or subjective interpretation of life is different.
Alright, alright, so what does this have to do with me?
Consider this:
Even telling someone that you love them has a distinctly different meaning to you, than it does to them. Although they have the same flavor, or connotation, when they say “I love you,” they have experienced and interpreted love in ways that you will never understand perfectly.
It is arguable that you can get the gist of a conversation, and that will suffice in terms of collaborating and coexisting with people; however, this highlights the entire point of this article:
We are all our own islands of subjective interpretation and words will never be able to perfectly explain the content of our meanings and experiences.
Woah! This just took a turn for the depressing! L
It did, and it didn’t. What I am trying to get across is that in our day to day interactions, we must take the time to understand each other as best as we can. This requires slowing down and taking a true interest in interpreting someone’s qualia to the best of our ability.
For example, I have Attention Deficit Disorder. The impact of having a deficit in attention makes for some trouble when I try to slow down and interpret someone else’s qualia, and even more trouble when others try to interpret mine. I have to put a lot of effort into engaging with people because that area of my brain isn’t as active as I would like it to be. This often leads to me not truly understanding the social cues, or qualia, that other people are trying to get across, and can make for some chafe, even with people I care deeply about.
I cannot tell you how many times I have been called rude, condescending, or self-centered. It wasn’t until I started recognizing my internal disconnect that I fully understood how I was making people feel. Because I get excited when conversation turns to something I know a lot about, or because I can get fixated on something in a conversation, I tend to talk over people or forget to acknowledge positive contributions from them. What’s worse is that when someone expresses a quale, or something very personal, my attention deficit can make it very difficult for me to interpret their quale from their point of view, which, of course, means I am interpreting it from my point of view.
Quite frankly, this rubs people the wrong way, and makes them distance themselves from me. Which, they are completely entitled to do. Take care of your emotional well-being. I encourage that wholeheartedly.
Please know, however, that most people are not attempting to be rude or hurt you in conversations. What you’re experiencing is a disconnect from impact and authorial intent. I never intend to hurt anyone in a conversation, but my impact is different from my intention, and as most writing majors will tell you, impact and interpretation means way more than intent.
Here’s the take-away from all of this:
Each person you know is unique. We all want to feel appreciated and accepted. In order to do so, we must take the time to understand each other’s qualia, or subjective interpretations. We must also understand that most people are not out to hurt us, and that rudeness is not a breakdown in a person’s morality, but a break down in our ability to interpret each other.
For those of us pursuing Social Justice, this is be the linchpin of having a profound effect on the hearts and minds of others.
By Beau Smith
Describe the color red to someone the next time you get a chance. You could try and describe what your bedroom looks like back home. Describe anything you like, it really doesn’t make a difference to the point I’m about to make.
Even if you perfectly painted the picture in your head, down to the very last detail, the person who is on the receiving end of your description will never be able to see the picture in your head. We are all effectively blind to your thoughts. These situations are brought about by the qualia within human language.
.....What?
Qualia, singular quale, are situations or identities that cannot be described because we each experience sensations differently.
 |
| Pictured from left to right: Beau Smith, Kimberly Roman, Nellie Moran, and Andrew Morris. |
Yeah yeah, ok, but what about things I don’t see, what about touch?
Ok! Describe how it feels to run your hands through your hair, or how it feels to pet a puppy.
When I say we all experience sensations differently, I mean that the external world, while objective in its existence is not objective in our interpretation of it. Because we have consciousness, we are all capable of experiencing the world differently from other people. This difference is only compounded more when you consider that we aren’t all exposed to the same objective experiences, and therefore build a background of subjective experiences that differ greatly from one another.
That was a lot of subjective-objective hoity-toitiness, but let me explain it with another anecdote:
Consider a set of conjoined twins, each person is identical, biologically, but both have their own distinct personality, despite that they have been in the same environment and had the same interactions most of their lives. Why does this occur? Because even though their DNA is the same, their “filing system” or subjective interpretation of life is different.
Alright, alright, so what does this have to do with me?
Consider this:
Even telling someone that you love them has a distinctly different meaning to you, than it does to them. Although they have the same flavor, or connotation, when they say “I love you,” they have experienced and interpreted love in ways that you will never understand perfectly.
It is arguable that you can get the gist of a conversation, and that will suffice in terms of collaborating and coexisting with people; however, this highlights the entire point of this article:
We are all our own islands of subjective interpretation and words will never be able to perfectly explain the content of our meanings and experiences.
Woah! This just took a turn for the depressing! L
It did, and it didn’t. What I am trying to get across is that in our day to day interactions, we must take the time to understand each other as best as we can. This requires slowing down and taking a true interest in interpreting someone’s qualia to the best of our ability.
For example, I have Attention Deficit Disorder. The impact of having a deficit in attention makes for some trouble when I try to slow down and interpret someone else’s qualia, and even more trouble when others try to interpret mine. I have to put a lot of effort into engaging with people because that area of my brain isn’t as active as I would like it to be. This often leads to me not truly understanding the social cues, or qualia, that other people are trying to get across, and can make for some chafe, even with people I care deeply about.
I cannot tell you how many times I have been called rude, condescending, or self-centered. It wasn’t until I started recognizing my internal disconnect that I fully understood how I was making people feel. Because I get excited when conversation turns to something I know a lot about, or because I can get fixated on something in a conversation, I tend to talk over people or forget to acknowledge positive contributions from them. What’s worse is that when someone expresses a quale, or something very personal, my attention deficit can make it very difficult for me to interpret their quale from their point of view, which, of course, means I am interpreting it from my point of view.
Quite frankly, this rubs people the wrong way, and makes them distance themselves from me. Which, they are completely entitled to do. Take care of your emotional well-being. I encourage that wholeheartedly.
Please know, however, that most people are not attempting to be rude or hurt you in conversations. What you’re experiencing is a disconnect from impact and authorial intent. I never intend to hurt anyone in a conversation, but my impact is different from my intention, and as most writing majors will tell you, impact and interpretation means way more than intent.
Here’s the take-away from all of this:
Each person you know is unique. We all want to feel appreciated and accepted. In order to do so, we must take the time to understand each other’s qualia, or subjective interpretations. We must also understand that most people are not out to hurt us, and that rudeness is not a breakdown in a person’s morality, but a break down in our ability to interpret each other.
For those of us pursuing Social Justice, this is be the linchpin of having a profound effect on the hearts and minds of others.
By Beau Smith
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