Common Sense

In chapter 4, common sense is defined as “a by-product of what we know and what we practice.”(page 63) We would be judged by others based on what they think is common. Aristotele expected speaker and audiences shares enough common sense so that speaker don’t need to state what it is. The difficult thing is that common is fluid, so common sense existing today would not be shared anymore ten years after from today. Also, common sense in the United States would not be same in other countries because it seems to have universal appeal, but it is recognized among certain groups.

I believe common sense could work both in good way and bad way. As Aristotele suggested, common sense makes our life easier by giving us what is expected in the society without explanation. It helps us to keep the public order. Almost everyone knows what would be happened when we drop a glass on the floor. On the other hand, we sometimes can’t understand others’ behavior and blame for lack of knowledge. Common sense can tie our mind and keep us from creating new decisions. In addition, it can make in-group and out-group environment with own standards and generalization.

The phrase “It is common sense!” would make people confused and sometimes irritated since it can mean you are not educated or don’t have knowledge. In intercultural class I’m currently taking, we were taught our value is varied by many groups such as gender and heritage. For example, common sense of proximity is different from Japan and the United States. Japanese people do not give a hug for their family, so it is weird for them to hug with family with their common sense. It requires to learn common sense in order to adjust other culture.