How do you tell a blind Man what the colour pink is?

[Rakhel]

this reminds me of Jeff Dunham and his puppet Peanut

[youtube]eoE2cLSjUmo[/youtube]
YouTube - Jeff Dunham and peanut - deaf people

 

[Penumbra]

I don't think any qualia can be adequately explained.

 

[lunakilo]

It'd probably be easier to describe what the elephant pen at the zoo smells like................

Well that works for mee too

What does the elephant pen at the zoo smells like?

 

[Twilight Hue]

You don't?

Pretty much the direct gist of it.

 

[atanu]

I have just cleared out my Attic and going though some old papers and books and i came accross my old Uni books,nothing like nostalgia to cheers you up,anyway i lightened on this question.

How do you tell or describe what the colour Pink is to a Man blind from birth

Assuming that the blind man has a loving lover, the closest analogy may be the feeling he has when near to her.

However, there is always the possibilty of misunderstanding as below:

A son was born to a blind man. Next day the son died while drinking milk. The blind man with grief asked a friend

"How did my baby die?"
"By drinking milk."
"How is milk?"
"Milk is white."
"How is white?"
"White is like the crane."
"How is the crane?"

The friend made the blind man feel his hand, which he made like a crane and said, "The crane is like this."

Immediately, the blind man lamented, "Ah! No wonder my small child should die on taking such a big thing!"

 

[atanu]

I also wonder as to what are the dreams of born blind like?

 

[GabrielWithoutWings]

Well that works for mee too

In reference to the fruity smell debate...

You ever eat a banana or a melon of some kind and have that sort semi-still tasting after-taste in the back of your throat? That's sort of how fruit smells. When it's over-powering, you can taste it in the back of your throat. It's a sickly-sweet kind of smell / taste.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

Theres no way to meaningfully communicate the experience of a missing sense. I've learned this from interacting with many people who have no sense of humor.

 

[lunakilo]

As I have already said, I can't smell.

When I imagine what smell is I compare it to some sort of long range, x-ray-like sense of taste.
x-ray because you can smell things around corners and the like.

I may not know what a rose smell like, or bacon or skunk, but I think of smell as a spectrum just like light/colors or sound or touch.

I like some colors or combinations of colors, and disslike others or like some kinds of music or sounds like laughter and dislike other kinds of music or sounds like knife against plate or like the feeling of somone stroking my hair but hate when it itches or stings.

I imagine that smell is basically the same. some smells are pleasant and others are not. Different people may feel different about the same smell, just like they may feel differnet about different colors or sounds. But there is general agreement that smell of skunk is bad just like sound of knife against plate or nails against blackboard is bad. and smell of roses is good like the taste of vanilla icecream is good.

It is true that I have no idea of what a rose really smells like, and never will without a reference point.

But have I understood the concept of smell?
Can a blind mand understand the concept of pink?
And is understanding the concept of pink the same as understanding what pink is?

I ment this.

Don't you have any comments?

 

[GabrielWithoutWings]

Theres no way to meaningfully communicate the experience of a missing sense. I've learned this from interacting with many people who have no sense of humor.

This sounds like Communist propaganda.

Why do you hate America?

 

[Kilgore Trout]

This sounds like Communist propaganda.

Why do you hate America?

I think it's the whole red, white and blue color scheme. I mean, c'mon, can you get any more obvious?

 

[angellous_evangellous]

I have just cleared out my Attic and going though some old papers and books and i came accross my old Uni books,nothing like nostalgia to cheers you up,anyway i lightened on this question.

How do you tell or describe what the colour Pink is to a Man blind from birth

After he's had sex, tell him that it's the color of the vagina.

Pink will forever be his favorite color.

 

[England my lionheart]

After he's had sex, tell him that it's the color of the vagina.

Pink will forever be his favorite color.

Like this answer

 

[angellous_evangellous]

Like this answer

:takeabow:

 

[Willamena]

How do you tell or describe what the colour Pink is to a Man blind from birth

You don't, but if you talk around it well enough, they can come to "pink" on their own.


(Edit: Because "pink" is what they come to.)

 

[Penumbra]

I also wonder as to what are the dreams of born blind like?

I've looked into this before. People are that are born blind dream in terms of sounds, and possibly touch, but not sight. If someone was born with a little bit of sight, they can dream with a little bit of sight.

 

[croak]

I recall watching something about this on TV a while ago: Sensory hijack: rewiring brains to see with sound - health - 17 August 2010 - New Scientist

Interesting stuff.

 

[Quagmire]

"It's just like what you're seeing only lighter, and with a lot more red".

 

[Vinayaka]

Surely this is metaphor? Experiential knowledge is the only true knowledge?

 

[MissAlice]

I guess you will have to refer to his other senses in order to explain it to him.

You can practice on me, I was born without a sense of smell.
Explain to me what a rose smells like.

Ooh I like this idea. Reverse what sense is left. The smell of a...nevermind or a snorkling sound by the babe we all know and want to dress.