The word Good

I made a profound discovery that is quite disturbing.

Ask people to define the word good without looking at a dictionary

Then if they manage to pull that miracle off ask them to define words such as intelligence, respect, caring, love etc.

You might be suprised to realize the people you treat with respect or care about don’t even understand these basic words

I asked my mother what the word good means and her answer was

“good means what’s good. Not bad”

I never thought about this type of stuff either and found myself trying to find appropriate words to define these various words without causing conflicts or confusion

Try to define the word love without incorporating what’s offensive

I found it and find it very disgusting to try and enjoy life being disrespected by people, like my mother, who can’t even define these basic words to their children

a reply to: CloseEncountersGuy



There is no "good" or "bad" there just 'is'...


Remove the 'good' and then judging others is only half the fun....

a reply to: CloseEncountersGuy

I found it and find it very disgusting to try and enjoy life being disrespected by people, like my mother, who can’t even define these basic words to their children

Define “disrespected”...

a reply to: CloseEncountersGuy

Love is a verb .

Define Rant...

K

a reply to: CloseEncountersGuy

Good is better than bad.
In winter, hot is good. In summer hot is bad.
In politics, nothing is good.
What is good for you, is bad for other.

a reply to: CloseEncountersGuy

I found it and find it very disgusting to try and enjoy life being disrespected by people, like my mother, who can’t even define these basic words to their children

K, that there ⬆️, that's not good.

Here's the catch - it's hard to define things dictionary definition style. It's fairer test to ask them to properly use those words in a sentence in context. Then you see what they think is good, etc. It gives you an idea of what they think the word means than asking for a textbook definition.

originally posted by: CloseEncountersGuy
Try to define the word love without incorporating what’s offensive

Love is lots of little acts of kindness and affection without any expectations for reciprocation. Why is love so hard to understand?

a reply to: whyamIhere

Anything a Republican says about a Democrat.

originally posted by: the2ofusr1
a reply to: CloseEncountersGuy

Love is a verb .

Love is also a noun, and has a definition. Personally, I think if you can define it then you don't truly feel it, but that's just my perspective on a word that is so casually thrown around among people.

a reply to: dfnj2015

Anything a Republican says about a Democrat.

Is True

a reply to: tigertatzen

We seem to mix like and love .

originally posted by: ketsuko
Here's the catch - it's hard to define things dictionary definition style. It's fairer test to ask them to properly use those words in a sentence in context. Then you see what they think is good, etc. It gives you an idea of what they think the word means than asking for a textbook definition.

You mean like:

Dude, that car is so good and sick, I just love the way it ran me over and broke my pelvis! It hurts so good main!

This is a good way to die, and I love making you happy, I said.

originally posted by: EmmanuelGoldstein

originally posted by: ketsuko
Here's the catch - it's hard to define things dictionary definition style. It's fairer test to ask them to properly use those words in a sentence in context. Then you see what they think is good, etc. It gives you an idea of what they think the word means than asking for a textbook definition.

You mean like:

Dude, that car is so good and sick, I just love the way it ran me over and broke my pelvis! It hurts so good main!

This is a good way to die, and I love making you happy, I said.

Yep. I now have a pretty good idea of what that person thinks those words mean.

there is no real definition for such a thing. it was considered good, right, acceptable for people to be a human sacrifice, in some cases willingly in certain societies throughout history. most would define such behavior as abhorrent, evil, sadistic etc these days. these types of things always makes me ponder just how programmed we are by society and the environments we exist in and that their is the possibility that we go left instead of right and end up in a paradigm entirely different then where we are now

originally posted by: CloseEncountersGuy

Try to define the word love

There's a lot of confusion about "love".

I've heard it said or i should say read in a book called "The Road Less Travelled, A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth" by M. Scott Peck, MD, that what people think of as love being associated with either an emotion or a romantic inclination isn't really love, but false masks of love where he defines love as: "Love is the will, to give of one's self for the sake of another's spiritual growth and well being."

Love is also the will to employ what he calls "The Four Tools of Discipline" being

Delay of Gratification

Acceptance of Responsibility

Dedication to Truth and Reality

Balancing, or the ability to brack and control one's emotional reactions and responses.

It is interesting to consider that love isn't a feeling or a romantic attachment, but an act of the will in service to others..

Something to think about..

a reply to: CloseEncountersGuy
People have stopped using "good".
Everything that isn't bad is now "the best in the world, ever".

I feel there is really no issue with people being unable to accurately define the words they use.

Words are definitions themselves in a way. Therefore what you are asking for is definitions of definitions. A cycle which can (and does) go on for ever and one which, by the nature of it's ever increasing complexity, can only ever take you further away from the fundamental experience, not closer to it.

Words are useful and a convenience. However, words are not things, they are symbols for things. Confusing the symbols for things with the things themselves is a widespread disease of the mind and has led to a great deal of unhappiness in our world.

Words and trying to define them can only lead to more complexity, not less. The 'thing' you are trying to convey is, itself, the most simple form. Any attempt to put it into words is, necessarily, more complicated than the thing itself.

Life is not symbolic it is experiential. Inherently understanding the 'meanings' of things, or, more accurately, the nature and quality of things and their relationships with all other things BY EXPERIENCE is far more important than being able to explain them through symbols.

An experience can NEVER be truly and fully explained (or the quality of it conveyed) by mere words, in the same way that it can by sharing a direct experience.

Words are a tool. They are not "what is"

Don't worry about it, don't get too hung up on it

Life can be hard but living is effortless

a reply to: AnkhMorpork

I came across the issue of the word love in the English Bible . Thank God for the internet eh . "The Ancient Greeks’ 6 Words for Love (And Why Knowing Them Can Change Your Life) " www.yesmagazine.org...