The Knowers Perspective Is Essential in the Pursuit of Knowledge Essay

Introduction

The knower, in the pursuit of knowledge, is on a quest to increase their understanding of the world within and around them. This is, therefore, a quest to gain a better perspective, a more informed perspective, a more enlightened view of the world in which they are. The knower's perspective is essential in the pursuit of knowledge, the knower's perspective is the focus of education. The chief aim of having the knower commit to a course of learning is to improve the knower's understanding of a particular subject, to have the knower view the object of study from a different point of view, a more truthful way of understanding something. What is a knowers’ perspective? The perspective of the knower, therefore, is a central point in the quest for knowledge; it is a yardstick that can be counted upon to measure the success of a particular course of learning, for an entirely learnt course will result in a new more enlightened perspective in the knower.

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Knowledge Acquisition Methods

There are several ways in which the knower acquires knowledge; the first way is through memory. This affects perspective in that any new experiences are referenced with what has already happened in the past. There are different kinds of knowledge in the cognitive perspective. A person's current perspective is, therefore, reliant on memories and plays a prominent role in the interpretation of new information. The Schema theory states that humans, in the process of knowledge acquisition, relate to similar representations in our brain when in the quest for new knowledge and understanding (Lehrer, 1990).

It is futile to attempt to impart knowledge upon a knower without having a proper perspective of the role that the perspective of the knower plays in the process of knowledge acquisition. When the knower attempts to acquire a more intimate understanding of a subject, their current perspective on that subject is put on trial. Throughout the course of learning, this perspective is measured up against newly discovered truths and when suitably adjusted accordingly (Hartnack, 2001). The view of the knower, at the start of education, is assumed to be an ignorant view, a perspective that is informed by no fact, a naive perspective. At the end of a completed course of learning, the knower is assumed to apply the range of knowledge gathered to their view of the subject, therefore yielding a more mature and logical perspective. The creation of a sound mind in a sound body requires that the knower firms sound understanding of the subjects under study (Lehrer, 1990). If the knower's perspective is limited, so will be the pursuit of knowledge. The knower's perspective may be subjective.

It is, therefore, important to perceive as of central importance the perspective of the knower in the journey to enlightenment. The perspective of the knower should be the starting point of the education journey. It is also the central point. The intent of education should be to transform the way a knower perceives a subject. The change of perception is, therefore, the end of the process in which education is the means. To know is to have an informed view of a subject, to learn is to build a more intimate understanding of a subject, the learning process, therefore, is a quest to change the way in which an ignorant mind perceives a subject so as to enable the knower to create a more informed perspective on the subject.

How Does Perspective Influence the Pursuit of Knowledge?

The pursuit of knowledge is the process of acquiring truths. It is the process of learning and building an understanding of the subject involved. The knowers’ perspective is essential in the pursuit of knowledge, for perspective is the template upon which new knowledge is measured. Any new information that the knower acquires goes through this template and alters the template or is altered by the template. Perspective is the interface with which the knower interacts with any new knowledge. Attempting to create knowledge without considering the knower's perspective is futile as the field on which the facts being imparted will play is the perspective of the learner, gaining more knowledge, so as to create a more enlightened perspective on the subject.

Culture and belief differences can shape the way in which knowledge is perceived. According to a study done in 1932 by Barlett known as the War of The Ghost, culture and belief are among the main influencers of how a knower perceives and interprets any new knowledge (Dretske, 1981). This, therefore, puts perspective as the central focus of the education system. To change uneducated and unenlightened perspectives into polished and informed perspectives is one of the chief reasons for the study.

The knower must also be cautious of perspective in his pursuit of knowledge, for the wrong or misguided perspectives can be a hindering block in the process of enlightenment. The wrong perspectives can create the wrong convictions; the wrong aspects could lead the knower to interpret new knowledge learnt in a skewed way (Dretske, 1981). Perspective is, therefore, essential in that as the interface with which new knowledge is filtered and analyzed; information can be grossly misinterpreted when sieved through skewed perspectives. A knower who has sound perspectives will interpret any new information that he acquires with that sound perspective and as such his decisions will be more informed by the right knowledge interpreted in the right way. A person seeking knowledge but with the wrong perspectives will interpret the information differently and, therefore, his judgment will be informed by the right information but the wrong interpretation of that information.

Conclusion

The formation of right well-informed perspectives is, therefore, one of the main aims of education. As such, perspective is essential to a learner's pursuit of knowledge as raw timber is essential to a carpenter's quest to fashion an artistic piece of furniture. It is through education and enlightenment that a knower's perspective will be polished to become more civilized and more mature. Perspective is therefore like the book into which new lessons learnt are recorded and used for reference when that knowledge is needed in the future. Perspective is the form in which knowledge that has been acquired in the knower's pursuit of knowledge manifests in the knower's interpretation of that knowledge. I, therefore, agree entirely with the statement that a knower's perspective is essential to the pursuit of knowledge.

References

Dretske, F. (1981). Knowledge And The flow of Information. MIT Press. doi: 10.2307/2184492

Hartnack, J. (2001). Kant's theory of knowledge: An introduction to the Critique of pure reason. Indianapolis [u.a.]: Hackett Publ. Comp.

Lehrer, K. (1990). Theory of Knowledge. The University of Arizona.