We can usually learn much more from people whose views we share than from those whose views contradict our own

Learning today can be achieved from a rift of sources such as internet, media, books, TV and even movies. With the evolution of time, the availability of sources of learning has been massively increased. Yet, it is always through discussion, be it either in class or in an office, that people prefer to share their ideas and express their views. With interaction, people are exposed to manifold views of approaching a same problem. But the assent or dissent of other’s views with out view is of importance of us, and often we measure our approbation in a group with how well our ideas are apposite to the members of a group. But in my opinion, we learn so much more from the people who disagree with us due to the following reasons. Firstly, when someone contradicts our idea on a certain problem, it would whet us to learn more about his perception of the problem and most importantly, we want to find the flaws in our view. For instance, one would argue that electric vehicles are the future of automobiles because they would reduce the pollution drastically. His friend, say, might argue that increasing the manufacturing of electric vehicles without proper usage of clean technology would trade off the benefits achieved by driving an electric car. The problem is not with the type of automobiles, but with automobiles themselves. So, it might be better to opt for public transport rather than buying an electric car. Though the above two views are in complete dichotomy with each other and focus on different aspects of the same problem, both are to be considered while tackling the problem. The person who dissent might raise a worthy point which would weaken our view. This helps us gain different perceptions and not only improves our knowledge, but also expands the horizons of the mind to think in other ways. Secondly, we develop debating abilities when a person does not agree with our view. For example, in a debate competition, when a person severely depredates our points of view, the stress that entails with the competition is bolstered by the opponent’s disagreement with us. The same stress can act as an impetus for us to forage for new perceptions that would strengthen our argument and invalidate the opponent’s statements. The drive to win in an argument can make us think in different ways to find supporting reasons for our claim spontaneously. However, if the opponent is docile and surrenders quickly agreeing to our views, we would never improve our debating skills and would be complacent that we are good at contentions, which can be wrong. However, agreeing with our points and ideas in a discussion would definitely serve as a confidence booster. But it is difficult to move forward without an objection. Though a disagreement would make us distressed at times, approval of our views would be of no greater purpose than to make us feel self-satisfied. In fact, many scientific theories we see today are a result of disagreement with the conventional views. For instance, some people believed than it was impossible to time travel and there is no such concept. But today, after the revolution made by Einstein’s theory of relativity, people started believing that time travel is possible when we travel greater than the speed of light. Disagreement is a chance for us to learn things in a new way, but not a hindrance. In conclusion, we learn more from people who disagree with us. Though the people who support our views might fill us with confidence, it is through dissenting views we gain new perspectives and ways of looking at a problem, and sometimes the stress we face during arguments ameliorates our critical thinking and reasoning skills.