FADE IN
Act 1
INT. DINING ROOM - 8:30
Having breakfast, PETER is reading Quora Digest on screen.
PETER (V.O.): I don't follow mainstream media on politics. I don't want to be fooled by their biases.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Ha, on a Quoran's polarized comment, another Quoran remarks that's an example of naive realism.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In one of my Philosophy degree exam papers, I wrote an essay on "Perception and Truth". My starting point was naive realism.
Reading
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But here, the political context isn't philosophical.
Seeing a link on "naive realism (psychology)", Peter taps it.
Act 2
FLASHBACK
INT. PETER'S FAMILY HOME, TIN SUM SAN TSUEN - DAY (1980)
Peter is reading exam papers of 1977, 1978 and 1979.
PETER (V.O.): I'm going to sit 8 papers in Philosophy in 1981.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): One paper is to write an essay on a topic of my choice.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I'd like to write about the continuum between appearance and reality.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): A continuum is a range of possibilities that are slightly different from each other and that exist between two different extremes.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): That approach should show my logic, methodology, and also the breadth and depth of my knowledge on Epistemology.
Peter puts pen to paper.
END FLASHBACK
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I believe my score of that paper contributed to my getting an honours degree in Philosophy.
Peter reads texts on screen.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The social psychology perspective stems from the philosophical one.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Until 2003, I wasn't aware of the scientific study of how one's thoughts, feelings and behavour are influenced by the actual, imagined and implied presence of others.
FLASHBACK
INT. LECTURE THEATRE, HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL - DAY (2003)
Sitting among about 60 mature STUDENTS, Peter opens a box file.
PETER (V.O.): Wow, this visiting professor from Stanford has prepared so much course materials!
A PROFESSOR on stage makes his opening remarks.
PROFESSOR: Well, here's Harvard...everything is of high standard...as a guest speaker... I'm serious to do the knowledge transfer...
Peter checks the contents page.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, there's a section on social psychology. What's it?
RETURN TO PRESENT
Peter continues to read.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In social psychology, naive realism is the human tendency to believe that they see the world around them objectively and that people who disagree with them must be uninformed, irrational or biased.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Naive realism causes people to exaggerate differences between themselves and others. People's dependency on it sparks conflicts and obstructs compromises.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The conflict in the world isn't between good and evil. It's actually between people's subjective interpretations of the objective reality.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Apparent common sense isn't really common.
Act 3
INT. DINING ROOM - 21:00
Beside a vase of roses of different colours, Peter and his WIFE are having dinner.
PETER (V.O.): Philosophically, naive realism is the doctrine that things are what they seem.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): If we perceive rose is red, it isn't due to the redness of rose. It's physics that makes it look red. That's an example of naive realism.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Scientifically, naive realism leads to physics. Empirically, if physics is true, it shows naive realism to be false. Logically therefore, naive realism, if true, is false.
Peter stares at a purple rose.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): How unreal it is and how naive I could be!
FADE OUT
THE END
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