>
> (http://tinyurl.com/rmmfc)
>
> Because for many people
> stories are considered a much 'higher' and more
> reliable reason than are 'technical accounts.' ...
> for millions,
> obviously, a well-told story is *enough*. These people
> would prefer to believe a good story that appeals to
> them rather than believe the more stringent 'technical
> account' ...
>
> I believe the preference for one type of reason over
> another is *individual*, not universal. It has to do
> with predilection.
An important point that I picked up upon rereading
the article is that the types of reasons we give and
receive depend on our relationship with the other
person. Important relationships merit stories.
Hence, we see a movement in American management
to tell workers why the business is run the way it is,
rather than a convention such as, "My way, or the
highway." Managers are trying to get workers to buy
into the larger corporate story in order to be more
productive and involved.
Just as important people merit stories, stories can
help lubricate relationships.
When Castaneda tells us an elaborate story, we feel
like insiders to privileged realms. When Maharishi
tells us the story of meeting Guru Dev, we feel like
part of the family.
When a TMO apparatchik says, "Maharishi is
enlightened, hence his wishes are life-supporting,
and you should fulfill them," that's a convention
that bespeaks unequal power, and does nothing
to enrich the relationship. (I must say, for the record,
that I've never been given such a reason, although
it may have been implied once or twice.)
----
The article points out that when people are speaking
past one another, it's usually because they're using
two entirely different types of reasons. Abortion
opponents use the story of a life denied, whereas
supporters cite a convention, the woman's right to
choose.
Next time you run across a quarrel in this forum, see
if it's not resulting from the conflict of two types of
stories, such as story vs. technical account, or code
vs. convention.
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