It has been argued that unlike lesser animals, man is an active observer of the world he lives. Some of the things that make us man are: creativity, appreciation of aesthetic, rationality. It has been argued also that unlike other lesser animals, we fend for ourselves and take good care of our kids.
With the above, it is clear that we are superior beings. However, some scholars have argued that we are merely passive observers in this world. They argue that man's essence precedes his existence. For them, what we will do, who we will become and how we will live our lives have been predetermined and as such we are merely observers in the world with no new thing to add.
This view has been criticized by the existentialists who argue that existence precedes essence. For the existentialists, we came to the world first before we decided what to make out of it. No human perceives without participating in what he is perceiving.
Pythagoras, an ancient Greek scholar argued that there are three kinds of men who come to the Olympic Games namely, the commoners, the athletes and the spectators. The commoners: These are people who went for the Olympic Games to buy and sell. These people do not bother themselves about the game. Their major aim is to make profit or get new things.
The athletes are those who come to compete. These are the real athletes who attend the Game to win medals and make their countries proud.
The last people are the spectators. Pythagoras maintains that these are the best people. In fact, he called them the philosophers.
Pythagoras position is more radical and he believes that spectator is an active participant in a more philosophical way because he goes to the Game to analyse it.
It is important to note that we are the kind of spectators that participate in the reality we see. It is hard to ask a man to analyse a situation and then think the same man would not be interested in what he is analyzing.
Man is not a being that accepts everything you feed him. He is constantly looking for answers to begging questions and things bothering him.
You need to ask yourself, what kind of spectator are you? Are you a passive observer of the world like the commoners at the Olympic Games? Are you an active observer of the reality you are participating in?
Truth is, no matter how passive you appear, you cannot be out of the reality you are part of. Even if you believe that everything is predetermined, the moment you attempted to go to school, learn craft to be independent or do office job, then you stopped being a passive observer. To involve yourself in anything means you are participating in it. Even if you only go to fellowship, you are participating in the reality you belong.
In sum, we are all active participants in the reality we find ourselves.
