Theory of Knowledge: Sense Perception

Sense perception, by definition, is a concept by or based on sensations. Sensation, a physical feeling resulting from something that comes into contact with the human body. We perceive these sensations through our 5 common senses: touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing. Although all people may have the ability to use these same senses, they may not be having the same impressions of that sense. Aldous Huxley suggests, “By its very nature, every embodied spirit is doomed to suffer and enjoy in solitude. Sensations, feelings, insights, fancies- all these are private and, except through symbols and at second hand, incommunicable.” This explains that every person, or “embodied spirit”, is truly alone in the way they perceive everyday sensations because no one else will fully feel the exact same way. In my opinion, the idea portrayed in this statement is valid based on the nature of sense perception because I think that it is true that sensations are exclusive to individuals. People
trust that perception is guided by biology and that humans are
 biologically identical within 80% of our biological systems. With that said there is still 20% which makes us different. If you asked a randomly selected group of individuals which sense is most important to them, sight would most commonly be said. On the other hand, if you asked a blind man which sense was most important to them, sight would not be the case. This proves that all individuals have private sense perceptions.Touch or somatosensory, is a clear example of a private sensation when looking at the concept of pain. For example, when one receives a burning sensation through their sense of touch, the brain perceives it as painful. I believe this can in fact be communicated to others through language such as yelling out “ouch!” but not everyone can know exactly how you feel. Your reaction to a painful occurrence can tell the level of agony you are in but not everyone has been in that situation.
You may have touched a hot stove on accident and gotten burnt but maybe the person you are expressing your pain to has never been burnt on a hot stove. This would explain why they cannot understand just how much discomfort you are in. Taste can be viewed in this incommunicable manner as well. Although two people might be eating the exact same thing, it may not taste the same to them.
Two people may take a bite of the same piece of pizza and one person might lover it while the other hates it.The chemosensors in our tongues that help us detect a taste may react differently to different foods. For example, some people may be for sensitive to a acidic taste, such as a lemon, more than others. Language can again be used to express how your taste buds react to a substance using “yum!” or “ew!” Taste buds are unique to every single individual and will never be exactly the same between two people. This can be used to prove that sensations are private throughout humans and cannot be communicated properly. Overall, senses and the way they are connected to your brain changes the way all individuals react to sensations. Sensations and feelings are private throughout because no two people will ever see, feel, hear, taste, or smell things exactly the same. All the aspects of our surrounding world will be viewed differently depends on the individual.