Mixed guest musings
A new Abstract is long overdue, for which I apologise, and herewith present you with a mishmash of musings.
Firstly, originally from my friend and colleague Susie, musings on what people see in their 'mind's eye' if they have been blind since they were born. I think this is a very interesting question, but unfortunately don't know anyone who is blind to ask them. Can they imagine colours? And if they can, are they necessarily the same way a sighted person does? Come to think of it, do two sighted people visualise colours in the same way as each other?? The direction of these thoughts perhaps takes one back to solipsism and the very first Urban Abstract I ever posted (solipsism apparently being the philosophical idea that it might be the case that nothing outside one's own mind actually exists, and even if it does, one can never conclusively determine that it does because one only has one's own mind and experiences to draw on!)
Secondly, also from Susie and principally her experiences on the tube system in London, why do people tend not to follow the simplest of functional rules in modern Urban society? For example, walking out of 'no exit' gates, not moving right down the carriage when asked to and walking on the right/left of connecting walkways when signs instruct them to walk on the left/right. For my part, I suspect in the majority of cases it is because it is most convenient for the perpetrator (at the expense of others). But I do remain puzzled sometimes, for instance I do recall seeing a shop recently which had two doors, one with a large sign saying "Please use other door --->" and yet I saw more than one person struggling to open this locked door with the sign on!
Finally, from my brother Steve, we have the ponderings regarding social norms, in particular how one responds when thanked for doing something. Often in America, you will get a 'you're welcome' when you thank someone, but over here frequently there is nothing, save for perhaps a grunt or a silent smile. Why is this? Does it signify something related to the national psyche? I'm not sure how prevalent it is in cultures around the world but would hazard a guess that it is more common to say something than not.
2 comments:
Rich, you made me sound marginally bright! My basic question (before you deepened it "Cherrett style") was, if you have never seen a person, what do you think a person looks like. I know that blind people can feel people's faces etc. but still how do they intrepret this in their mind's eye? For example, someone with an enormous nose might not be most people's conventional idea of "attractive" but if you can't see, does a massive nose feel unattractive. I also wonder if blind people are more or less frightened of things than fully sighted people. For example I am frightened of staffies as they look mean but not of labs even though they may bark louder. Do blind people feel more fearful of the lab as they may bark louder?
Re: the absence of 'you're welcome' in British conversation. I don't think we've got anything to be ashamed of when it comes to verbal niceties. Rather it seems the Americans are excessive in this department. In the continent it seems usual to completely forego all please and thank-yous.
Below is an example of a typical exchange I distinctly remember witnessing while on holiday. It took place without any ill-feeling on either side.
Italian shopper: I want bread.
Italian baker: (silently hands over bread)
Italian shopper: (silently places €uros in small plastic tray which seems common in Europe).
Italian baker: (silently collects coins)
Italian shopper: (silently leaves the shop)
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