<p>Excerpt: A better understanding of other people contributes to the development of moral virtues. We shall be both kinder and fairer in our treatment of others if we understand them better. Understanding ourselves and understanding others are connected, since as human beings we all havethings in common.
Adapted from Anne Sheppard, Aesthetics: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Art</p>
<p>Assignment: Do we need other people in order to understand ourselves?</p>
<p>Essay: In order to understand ourselves, we definitely need the help of other people. although we may learn a lot about ourselves through isolation, adding the variable of interaction with others allows us to see man other aspects of our personality.
For examples, during my transition from elementary school to middle school, I became more of an extrovert and less of an introvert. Through interaction with others, i realized that i was not as clever of funny as i thought i was. However, i also began to appreciate other qualities in my personality that i did not realize i had. In addition, the arena of middle school is one of great criticism, where those who deviate from the norm in any way are mocked for their differences. This cruel aspect of middle school, however, helps us realize our faults as well as our uniqueness.
While we spend the better part of our childhood and adolescence learning who we are, may of use spend our later years forgetting. When patients are diagnosed with Alzheimer's, doctors often recommend that they be surround with people that they love. These people provide a critical aspect of the patient's life and therefore will help the patient better cope with their disease and may trigger memories. In addition, the blank state that results from this disease may give an outside perspective of someone's personality through how others act towards them.
As a result of evolution, human beings are very social creatures. Because social contact is hardwired into our psyche, the only way that we can truly experience who we are is through our interactions with other people.</p>