Back Education Plus
Understanding the writer’s perspective
When Greek philosopher Aristotle died, he left behind a simple but clear will. Along with instructions for what should be done with his wealth, there was an important section in it: “Provisions for slaves: The slave Myrmex shall be returned to his family....Ambracis also is to be freed... When my daughter is married, Tacho shall be freed, and also Philo and Olympios...” Aristotle wanted some of his slaves to be freed, and others to be employed well. When I first read this I noted that Aristotle treated his slaves well -- but it bothered me that he had slaves at all. Wasn’t he this great philosopher, known for his wisdom and knowledge? Something didn’t add up -- how could Aristotle practise slavery?
Almost any time that we read material from the past, we encounter such contradictions. The first reaction commonly is to judge people’s opinions based on the values and opinions that we ourselves believe in. Most of the early freedom fighters in India, for example, wanted not independence, but only some form of representation in the government, or simply wanted a few laws enacted. For us today, living in a free India, that just seems wrong. But when reading such material, it is important to read from the writer’s perspective: we need to take into account the world that the writer lived in, consider the prevailing beliefs and opinions on relevant issues, and make sense of the material based on these considerations. This concept is in fact named after a metaphor related to sight: point of view.
When we attempt to understand someone’s point of view, we focus on understanding the world in which the writer lived. What did the writer see in his time? What was it that influenced the writer? Aristotle, for example, was born in a rich family, and received the best education possible at the time -- a privilege then available only to the very rich. He would have grown up in a world where slavery was commonplace. When you consider this, the fact that Aristotle freed his slaves becomes more important that the fact that he had them in the first place. Because from Aristotle’s point of view, some people not having any freedom, was common, yet he appreciated their need for freedom. This isn’t to say that slavery was right even at that time. It wasn’t, of course. But to read some material -- especially something from a very different culture or from a very distant era -- and appreciate it, to make a genuine assessment of a writer’s thoughts and his contribution, it is often necessary to set aside our own beliefs and instead -- at least temporarily -- see the matter from the perspective of the writer. The first question to ask therefore is not whether you agree with the writer, but whether the writer agreed with his own time and with his own world. Nilesh Jahagirdar
© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu