Do Truth and Right Change over the Course of History?
10 October 2011
Political Science
“Do truth and right change over the course of history?”
Interpretations of the concepts of Truth and Right absolutely change over the course of time. The most important reason for this is that, as time moves on, technology improves, political leaders change, and the social constructs of “good” are warped to fit the needs of the people. Whether or not the core definition of Truth and Right change is completely open to interpretation, because these internal ideals are subject to the development and growth of the person holding them. The ideas of Truth and Right are ideas developed by social psychology that are completely open to change depending on authoritarian figures and the development of social thought.
I would like to re-establish my previous point; Truth and Right are social
constructs. This means that the common interpretations of Truth and Right are based on social and environmental psychology, which, no one can disagree, plays a huge role in the development of ideas of “good” and “bad”. Social psychology is the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. The terms thoughts, feelings, and behaviors include all of the psychological variables that are measurable in a human being. The statement that others may be imagined or implied suggests that we are prone to social influence even when no other people are present, such as when watching television, or following internalized cultural norms (Wikipedia). Studies over the years have shown that people are more likely to behave according to the social norm when they think they are being watched. In not-so-unrealistic novels such as 1984, the people of the society behave in a fashion deemed acceptable by their leader because they think they are being watched.
Even more important is how authority figures influence the behaviors and actions of the masses.
Political Science
“Do truth and right change over the course of history?”
Interpretations of the concepts of Truth and Right absolutely change over the course of time. The most important reason for this is that, as time moves on, technology improves, political leaders change, and the social constructs of “good” are warped to fit the needs of the people. Whether or not the core definition of Truth and Right change is completely open to interpretation, because these internal ideals are subject to the development and growth of the person holding them. The ideas of Truth and Right are ideas developed by social psychology that are completely open to change depending on authoritarian figures and the development of social thought.
I would like to re-establish my previous point; Truth and Right are social
constructs. This means that the common interpretations of Truth and Right are based on social and environmental psychology, which, no one can disagree, plays a huge role in the development of ideas of “good” and “bad”. Social psychology is the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. The terms thoughts, feelings, and behaviors include all of the psychological variables that are measurable in a human being. The statement that others may be imagined or implied suggests that we are prone to social influence even when no other people are present, such as when watching television, or following internalized cultural norms (Wikipedia). Studies over the years have shown that people are more likely to behave according to the social norm when they think they are being watched. In not-so-unrealistic novels such as 1984, the people of the society behave in a fashion deemed acceptable by their leader because they think they are being watched.
Even more important is how authority figures influence the behaviors and actions of the masses.