interesting question please answer.......?

Question

Lets say that a person is born into and lives there life in a sensory deprivation tank:


will that individual be able to come up with the idea of colors? what about coming up with the idea of an other person? and will they be able to come up with a private language in order to formulate there thoughts?

i would think that they would be very infintile and would not be able to be aware of anything but the self. there is no real thought and they could not even dream of anything because they would have no prior reference in which to create the idea of such a thing. they could do nothing and think of nothing. they can only BE and can only be aware of there own conciousness but would not be able to recognize that they can even be aware because there is no language to tell themselves that.

do you agree?

Answer 1

I agree.

It would be like never having been born, or not being born yet. The individual would have no concept of colors, self, speech, language, just as an infant has none.

In order to have a private language the individual would need to have someone to interact and communicate with.

Makes me think of the movie "Altered States".

Answer 2

There have been studies on these sort of things. For instance, I saw a PBS program that mentioned a young woman who grew up in a bedroom as a prisoner, and no one ever spoke to her- she was given meals but kept basically as an infant. After she was rescued, she was never really able to learn to communciate in language other than a few words. It's an interesting thought, the idea of sensory deprivation, but honestly a person probably would not live this way. We all need love. Ever hear of the hospital nursery for abandoned or orphaned babies, where all the babies except the baby closest to the door died? The baby closest to the door was picked up and held by the cleaning woman. We all need love, just as plants need air, water, and sunshine.

Answer 3

I do agree. The person would be the opposite of an infant born with a rudimentary brain stem, which really happens, and unable to develop a sense of self without the stimuli of others. It might be very peaceful. I would venture to say that even an adult would become the hypothetical creature if they were deprived of stimuli for long enough that their memory is no longer relevant and thus left in the state you describe.

Answer 4

Absolutely. All mammals require touch and some kind of attention. Depending on the kind of attention can determine their outcome. Look at the wolf. Many people consider them to be violent. They are only part of what their environment has determined for them. A cycle that is way before our time. Preservation. It does'nt mean that they are a violent species. Far from that. They are far beyond our humanity. They mate for life, protect and provide for their family. Look at the papers. Humans desert their young, file for custody suits, and don't provide for their young. Deprivation has nothing to do with instinct to care for one another, love, or survival. Anyone deprived fights for what they know.
There will be language and there will be colors. But my guess is that it will be instinctive and survival oriented.Who are we to judge?

Answer 5

Absolutly, those are what i call "stand alone" qualities. For example, humanity--a stand alone quality because you are still human if no one else is around you.

But things like love, knowledge, thought are not stand alone qualities. What would i think about if there is nothing to think about? How can I love if there is nothing to love? Love would have to end up being a learned quality because that very word presupposes an object on which to extend love to.

As for language, I would say that you would need others to pick up on this. For example, babies learn whatever language their parents speak

........ this is a marvellous question that points to the confirmation of the Christian Trinity and explains why everything boils down to relationships

Answer 6

i don't know...but after sitting here and pondering on what to type....well...all i can come up with is.....that is a freaky thought and gives me the creeps.......