The Paradox of Perception

Understanding human perception brings us to the somewhat esoteric subject of the human trait known as EGO. I will not belabor this discourse with an in-depth academic exploration into the Id, Ego, and Super-Ego, popularized by the Freudian structural model of the human psyche. Nor will I make any distinctions in reference to the "Male Ego" (I’ve never even heard of a "Female Ego"). Gender not withstanding, for the purpose of our discussion regarding the ego, it will suffice to say that we all have one, and in relatively equal measure. For the sake of brevity the next few sections will focus attention on the predominant aspects of ego germane to our subject.

Ego breeds the evils of prejudice. And since I brought up this immediately offensive and politically incorrect "hot-potato" of a word, an explanation of context is clearly in order.

Most people think of prejudice in terms of its common social stigma, perhaps most notably in the form of racial prejudice. But prejudice is by no means restricted to race. Prejudice has evolved throughout our cultural history to include such things as women, homosexuals bisexuals (pretty much any sexuals), people with disabilities, the poor, the rich, the old, the young, drunkards (a personal favorite), and the list goes on ad nauseum. Name any single thing in the known universe and there will likely be someone somewhere that holds prejudices for or against it.

The preceding paragraph pertained to prejudice in reference to things from the world outside the mind. But ego breeds another kind of prejudice, a yin to the yang as it were. Instead of pertaining to things outside the mind this type of prejudice is decidedly in favor of everything inside the mind. This incarnation of ego is characterized by an inflated sense of self worth and extreme self assuredness were one's own thoughts and opinions reign supreme to the exclusion of all others.

It must be acknowledged this orientation of the ego does indeed pose some significant advantages. A mind that views the world strictly through the lens of a self-fabricated ego can move through that world with single mindedness of purpose, effortlessly brushing aside any considerations that could stand in the way of achieving its goals. But success thus derived does not come without cost. Also there is no guarantee an inflated sense of self will achieve great success, especially when said inflation consists more of air than of substance. The cost is the same regardless and one way or another the devil always collects his due. Those that suffer this affliction rarely find the strength of character to realize their plight or recognize its folly.

The concept of prejudice extends far beyond its contemporary connotations to political incorrectness (a type of prejudice in its own right). In the larger sense prejudice denotes the ego harboring a steadfast penchant to favor its own personal preferences. There is nothing wrong with preferences per se, we all have them, but it is not the acquisition of specific preferences that is at issue. The issue is how ego tends to dominate our thinking and how its prejudices severely narrow our field of view, crippling our capacity to fathom the alternatives that make up the full spectrum experience of life. Prejudice is the function of an ego that regards its own preferences, whatever they may be, as the ultimate benchmark by which all things are measured and judged.

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