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The mysterious battle between subjectivity and objectivity: What is the difference between them?
The difference between subjectivity and objectivity is not only a basic concept in philosophy, but also one of the central topics explored by countless philosophers throughout history. This topic covers many areas such as epistemology and metaphysics. Throughout thousands of years of philosophical thinking, people have given a variety of interpretations of the definition between the two, presenting ideas and dialogues that have been passed down from generation to generation.
The basic definition of subjective and objective is: if something depends on the mind (such as bias, perception, emotion, opinion and imagination), then it is subjective; if something exists independently of any mind, then it is objective. of.
In life, we often encounter similar situations. For example, some people may find the same weather too hot while others may find it comfortable. This phenomenon highlights how subjectivity is shaped by personal experience and helps explain why there is such a diversity of opinion and perspective.
Mysterious roots
The words subjectivity and objectivity come from the philosophical concepts of “subject” and “object”. The subject is the observer and the object is the thing being observed. From this basic concept we can trace the roots of ancient philosophy, especially Plato's idealism. He believed that mathematics was a tool for exploring truth and proposed that justice had objective standards.
In The Republic, Plato argued that the structure of justice is mathematical, laying the foundation for stable moral objectivity.
Plato's theory has greatly influenced Western philosophy's pursuit of objective truth, while subjectivity is often seen as a state that is difficult to compare with fixed, eternal existence. This makes understanding the boundary between self and other subtle and complex.
The integration of subjectivity and objectivity in different fields
The discussion about subjectivity and objectivity continues to evolve across cultures and disciplines. Subjectivity in the religious realm, especially based on diversity of belief, is often associated with subjective experience. As Kilkeward points out, religious beliefs are influenced by personal consciousness, which makes subjective beliefs difficult to compare with objective scientific laws.
Instead, subjectivity becomes the perception and experience that shapes our reality.
Through the perspectives of phenomenologists such as Husserl and Sartre, philosophers have explored the boundaries between the human mind and the material world. They focused on the subjective freedom of thought and explored the foundations of objective existence. This kind of thinking has given rise to a deep reflection on the nature of existence, which in turn questions what is real and what is fiction.
History and the pursuit of objectivity
Objectivity is also a challenging concept in history. Historians have held extensive discussions on how to uncover the past, with the mainstream view being that the authenticity of the past cannot be known through personal memory alone. Historical narratives are often based on different versions of the story, which leads to debates about how history should be presented.
Historians such as Leopold von Ranke advocated recovering the past through in-depth evidence and archives, rather than relying solely on human memory.
These academic clues all attempt to clarify the diversity of "truth" and lead us to think about who is the real narrator behind each narrative? This not only affects our understanding of the past, but also shapes our understanding of current society.
Subjective and objective future
With the changes in society, subjectivity has become a socialized phenomenon in an irreversible way. Individual experiences of subjectivity are no longer isolated but are continually constructed and changed through interactions with culture and community. In this context, culture shock becomes a manifestation of subjective experience, making us rethink how to "communicate" with different cultures.
The concept of “political subjectivity” emerged, sparking a deep debate on the intersection of power and meaning.
Increasingly complex social relations reflect that knowledge of individual subjectivity is not only embedded in current power structures, but also concerns how we view ourselves. The objectivity of science, the absoluteness of morality and the neutrality of news reporting are all challenged by this subjectivity, which reminds us of the limitations of our thinking and its historical background.
In this process of thinking, can we break free from our constraints and understand our culture, beliefs and reality from a more comprehensive perspective?
