The Crucial Divide: Discerning the Distinction Between Opinion and Sense

In the vast landscape of human thought, few concepts are as fundamental, yet as frequently conflated, as opinion and sense. At planksip.org, we believe that clarity in these matters is not merely an academic exercise, but a vital tool for navigating the complexities of existence and forging a path towards genuine knowledge. This article aims to illuminate the profound distinction between these two facets of our understanding, drawing from the wellspring of the Great Books of the Western World, to equip us with the discernment necessary for intellectual growth.

Unpacking the Foundations: What Do We Mean by "Sense"?

When we speak of "sense," we are often referring to two primary, though interconnected, capacities:

  1. Sensory Perception: This is our direct apprehension of the world through our five senses – sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. It is the raw data, the impressions that, as philosophers like John Locke in his An Essay Concerning Human Understanding argued, form the initial building blocks of our experience. Sense in this context is immediate, empirical, and generally shared among those with similar faculties. A red apple looks red to most, and its texture feels smooth. This shared experience forms a foundational layer of objective reality, albeit one filtered through our biological apparatus.

  2. Sense as Meaning or Understanding: Beyond mere sensation, "sense" also refers to the coherence or logical intelligibility of an idea or statement. When something "makes sense," it aligns with reason, internal consistency, or established principles. This is the realm where propositions gain clarity and where arguments can be judged for their validity. Aristotle, in his logical works, laid much groundwork for understanding how concepts connect to form coherent sense, moving beyond mere perception to structured thought.

The critical characteristic of sense in both interpretations is its grounding, either in verifiable experience or in logical coherence. It points towards an external or rational framework that can, in principle, be accessed or evaluated by others.

Deconstructing "Opinion": The Realm of Belief and Conjecture

In stark contrast to sense, opinion resides primarily in the subjective realm of belief, judgment, or personal conviction that is not necessarily based on absolute certainty or demonstrable proof. While an opinion can be informed by sense experience or rational thought, its defining feature is its lack of conclusive evidence or universal agreement.

Plato, perhaps more than any other philosopher in the Great Books, emphasized the perilous distinction between doxa (opinion) and episteme (knowledge). In his Republic, the famous Allegory of the Cave vividly illustrates how individuals trapped in illusion mistake shadows for reality, clinging to their opinions formed from limited perspectives. For Plato, opinion is often fluid, susceptible to persuasion, and tethered to the changeable world of appearances, rather than the immutable truths of the Forms.

Key Characteristics of Opinion:

  • Subjectivity: Often reflects personal preference, interpretation, or bias.
  • Variability: Can differ widely from person to person, culture to culture.
  • Lack of Justification: May not be supported by rigorous evidence or logical argument.
  • Open to Dispute: Easily challenged or changed without necessarily being proven wrong.

Consider the opinion that "vanilla is the best ice cream flavor." This statement, while deeply felt by some, lacks any objective sense that can be universally verified. It's a matter of taste, not a statement of fact or a principle of logic.

The Crucial Distinction: Bridging or Widening the Gap?

The distinction between opinion and sense is not merely semantic; it's epistemological. It dictates how we evaluate claims, engage in discourse, and ultimately, how we construct our understanding of reality.

Feature Opinion Sense (Perception) Sense (Meaning/Coherence)
Basis Personal belief, preference, limited data Direct sensory experience Logical consistency, rational principles
Verifiability Difficult, subjective, often non-verifiable Empirically testable, observable Rationally demonstrable, internally consistent
Objectivity Low (highly subjective) Moderate (shared sensory experience) High (universal rational principles)
Reliability Variable, often unreliable for truth claims Generally reliable for immediate experience Highly reliable for logical validity
Relation to Knowledge A starting point, but not knowledge itself; can hinder or lead to it if refined A source of raw data for knowledge A framework for organizing and validating knowledge

Sense provides the raw material and the logical framework. Opinion, by contrast, is often the unrefined interpretation of that material, or a belief held without sufficient recourse to the framework. The journey from mere opinion to robust knowledge necessitates a rigorous engagement with sense – both empirical and rational – to test, refine, and justify our beliefs. David Hume, while skeptical of ultimate certainty, nonetheless highlighted the role of impressions (sensory data) in forming our ideas, underscoring the foundational role of sense in any claim to knowledge.

(Image: A classical Greek fresco depicting Plato and Aristotle. Plato, gesturing upwards towards the heavens, represents his focus on ideal forms and the world of abstract ideas, while Aristotle, with his hand extended forward towards the earth, symbolizes his emphasis on empirical observation and the material world. A scroll lies open between them, illustrating the ongoing philosophical dialogue and the tension between rationalism and empiricism that underpins the distinction between opinion and sense.)

From Opinion and Sense to Knowledge: The Philosopher's Quest

The ultimate aim of philosophy, as many of the Great Books attest, is the pursuit of knowledge. This pursuit is inextricably linked to our ability to differentiate between fleeting opinion and grounded sense.

  • Refining Opinion: An opinion is not inherently bad. It can be a hypothesis, a starting point for inquiry. However, for an opinion to evolve into knowledge, it must be subjected to the scrutiny of sense. Does it align with observable facts? Is it logically coherent? Can it withstand rational critique?
  • Leveraging Sense: Our sensory experiences provide the data, and our rational capacity for sense (meaning) allows us to organize, analyze, and interpret that data. Immanuel Kant, in his Critique of Pure Reason, masterfully synthesized empiricism and rationalism, arguing that "thoughts without content are empty, intuitions without concepts are blind." Both sense (intuition/experience) and conceptual understanding (reason) are essential for constructing knowledge.

To truly understand, to truly know, we must cultivate the discipline to question our opinions, to seek out the underlying sense of things, and to build our understanding on foundations that are as robust as our intellect can make them. This is the enduring lesson from millennia of philosophical inquiry: the distinction between what we merely believe and what we can genuinely comprehend and justify is the bedrock of intellectual integrity.

Video by: The School of Life

💡 Want different videos? Search YouTube for: ""Plato Allegory of the Cave Explained" for a visual understanding of opinion vs. knowledge."

Video by: The School of Life

💡 Want different videos? Search YouTube for: ""John Locke Empiricism Summary" for insights into sense experience as a basis for knowledge."

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