Groundless Beliefs 现代大学英语课件

1、Lesson 6Groundless Beliefsby A.E. Manderby A.E. Mander I. Questions for DiscussionWork on the questions on P.180 II. Introductions1. About the author (see P. 172 of the Students Book)2. Brief Introduction to the TextOne thing we all do every day is express our views, state our beliefs or discuss our

2、 ideas. We say to one another: I think, I believe, Im convinced, Im sure, it goes without saying, its crystal clear, its as simple as ABC, No doubt , etc, every day and often many times a day. We may not be professional thinkers. But we all do thinking as a habit. We may not have reached the level o

3、f grade-one thinking. But we cannot avoid thinking, rightly or wrongly.Do we really know what we are doing though? Do we really know what it means when we say we are thinking? Do we really think for ourselves? Are our beliefs and ideas really well-grounded? Are we sure that all the beliefs we hold w

4、ith intense conviction and accept without question are really true? What constitutes adequate grounds for beliefs? These are just some of the blunt, embarrassing questions Mander, an English psychologist, asks in this passage taken from his book, Logic for the Millions.However, this text is not chos

5、en primarily for the purpose of shaking our beliefs. Rather, it is meant to serve as a suggestive example of a curious, inquiring mind at work. Mander does not say all beliefs are unreliable and silly. He does not say that we should not have beliefs. He simply wants to find out how we came by our be

6、liefs. He wants us to know their grounds. He wants us to see all sides of a question. Above all, he wants us to test our beliefs. Mander lists five sources for many of our groundless beliefs: 1) Result of early environment；2）Parroting; 3) Self-interest; 4) Sentimental associations; 5) Fashion. It mi

7、ght be a good idea for us to provide as many examples as we can of such beliefs as stem from these sources to show their understanding of the nature of these sources.It is no disgrace to admit that we are all heavily influenced by prejudices. And this is precisely the reason why we all need educatio

8、n. Education, according to one definition, is just the progressive discovery of our ignorance and prejudices which are hidden in our mind like computer virus in a computer. And unless we stay alert and check our computer virus constantly and wipe out all the viruses, we will be in serious trouble so

9、me day. We will not know when and where they will hit us with serious consequences.And it is for this reason that we hope students will appreciate this text. III. Detailed Discussion of the Text1. in future we are going to follow the practiceuntil it becomes a habitof classifying propositions accord

10、ing to their grounds.to follow the practice: to take this practice as a guide; to copy this practice; to develop the habit of doing things in this wayto classify: to arrange things systematically in classes or groupspropositions: views; ideas; assertionsThe author begins by emphasizing the importanc

11、e of classifying our propositions according to their grounds. This is important because people very often base their judgment of propositions according to their popularity, usefulness, source of authority as well as to their personal taste. They do not always accept beliefs because they are true. Of

12、ten they accept them because these beliefs serve their immediate purpose, or because they sound nice, or because it is easier or safer to accept them.2. Many of our strongest convictions were established them.They are strong because they have been in our mind for such a long time. They are strong be

13、cause they were imprinted on our mind when we were able to judge for ourselves. They are strong because they were passed on to us during our most formative years and often by people we trusted and loved.conviction: firm belief or opinion (Do not confuse this word with its other meaning as in “the co

14、nviction of a person for a crime”.)to be established: to be formulated3. But if the staunchest Roman Catholic and the staunchest Presbyterian had been exchanged when infants, and if they had been brought up with home and all other influences reversed, we can have very little doubt what the result wo

15、uld have been.But if they were exchanged when they were infants and brought up in different homes and under different influences, then the staunchest Roman Catholic would be the staunchest Presbyterian, and vice versa. This shows that our beliefs are largely influenced by our surroundings. Presbyter

16、ian: a member of the Presbyterian Church, a Protestant denominationwhen infants: (elliptical) when they were infants4. If we had grown up in a community where polygamy or head-hunting, or infanticide, or gladiatorial fighting, or dueling, was regarded as the normal and natural thingthen we should ha

17、ve grown up to regard it as “obviously” natural and perfectly moral and proper.Polygamy, headhunting, infanticide, are practiced only in some communities or practiced in certain historical times. They are considered immoral, improper and abnormal elsewhere or in modern times.For the meaning of polyg

18、amy, headhunting, etc, see Notes to the Text.Notice that the word “community” is often used where in the Chinese context it might be replaced by “society”.5. But as we leave childhood, we tend to accept only such new ideas as fit in with the ideas we already hold.to fit in with: to say the same thin

19、g or follow the same principle; to agree with If we tend to accept such new ideas as fit in with the ideas we already hold, they are, strictly speaking, no longer new ideas. Therefore it is often the case that when we say we are thinking, we are really rearranging our deeply-rooted prejudices. Exper

20、ience has told us that it is not easy to develop and accept new ideas. The psychological reasons might be:1) New ideas require a great effort to discover and absorb, and people have a natural tendency to be lazy (the force of inertia); 2) New ideas always threaten our sense of security, and people u

21、sually prefer not to enter what they consider dangerous waters (the fear of the unknown); 3) New ideas imply that our old ideas are wrong, and people feel that they make them foolish. They refuse to accept them in order to save their ego; 4) New ideas always put some vested interests in danger, and

22、people often reject them to cling on to those interests. 6. But we should fully face the fact that beliefs which are merely inherited from the past must have originated at a time when men knew much less than they know today. So the fact that a belief is “old ” is no argument in its favour. One of ou

23、r common mistakes is to accept beliefs simply on the merit of their long history. But the author is right to say that the fact a belief is no argument in its favor. There are many old prejudices which have been proved wrong. However, one might also add that the fact a belief is new is no argument in

24、 its favor either, because it has not stood the test of time and is likely to pass like many fashionable things. So we might use the authors own approach to classify his proposition that the fact a belief is well-grounded because it is true that many old ideas originated at a time when we knew much

25、less than we do today. But we can also say that it is not so well-grounded because the fact that a belief is old sometimes does mean that it has been proved correct again and again in history. to be inherited from the past: to be passed on from the past in its favor: in its support 7. When we find o

26、urselves entertaining an opinion about which there is a feeling that even to enquire into it would be absurd, unnecessary, undesirable, or wickedwe may know that that opinion is a non-rational one. Another common mistake we make is to judge opinions according to our feelings. An opinion is true beca

27、use it is true, not because we like it or find it desirable or useful. In fact, truth can often be unpleasant or painful whereas untruth can be soothing and attractive. That is why opinions are often bitterly debated or enthusiastically cherished, precisely because their truthfulness is not establis

28、hed.Notice that to the author, the right question to ask about any opinion is whether it is rational or whether it is true, not whether it is good, necessary, desirable, or important.He obviously believes that in the final analysis, an opinion that is rational and true cannot help being good, necess

29、ary and desirable. 8. Progress in human thought seems to consist mainly in getting rid of such ideas.Notice the difference between consist in and consist of.to consist of: to be made of or composed of Examples: The company consists of five departments. The book consists of twelve chapters.to consist

30、 in: to have a basis in; to lie in; to be found in Examples: Happiness consists in appreciating what you have. Wisdom consists in leaning from our own mistakes.9. Other beliefs are held through self-interest. Modern psychology leaves us no room for doubt on this point. We adopt and cling to some bel

31、iefs becauseor partly becauseit “pays” us to do so.This is obvious and has been proved by psychology. Take for example our belief that human beings are superior to all other species. We hold and cling to this belief because it is in our interest to believe that all other species are created by God (

32、only for those who believe in God) to serve our needs, a view no other animals, in so far as they can have a view, will accept. The author does not say whether it is possible for us to transcend our interest in forming our belief. The answer is yes, but it is possible only when we can forgo selfish

33、considerations. to leave no room for doubt: to make it impossible for people to doubt to pay sb to do sth: to bring benefit or advantage to sb to do sth. E.g. It pays to tell people the truth. It pays to forgive others. It doesnt pay to work too hard at the expense of your health.10. The “brain path

34、” becomes so well worn; the pattern of brain-centres becomes so well connected up by continual use, that the nerve current finds a route of practically no resistance, and so it always takes almost exactly the same course.We tend to hold old ideas (Its easy to fall into a rut ) because they are famil

35、iar and make us feel secure and comfortable. They are comfortable because we are following the same brain path which offers no resistance, and our thinking (The author calls it nerve current ) tends to follow the easy path the way water flows along a course which has the least resistance. worn: old

36、because it has been used for a long time brain path: thought habit; the way you always think resistance: force that hinders the advancement of sb. or sth. 11. It would be quite wrong to attribute all opinions-even political opinions-to self-interest. But it would be equally wrong to deny that this i

37、s one potent factor. Human motivations are complicated. There are other-regarding motivations as well as self-regarding ones. Therefore it is wrong to be cynical and think that all beliefs are based on self-interest. However, we must admit that self-interest is a very powerful factor. attribute to:

38、to regard as resulting from 12. Putting it broadly, we should always suspect any of our opinions when we recognize that our happiness depends, directly or indirectly, upon our continuing to hold them-when we might lose anything, material or otherwise, by changing our opinion. If by changing our opin

39、ions we might lose something and therefore be unhappy, we must be suspicious about these opinions and try to find out whether we are not being blinded by our self-interest. Notice that the author uses the word suspect. It means that it is always wrong to link an opinion with interest. 13. Somewhat s

40、imilar is the acceptance of an opinion through the desire-probably not recognized by the person-to justify his own nature, his own position, or his own behaviour. We often accept an opinion to justify or defend our weakness, mistakes, vulnerable positions or wrongdoings. Here it is no linger the int

41、erest to gain but the interest to avoid losing certain things. 14. Many groundless opinions are held through sentimental associations. The thought is associated with memories-pleasant or unpleasant as the case may be-of particular persons who held similar opinions. Very often we like or dislike an o

42、pinion because it is held by somebody we like or dislike. This another common error. The fact is that there is no correlation between the truthfulness of an opinion and the person who holds that opinion. Nice and well-meaning people may have erroneous opinions, unpleasant people may hold correct opi

43、nions. 15. In adult life, as we have often observed, a bitter quarrel may change a mans opinion entirely. Antagonism to a man usually produces some antagonism to his opinions; antagonism: hostility; dislike; hatred There was a time when we believed that we should oppose whatever our enemies supported and support whatever our enemies opposed. This often proved to be wrong. T