Perception vs. Reality
 

If We are what we perceive, what becomes of those who lack real imagination?
I don't mean that in a glib sense, either.
There are people who, it seeems, explode with imagination, and others for whom pragmatism is their virtue, but creativity is their lack. What becomes of them? Where do they fall on the Perception/relaity scale?

Why should we think we are what we perceive? What is the content of this doctrine?

How true.

Lack of imagination is an effect of closed-mindedness. Closed-mindedness in the sense that you forget how to imagine and you tend to focus on the physical reality around you. It's not a bad thing, but if you don't dream, if you don't allow yourself to see things that others don't, if you don't express your imagination, your perception can become very particular and not broadened.

"Just Imagine".

If we are what we percieve, our perceptions are colored by those around us. We are nothing without others to interact with and judge us, thus influencing what we think of ourselves. If others see us as dull (lacking imagination) we tend to accept this perception of ourselves and it becomes who we are. Those who lack imagination not only are perceived in a certanin way, but do not have the ability to change the way others perceive them.

Imaginations creates our human world. Those with it are stars. Those without it are worthy by another virtue, servitude.

I think that there should be case studies done on me...

As a child I lied constantly, even making my life different by making these stories... of course those lies caught up with me around junior high and ruined my social life until I stpped being a dick and in the first year of highschool I had alot of friends, and a girl friend...

I began writing when I decided to stop being an idiot and now I write on a daily basis, just to keep up with all of the short stories, songs and novels i'm writing (the novels are always deleted out of pure sanity, relising they just blow)

Now that there is a base to this, i'll begin my answer...

The fact that I percieved myself to be what I wasn't isn't because I had an amazing imagintation... It was the fact that i wan't to be better then I was... I don't think that people are without real imagination... maybe just to lazy to use it or don't know how to.

Also, when some one is in a position where they feel threatened, like i'm sure all people feel all the time, they lie because they can't deal with the uncomfortableness of negitive reinforcment... Like a child being called a loser because his father is in jail or a woman lieing about a pregnancy because she doesn't want her partner to be upset...

People with "no imagination" are they same as you or me only the fact that they go on what other people hear... Sorry about the off topic rant kids.

Thanks,

Punkmusicfan21

i dont believe imagination is a quantifiable thing

Perception is the understanding, and indeed the definition of reality.As an example, take someone who is color blind. The percieved definition of "Red" will be completely different than my own, but is the actual reality of the color to this individual.
As far as imagination. who is to say what takes place in the mind of another. Someone may lack the skill of expression, verbally, and yet have an incredible amount of creativity internally.

I agree -- preception is reality. My ex told so many lies that he began to believe them. His reality was warped -- but true to his perception.

Another example: have you ever listened to two people tell about the same event? The stories will definitely be different because their perceptions are different. Who's preception is more real? Neither -- they just are.

Re: Perception vs. Reality
 

Hmmm. Really unimaginative people aren't necessarily doomed to parrot the perceptions of others, though many do. There are those individuals, though not common, who are both pragmatic and intellectually honest. If they accept a perception from someone else and they see a point where it doesn't make sense, they'll investigate it. And if the inconsistency disproves the believe, they'll trash it and look up another one. They may not originate believes and ideas, but they can still be intelligent consumers of them.

You find a lot of this in the engineering and software world. Frankly, there are a lot of people in those fields who are not real imaginative but do a solid piece of work. Inconsistencies in what they've been told _really bother them,_ whether the subject is technical, political, or philosophical. They may not be good at coming up with new ideas, but they're great at tearing down defective ideas that are presented to them as truth. This is not always perceived as a positive personality trait, but it is much preferable to being a blind sheep.