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| Author |
Message |
chris
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"Definition of Myself"
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Apr 30 02:23 UTC 1993 |
How should I define myself? Should I say, "I do this,
therefore, I an that which I do"? or should I say, "I think
this, therefore, I am that which I think"? or "I feel this,
therefore, I am that which I feel"? In what terms does one
come to understand himself?
Or am I incorrect in assuming that I can define myself
at all? Perhaps my definition is that which others say I am.
Yet, how can that be? My enemies will surely say I am
something other than that which my friends say I am.
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| 71 responses total. |
robh
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response 1 of 71:
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Apr 30 03:33 UTC 1993 |
Actually, I fall into the bizarre category of "I am that which I do,
and that which I think, and that which I feel, and that which I am, and
probably a whole lot of other things I don't even know I am." Reality
is way too complex to isolate in such a manner. (IMHO)
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chris
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response 2 of 71:
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Apr 30 05:33 UTC 1993 |
That's enlightening, I hadn't thought of it that way, as a combination ot the
things that I do, think, and feel. But I still struggle with the question of
others, and what they think I am, or whether i should care what others think
of me.
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tsty
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response 3 of 71:
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Apr 30 19:22 UTC 1993 |
I'd take issue with anyone who wanted to consider a pern's "definition"
in a single dimension, any single dimension. Even in a book or movie,
it is the "single dimension cahracter" who receives all the flack,
expecially if it's a lead role. Since single dimensioned characters
aren't appreciated, or *valued*, in film/print, how can a real-life
pern be appreciated if only a ssigle dimension is "permitted?"
Can't.
One of the ways of diminishing a human worth is to reduce that human
to a single dimension, ususally the most negative possible.
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chris
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response 4 of 71:
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May 1 07:36 UTC 1993 |
Thank you, that was very insightful. I really appreciate all of your
responses. Grex, is a great place to bounce my ideas off of people like
yourselves. Thanx again!
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danr
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response 5 of 71:
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May 2 02:48 UTC 1993 |
re #2
Others can only judge you by what you say and do. As to how much
you should care what others think, the answer is it depends on the
person. If it's a person that you respect, I'd say yes you should
care.
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tsty
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response 6 of 71:
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May 4 06:44 UTC 1993 |
Source-credibility is important, sure, but, imo, not quite as important
as the message transferred.
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weary
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response 7 of 71:
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May 5 00:56 UTC 1993 |
Why define anything?
Try doing whatever seems to make sense at the time for a while. Do your
job because it lets you eat, then spend some of your other time helping
other people do things they've decided are worth doing...you can do that
in a way that you like, so it won't be exactly what those other people
want, but there's where you can take your sense of self from.
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mjs
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response 8 of 71:
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Aug 21 01:33 UTC 1993 |
I'm comfortable as long as I can say I wouldn't have done anything different
given what I knew at the time.
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jason242
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response 9 of 71:
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Apr 8 16:44 UTC 1994 |
A very wise man once said...
I yam what I yam an thats all that I yam
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bubbles
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response 10 of 71:
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Apr 12 06:17 UTC 1994 |
As far as I can tell, I am what I feel like I am.
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flem
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response 11 of 71:
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Jun 19 05:03 UTC 1994 |
"we are not what we think we are.
we are not even what others think we are.
we are what we think others think we are."
-I dunno
I have found this to be true, except when I think about it and go out of my
way to change it.
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carson
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response 12 of 71:
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Aug 8 01:31 UTC 1994 |
(I remember once that other put forth the theory that we define ourselves
by what we do, i.e., "I'm a student." "I'm a cook." "I'm a criminal." I
haven't decided whether I agree or not, but I thought I'd throw that out
for discussion.)
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flem
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response 13 of 71:
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Aug 8 02:22 UTC 1994 |
Hmmm. To an extent, yes, but I think that none of us can be
described/contained by labels like this. I think that we certainly aren't
simply one thing, but a mixture of many such things, even the most simple of
us.
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carson
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response 14 of 71:
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Aug 8 05:25 UTC 1994 |
(you make it sound as if people only really do one thing. I can do
several, at once even!)
(not that I'm defending other's position as my own... yet.)
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flem
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response 15 of 71:
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Aug 8 07:35 UTC 1994 |
I do? that was precisely the point I was trying to negate. Forgive me if
I worded my response wrong. All of us can do many things at the same time,
and this is why labels like "student", etc, don't fit us.
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dang
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response 16 of 71:
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Aug 9 00:46 UTC 1994 |
the only label that fits me is Daniel Gryniewicz. (or maybe 377-94-5693,m
with one number changed, to protect myself)
(not that i don't trust you, but who knows who the link will bring?)
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carson
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response 17 of 71:
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Aug 10 08:03 UTC 1994 |
(do you mean that these labels don't fit at all, or that they don't
describe you sufficiently?)
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dang
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response 18 of 71:
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Aug 11 03:50 UTC 1994 |
no label accurately describes me. these, at least, point to me uniquely.
(and before you ask, there are no other Daniel Gryniewicz's in the world)
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gerund
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response 19 of 71:
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Aug 12 08:36 UTC 1994 |
Gerund accurately describes me.
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dang
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response 20 of 71:
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Aug 13 11:54 UTC 1994 |
somehow, i doubt you'r so easily described...
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flem
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response 21 of 71:
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Aug 13 21:40 UTC 1994 |
I, too.
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gerund
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response 22 of 71:
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Aug 14 20:16 UTC 1994 |
Who says that's an 'easy' description?
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carson
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response 23 of 71:
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Aug 15 04:40 UTC 1994 |
(ok, so if I were to call dang a student, I'd be incorrect?)
(I hope his teachers don't think so... ;>)
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gerund
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response 24 of 71:
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Aug 15 10:35 UTC 1994 |
Labels are just that... labels.
Most of them, like student for example, only describe one small aspect
of a person. Names, on the other hand, are USUALLY quite individual
and definitely conjure up a specific thing.
For example... say student and people think of a general group of people.
Say Gerald E. Peck and people either know him or they don't, but the
name brings to mind only one person.
As soon as I can dig it up I'll post a little excerpt from an old
dictionary I have describing 'name tabu'. It's interesting that I just
recently talked to Anne about how a name is the only real description of
yourself that you have... that's when the 'name tabu' article first
caught my eye... Anyhow.. I'll post it next login.
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