William: For what it's worth, we're approaching convergence on "fictions". I
would say that our reality is "constructed" (not fictional) and that we
"construct" based on both observations which we know are 'fictional" and
"factual".
I agree that my communications on the list is impaired by my lack of
background in philosophy and creative activity. I am little able to perceive
your position purely in philosophical terms.
----- Original Message -----
From: "William Conger" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, December 31, 2008 4:29 PM
Subject: Re: Malcolm Gladwell and beliefs)
I never said that one truth is as good as another. There is such a state
as true fiction and false fiction. Again, by fiction I mean the necessity
of our reinventing the stream of experience not only as we experience it
but as we recall it, too. That reinvention is always partial and biased,
and thus it is fictional. There is, in my view, no alternative to this.
That's why in court several witnesses are better than one, or why 12 jurors
are better than one, or why cross examination is aimed at teasing out the
correspondences among overlapping reinventions of past events. Several
reinventions of the same event can produce more likely evidence than one.
I think you are simplifying my view by testing it in everyday terms
instead of philosophically. I admit my terms may not be everyday usage,
such as "fiction versus actuality" but I have tried to be clear in stating
my more complex way of using such terms because this is that sort of
dialogue, not everyday conversation.
WC
--- On Wed, 12/31/08, GEOFF CREALOCK <[email protected]> wrote:
From: GEOFF CREALOCK <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: Malcolm Gladwell and beliefs)
To: [email protected]
Date: Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 2:57 PM
William: Given your statement, cited by Cheerskep, "All
stories are based on
memory. All memories are fiction" I wonder if you
would feel constrained if
you were required to "tell the truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the
truth". Presumably one fiction is as good, or better
than another.
Geoff C
>From: [email protected]
>Reply-To: [email protected]
>To: [email protected]
>Subject: Re: Malcolm Gladwell and beliefs)
>Date: Wed, 31 Dec 2008 15:19:15 EST
>
>Here is what you "actually say", William:
>
> > "there are numerous factual histories of the
American Revolution". . .
>each
> > one is fictional to some degree"
> >
>Please tell us what your word is for those portions
that are NOT fictional
>to
>any degree.
>
>This is also what you "actually said":
>
>"All stories are based on memory. All memories are
fiction."
>
>It is that universal that caught my interest. Do you
now want to modify it
>to
>put it this way?: "All stories are based on memory
to some degree. All
>memories are fiction to some degree."
>
>
>**************
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