opinion

Knowledge

2022

We explain what an opinion is, the origin of the term and its use in philosophy. Also, its meaning today and the impact of the media.

Opinion is subjective but can also be based on information.

What is opinion?

An opinion is the result of an assessment, judgment or review that someone makes about a person, a fact or any aspect of reality. This word comes from Latin opinions which is linked to the criterion or point of view, and is therefore closely linked to subjectivity.

In the philosophy ancient, in fact, the Greek Parmenides of Elea (5th century BC) used the term doxa to refer to opinions or conjectures, that is, to the ideas subjective opposite to knowledge true of reality. This was due to the fact that opinion has its origin in a priori knowledge, that is, in the world of the sensorial, and not from the world of the rational and reflective.

However, over time the concept of opinion changed remarkably. Today it is considered that there is a less conjectural, more reflective judgment, that is, informed opinion. This coincided especially with the emergence of public opinion, that is, when the conglomeration of opinions and judgments of the population began to have an impact on the fate of the nations, for example.

In fact, as certain media gained immense relevance in the conduct of modern societies, the management of opinion or the formation of opinion became one of the usual purposes of the media. This is done, for example, by publishers and / or opinion articles, of type argumentative, which seek to convince the reader of a point of view.

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