Shakespeare Writes nothing's Wrong

I contend that Shakespeare seems to be taking a normative view of life when he writes through Hamlet, "There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so".  According to Moghaddem, normative science is, "exploring regularities in thoughts and actions in association with norms, rules, values and other features of culture" (p.7, Moghaddem).  In other words, normative science is observing thought patterns of how we think through phenomenas in social cultures. In the following paragraphs I will explain how Shakespeare's quote is an example of this sentiment. 


First, Moghaddam explains the idea of the "degree of freedom"  as "the range of options available to an individual in a situation" (p.9, Moghaddam).  This degree of freedom to contemplate choices are many, as is apparent when Shakespeare writes, "there is nothing either good or bad". This part of the quote can be interpreted as anything is good or anything is bad, no conditions must be fulfilled to explain morality, neither are there any restriction as to what it cannot be. Thus there is a high "degree of freedom" to articulate what gives meaning to vice or virtue (morality). The significance of this quote is not solely morality but more importantly, the method by which we  can arrive at its meaning, thinking. 


What does the meaning of moral principles rely on ?  According to Shakespeare, thinking, as he writes, "but thinking makes it so". Similarly Moghaddam highlights the significance of "meaning systems" when explaining that it, like  Shakespeare states, relies on what we think. In other words our values, principles and beliefs are dependant on our thinking. 


In explaining the similarities between the meaning of Shakespeare's quote, "there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so" and exploring  Moghaddam's "degree of freedom"  to contemplate "meaning systems" we have realized that in normative science morality is determined not through vice or virtue but our thinking. Most notably, the method we facilitate to arrive at an observation of any social phenomena is much more significant than the data itself that is explained, gathered, or described.  



Please note: I interpreted that the general idea of what Shakespeare wrote is that the method by which we arrive to a conclusion is paramount to the conclusion itself. The process by which we extract information to form any phenomena is more important than the information extracted. This is also recognized in metapsychology as methods used to arrive at or test a hypothesis whether it is by causal or normative research.

An example is in causal research generally laboratory experiments are used to conduct research whereas often in normative science interviews or surveys that gather quantitative and qualitative data are conducted. 

         By Cherise Josephs


(Moghaddem,F. M. (2005). Great ideas in Psychology: A Cultural and Historical Introduction. Oxford: Oneworld Publication).