MELODY VALLEJOS

CUI RESEARCH ESSAY

Its extremely easy to offend someone in todays society. Take a look on any social
media site or app and youll see an overwhelming abundance of expletive-laced
rants and 140 character tantrums being thrown over what another has postedjust
words being used to complain about other words. At the heart of the majority of
these frequent outbursts are these: contrasting opinions, beliefs, or ideas. The
minute you disagree with someone else youve crossed a line, let alone being
dogmatic in your beliefs. Thats a social sin beyond compare. Because to most,
believing that your thoughts are right is the same thing as believing that someone
elses dissimilar thoughts are wrongand since being wrong is a dreadful
embarrassment, being told that youre wrong is a dreadful insult. So, in an effort to
keep everyone pleased, its become much easier to tell everyone that theyre right,
that everything they think, believe, perceive, and feel is valid and true because its
valid and true to them and their experiences. The ancient Sophist philosopher
Protagoras would be right at home in society right now. His most renowned saying
man is the measure of all things ties right in to what many people are deciding to
support today: you cant say any understanding or belief is more true than another,
because the relativity of these things make all subjective topics equally true and
untrue. There are no absolute truths, because truth is always based on what an
individual perceives it to be (Mark).
An immediate reaction to this statement that declares overarching truths to be
fiction would be to cite some sort of law out of math or science. What Protagoras
meant cant possibly be accurate, because two plus two equals four. No matter how
strongly someone believes with all their heart that two plus two equals five, or
twelve, or five hundred and four, it simply cant. It will always equal four because it
has been proven to equal four and there is no evidence that can be presented
against the solution of four. However, despite the soundness of this logic, one must
consider the difference between truth and fact before using this as an argument. A
fact is indisputably correct, a part of reality that was not created, only
acknowledged (Willard). Truth on the other hand is much more complex. A truth is
fluid; its ever-changing to the individual. A person can believe one thing but be
swayed or convinced otherwise by debate or a specific incident. By nature, truth is
subjective, because its based off the perceptions and experiences of each person
(Fact vs. Truth).
Protagoras denied the existence of absolute or cohesive truth primarily as support
for his agnostic beliefs (Poster). He felt that no one could say definitively that the
existence of a God or gods is true, because each person interprets deism differently.
Some people choose not to interpret it at all, and the result is atheism- and
according to Protagoras, if one person in the world believes God doesnt exist, thats
true to them and makes it a truth in general. However, Protagoras didnt consider
the effects or even consequences of such a dogma when he introduced it. Beauty,
for example, is no stranger to subjectivity. In fact, its one of the most altered
abstracts. Its influenced by nearly everything and can transform at the quickest of

whims. Can you imagine if the fickle aspects of fascination or aesthetic were of the
same magnitude of truth? If ones idea of truth changed as often as your attraction
to someone or something? Nothing would be constant. Truth becomes something
trivial, even meaningless. However, Protagoras idea is without a doubt the most
detrimental to human morality. Goodness would be based solely circumstance or
motive, leaving out the significance of an action itself. Protagoras philosophy would
mean that all laws and rules that dictate how people should act would be invalid
because they dont take into consideration every single human perspective, since
ALL things are subjected to the measure of man. Without laws, it is a fact that there
would be chaos. If your moral ideas can be truer, and those of the Nazi less true,
C.S. Lewis once stated, there must be something--some Real morality--for them to
be true about. (Willard) Lewis asserts the notion that there are some personal
truths that, as a fact, keep the social order stable and efficacious. Morality is a
classic example of certain individual truths having to be compromised for the sake
of a greater society, something that would not have been acceptable according to
Protagoras thinking.
The phrase common good comes up when discussing Protagoras philosophy, the
focus of attention on the interests of all. Making decisions and running society
according to what will benefit the general public as a whole rather than a group or
individual. This substantially goes against Protagoras view, which suggests that
people should focus on their own immediate stream of perceptions and experiences
and call that their reality. If society was ran according to the line of thinking that
everyone determines their own truths, whos to say that your belief that youre fine
to drive home after excessive drinking is less valid than societys belief that doing
that particular action is dangerous and irresponsible? Or your belief that its
acceptable to discipline your child by hitting them is less valid than societys belief
that it isnt? Anyone would technically be able to do anything they want, and their
defense can simply be I believe this is right. Its true to them, and no one would
have the right to say it isnt. Disarray would ensue. That is why its worrisome that
people are so easily disturbed by people who are firm in their beliefs, who dont shy
away from the existence of absolutes. That is why it is so essential that humanity
pokes their head out of the cloud of their own beliefs, opinions, experiences, truths,
and life to consider everyone elses.

Works Cited

Joshua J. Mark. Protagoras of Abdera: Of All Things Man Is The

Measure, Ancient History Encyclopedia. 18 Jan. 2012. http://www.ancient.eu
/article/61/.
"Fact vs. Truth." The Oil in Your Lamp. The Word Press, 08 Aug. 2013.
http://theoyl.com/key-concepts-2/holding/fact-vs-truth/.
"Protagoras." Great Philosophers. Oregon State University, 2002.
http://oregonstate.edu/.
Willard, Dallas. "Truth in the Fire: C.S. Lewis and Pursuit of Truth Today."
Dallas Willard ARTICLES. 21 July 1998. http://www.dwillard.org/articles/artview.asp?
artID=68.
Poster, Carol. "Protagoras." Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. IEP.
http://www.iep.utm.edu/protagor/.