For He Would Be Lion and We Be Truth Hunters
If a lion could talk, we could not understand him.
— Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951)
Truth Hunters Can't Leave Well Enough Alone
For He Would Be Lion, and We Be Truth Hunters
If a lion could talk, we could not understand him.
— Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951)
Today's responsion counterpoints the featured quote using the Free Form Association (FFA) technique. This "Free For All" doubles as something within each of us, a gift from the present, for all to use–a Good given talent that continues to shape our identities.
What's interesting about the quote from Wittgenstein and pair-bonded title; For He Would Be Lion and We Be Truth Hunters, is that ChatGPT considers my responsion a quote from The Second Coming, a famous poem from William Butler Yeats.
Where did that come from?
It couldn't be further from the truth. It only takes a few moments to discover that Yeats' poem has no such line and probably no second coming either. Or is there?
Here, I created a version of Yeats reciting the poem.
As you can see, there is no such instance of He Would Be Lion, and We Be Truth Hunters. So why did ChatGPT say it was a line from this famous poem? Oops!
Let's Unpack This
Here is the sentence again...
He Would Be Lion, and We Be Truth Hunters.
On the surface, the sentence is grammatically wrong, but I intentionally left it this way to keep it "hunter-gatherer-esque", similar to, me caveman, you Jane.
Probably because we don't hunt lions anymore, and (more importantly) my ability to use "lion" to reference the King of the Jungle and a liar only works if I maintain the caveman approach. In the spirit of James Joyce, say it out loud and proud as if you were part of the pride;
He Would Be Lion, and We Be Truth Hunters.
— Yeates? Sanderson?
This all highlights my concern with AI tools like ChatGPT. I have clearly demonstrated that the sentence originated in my head and really is a playful attempt to associate with the quote from Wittgenstein.
"The" truth couldn't possibly come from the lion because we couldn't understand him. Ensure you don't miss this point, which is the central point of this article, and that is the truth claim that truth is itself an act of understanding. If we can't understand someone, we can't uncover the truth.
If you want to join a new group of truth seekers, join me for the inaugural episode of Cultural Journalism to explore the independent investigation of the truth. Do you have what it takes to be a cultural journalist?
Our propensity to peruse Truth is willful confinement without the pandemic. Our tribal instincts are without pride; take another look if you think I'm a lion. Language is a byproduct of human evolution, so the Greeks called us language animals.
Hunting for Truth
The journalistic vision sharpens to the point of maximum impact every event, every individual, and social configuration; but the honing is uniform.
— George Steiner (1929-2020)
The titled responsion is just a big game that we all play.
The uniformity in the honing process of journalism allows for a balanced perspective on competing ideas, as journalists are trained to weigh and evaluate all sides of an issue before presenting the facts to their audience. This helps ensure the reporting is fair, unbiased and presents multiple viewpoints.
By consistently honing their skills, journalists can bring professionalism and objectivity. This enables them to sort through complex information, identify the essential details, and present them in a way that is easy for the public to understand.
Moreover, uniformity in the honing process helps journalists remain grounded in their pursuit of truth and resist the temptation to sensationalize or distort the facts to generate clicks or ratings. This allows them to maintain the public's trust and credibility, which is essential to their role as watchdogs of society.
This graduated role reversal of humility is an act worth thinking about. Revolutions take place despite our preoccupation with initiation. As the world turns, living is perpetual, limited to our species in a language only.
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Daniel Sanderson