Oxford Guide to Effective Argument and Critical Thinking by Colin Swatridge

Author:Colin Swatridge
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Published: 2014-01-19T16:00:00+00:00

Having considered how much we can claim to know, it is worth giving thought to what we may believe, or think we believe.

How much is a matter of belief?

I shall aim in this chapter to explain:

• that we all look at the world from our own angle;

• why this might influence the opinions we hold;

• why absolute objectivity may not be possible;

• why argument from principle may be risky.

Point of view

Every one of us sees the world from a particular point of view. This is what I meant when I said, in Chapter 2, that in your opening Statement, you might make it clear where you stand. You occupy a certain position: you live in a certain time, in a certain place, and you see the world at this time, in and from this place. You cannot do otherwise.

Consider what it is that makes you what you are:

• your genetic inheritance;

• the attachments you formed in infancy;

• your family background;

• the schooling you received;

• the ‘significant others’ in your life;

• what you have seen, heard, and done.

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