Berger and Luckman’s piece presents the idea that ‘reality is socially constructed and the sociology of knowledge must analyze the processes in which this occurs”. (Berger and Luckman: 1) They attempt to explain that we need to realize that the very reality we live in is something that we as a society have socially constructed. Basically, we as a society have manipulated, added, perceived reality to be what it is today. In order for us to analyze this process, we need to apprehend and comprehend the sociology of knowledge. A great question they ask is, ‘what is reality?’ They mention how we shift from the different multiple realities and that there are objects that we designate between our consciousness and our dreams. With the difference in the way objects are presented between our consciousness and dreams, our minds are capable of moving through the different spheres of reality, making us aware of the fact that the world consists of different realities.
So how does that play into specific situations that mess with our ‘reality’? Let’s take the example of hallucinogen drugs. Hallucinogen drugs, when taken, can alter a person’s sense of reality. Stuff like prescription pills, prescription cough medicine, weed, etc can all change a person’s perception between reality and being ‘out-of-reality’. But again, like Berger and Luckman ask, “what is reality?” Who are we to say that the non medicated person experiences reality while those that are high are living a surreal moment? We only say that they can’t think and perceive clearly because while high they can ‘see’ things that may not be there. Yet what if we, the non- medicated, are the ones living a surreal-ity?
What about dreams? We’ve all had dreams that have been too real for comfort, whether bad or good. These dreams have seemed so real to us that we don’t even realize we are dreaming until the moment we wake up. Regardless of knowing for sure if we were dreaming or not, the ‘dream’ world and ‘reality’ both presents itself in a different consciousness that helps us differentiate when we transition from one to the other. Yet even then, people can get confused on if what they experienced was a dream or reality! I personally have had dreams where I would literally be able to eat anything and everything I wanted and (no joke) I was able to actually taste it. It felt so real to me because of the fact that I could smell, taste, and feel it yet it was a dream. Or those dreams where you’re flying or falling-they’ve felt so real that there have been many times I’ve fallen out of bed thinking I was flying! The butterflies I got in my stomach were the same ones I get when I ride roller coasters, making me feel like I was literally falling yet I knew it was a dream.
Looking back at my examples I can see why it would take a great deal of knowledge to even be able to start analyzing the idea that our reality is actually a socially constructed phenomenon. What makes the life we are living in reality when we don’t even really know what reality is?
So how does that play into specific situations that mess with our ‘reality’? Let’s take the example of hallucinogen drugs. Hallucinogen drugs, when taken, can alter a person’s sense of reality. Stuff like prescription pills, prescription cough medicine, weed, etc can all change a person’s perception between reality and being ‘out-of-reality’. But again, like Berger and Luckman ask, “what is reality?” Who are we to say that the non medicated person experiences reality while those that are high are living a surreal moment? We only say that they can’t think and perceive clearly because while high they can ‘see’ things that may not be there. Yet what if we, the non- medicated, are the ones living a surreal-ity?
What about dreams? We’ve all had dreams that have been too real for comfort, whether bad or good. These dreams have seemed so real to us that we don’t even realize we are dreaming until the moment we wake up. Regardless of knowing for sure if we were dreaming or not, the ‘dream’ world and ‘reality’ both presents itself in a different consciousness that helps us differentiate when we transition from one to the other. Yet even then, people can get confused on if what they experienced was a dream or reality! I personally have had dreams where I would literally be able to eat anything and everything I wanted and (no joke) I was able to actually taste it. It felt so real to me because of the fact that I could smell, taste, and feel it yet it was a dream. Or those dreams where you’re flying or falling-they’ve felt so real that there have been many times I’ve fallen out of bed thinking I was flying! The butterflies I got in my stomach were the same ones I get when I ride roller coasters, making me feel like I was literally falling yet I knew it was a dream.
Looking back at my examples I can see why it would take a great deal of knowledge to even be able to start analyzing the idea that our reality is actually a socially constructed phenomenon. What makes the life we are living in reality when we don’t even really know what reality is?