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An Overview of ThisIsNotThat
Basic Understandings
Description of Curriculum
This work is based on the interdisciplinary methodology of general semantics (GS) as formulated by Alfred Korzybski. GS explores the field of human behavior from the perspective of how our language and symbol systems affect our abilities to adapt, survive and thrive as fully functional individuals. It concerns how we perceive, construct, evaluate and respond to our experiences ... particularly our language-behavior responses.
I've organized the GS principles into these major areas:
Time-Binding
Scientific Orientation
Abstracting/Evaluating
Verbal Awareness
Non-Verbal Awareness
- Time-Binding — Through our use of languages and symbol systems such as music, math, art, etc., we can facilitate learning between people, and between generations of peoples, that results in ever-expanding human progress. We can also, however, use such symbol systems to perpetuate atavistic feuds, myths, superstitions, prejudices, etc., that result in conflict, suffering and death. What accounts for the difference in our ability to progress technologically and inability to progress sociologically?
- Scientific Orientation — The methods of science that have resulted in four centuries of advancement in medicine, engineering, physics, etc., have application for us in our daily lives. From our day-to-day experiences, we gather information, form opinions and beliefs, gather more information, form more opinions and beliefs, etc. Does the information we gather from our daily experiences support our beliefs and opinions? Do we modify those beliefs and opinions when the 'facts' of our experiences warrant? Do we apply what we 'know' about ourselves and the world around us in our daily living?
- Abstracting/Evaluating — Our day-to-day experiences are partial and incomplete abstractions of all that we could possibly see, hear, touch, taste or smell. Therefore the opinions and beliefs (or evaluations) we derive from those experiences ought to be tempered with some degree of tentativeness, uncertainty, and "to-me-ness."
- Verbal Awareness — Language provides the primary tool for time-binding, for advancing progress within societies and cultures, as well as enabling individuals to adjust, adapt, survive and thrive within an increasingly chaotic verbal environment. We are, for the most part, unaware of the effects of our verbal environment on how we react to our daily experiences. How often do we react to words, labels, symbols and signs as if they were the 'real' things represented? Do we use language, or are we used by language? Who rules our symbols?
- Sensory Awareness — You could say that we live in two worlds – our verbal world of words (and thoughts, opinions, beliefs, doubts,etc.) and the non-verbal world of our actual sensory experiences. We live on the non-verbal levels, but many times our verbal pre-occupations preclude us from appreciating what we experience on a moment-to-moment, here-and-now, non-verbal basis. To what degree do we project our verbal world of expectations onto our non-verbal sensory experiences? Do we experience 'what is going on' in the moment, or do we see what we’re looking for, or hear what we expect to hear? Are we aware of ourselves, our non-verbal experiencing, and our limitations?
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