Cara MacGregor
English First Peoples 12
Mrs. Graham
February 20th, 2023
What frames our Worldviews?
The ways in which we view the world vary from person to person, though they all stem from the same general factors. The environment around you is arguably the most impactful when it comes to world views, but personal values, beliefs, and societies also play a significant role. Personally, social influences greatly affect my world views, as I am someone who is easily guided by public opinion. Although I do have my own morals, I typically form my world views through what is shown to me on social media. Despite the common perception of the internet being overwhelmingly negative, there are several useful pieces of knowledge I have learned online. Posts about political, societal, and environmental issues have randomly shown up on my screen, thus forcing me to consume new information. Often, I form my views regarding these topics to match the opinions of those around me, or to match the opinion of whom provided me with said information. Unknowingly, I minimize my own beliefs in favour of fitting in with society.
As previously stated, environment is usually considered to have the largest influence on a person. In the photo essay, Where Children Sleep by James Mollison, it can be seen how different environments form significant differences in development. Children that grew up in wealthy homes are photographed smiling in clean, ironed clothing, while those who grew up in less fortunate situations are seen frowning with dirt and scars on their bodies, along with tears in their clothes. These differences solely reflect the physical individualities between each child, therefore not even taking culture, society, education, and beliefs into consideration. The Indigenous Ways of Knowing and Being expresses that “We – the two-legged, four-legged, finned and feathered, plants and rocks – are all related”. This ideology connects perfectly with the fact that we are all separate, though the factors forming our views are all the same.