Suspension Of Disbelief

Suspension of disbelief is the act of choosing to actively set aside doubt or previous thoughts when observing something. The term “suspension of disbelief” is commonly associated with theatre and the arts and the usage of this technique for the sake of enjoyment. This connection is due to the arts perceived heavy influence by emotions, thus suspension of disbelief would be enacted to prioritize more favorable emotions. However, it exists in other Areas of Knowledge and for varying purposes than the sake of emotions, as seen in art. Firstly, the area of natural sciences exists based upon the foundations of the world and is further advanced by some form of transition from previous thought, whether it be the dismissal or furthering of such concepts.
It is largely based upon faith and an individual’s beliefs, thus suspension of disbelief is in relation to the setting aside of particular beliefs to further develop or change a person’s religious beliefs. Natural sciences and religious knowledge systems utilize suspension of disbelief for different purposes based upon their different foundations. Natural sciences employs suspension for the sake of making new discoveries that challenge previous thought as well as maintain current beliefs, whereas religious knowledge systems employ suspension the further current beliefs and maintain an established system of beliefs. When observing the natural sciences, the claim may be made that suspension of disbelief acts to solidify previous thought, by refusing new thought that is seen to be outlandish. This can be seen with the use of sense perception to determine the astrological orbits of either the Sun or the Earth. Time magazine has observed that at least one in four Americans believe that the Sun rotates around the Earth, which they pertain their observations to sense perception. The argument is founded on their sight, as
This is seen through an acquaintance of mine who converted religions from Christianity to Islam due to that fact that his family had been practicing Islam. From his family, he had been aware of the Islamic beliefs and surrounded by them years prior to converting. Although the area of religious knowledge systems is largely based on faith and the extent to which a person accepts certain beliefs over others, this person’s reason for converting religions was largely circumstantial due to their family. As he already had existing knowledge of Islamic beliefs, but was practicing beliefs of Christianity, he utilized suspension of disbelief with his former religion, in order to accept Islam. Within this particular circumstance, suspension of disbelief is for the effect of refuting current beliefs and accepting newer ones. The suspension of current beliefs within religious knowledge systems acts to allow for developments and alterations in an individual’s faith. Suspension of disbelief, in this manner, allows for religious beliefs to not remain stagnant and change as the individual sees fit, as they suspend their previous beliefs for the sake of accepting newer ones. That said, such suspension as that of my acquaintance is less common due to the nature of religious knowledge systems. This Area of Knowledge is