The Four Categories of Stories - #2

Extra commentary in the video below

Stories fall into Four General Categories:

• Predictive stories

• “Should”-based stories

• Stories of meaning

• Ego/identity stories

Predictive Stories

Predictive stories are based on accumulated experience and the inferences we draw from it.

They allow us to anticipate outcomes based on patterns observed in the past.

A very simple example is putting a cake in a box and believing that when we come back later, the cake will still be there. Though this predictive story reflects the laws of physics, we learn it not by knowing those laws but from experience. While often useful, these stories remain approximations and can fail when applied to new or changing contexts.

“Should”-based stories

These stories imply the existence of some “entity” that might have “freedom,” which could then produce an alternative version of reality.

This kind of story makes us believe that we can create changes outside the chain of cause and effect.

At the Macro Level

However, at the macro level, which follows a deterministic model, this “freedom” cannot exist because every cause produces an effect from the Big Bang to the present.

At the macro level, every event is the result of prior causes. Therefore, at the macro level, “free will” is impossible — the illusion of control over a reality determined by an unbreakable chain of cause and effect. Everything is bound by this chain, unable to escape its constraints.

At the Micro Level

At the quantum level, things are completely random. Chance in quantum physics does not require the existence of some “entity” that could influence events.

What seems random at the macro level, like a dice roll, could be predicted if we knew the position and motion of every particle. Therefore, though a dice roll may appear random, it is deterministic.

At the quantum level, randomness is inherently random. It has no cause and it cannot be influenced by anything. It is independent of everything.

Since quantum randomness cannot be influenced, there is no “entity” that could produce an alternative version of reality by influencing it.

Even if we theoretically allowed for the existence of this “entity” with “freedom,” it would still always make what it believes is the single best decision among the possible decisions, so we come back to a deterministic order of events.

Someone playing chess will, for each move, choose what he believes is the single best move from the set of moves he knows.

Even if we allow for the existence of “free will,” how will he play chess? He will always make what he believes is the single best move from the set of moves he knows.

A beginner in chess knows only a few moves. A grandmaster knows thousands of moves. But in every case the player will always choose what he believes is the single best move from the set of moves he knows.

What if he decides to lose? How could that be considered the best move? If he is playing against a dictator who will kill him if he wins, it is reasonable to believe that the best move is to lose the game because it leads to staying alive. He always makes what he believes is the best move even if the best move leads to losing.

Even if we allow for the existence of “free will,” people will always make what they believe is the single best move from the set of moves they know. So even if the universe allowed for “free will,” then it would still behave in a deterministic way.

Even if we assume that we could not rely on any scientific observation because we were in a dream, a simulation, or a matrix – where we could not rely on any scientific observation because it could be just the “science of the dream” working – whatever is outside the dream will still make what it believes to be the best decision.

Decisions

All that being said, what is a decision, anyway? It is a thought.

What is a thought? It’s something that pops into your mind. Someone asks you to think of a random number between zero and 100. You say some number. Where does this number come from? You could answer

1. “It just popped into my mind,” or

2. “I chose that number because…” followed by some criterion.

If you say that you chose because of some criterion, someone may ask why you chose that criterion instead of some other criterion?

The answer is that the criterion just popped into your mind, just like the number popped into your mind in case 1. When someone asks you for a random number, the number just pops, or the criterion that will then produce the number just pops, followed by the number. In either case, the ultimate cause of the random number is just “popping.” Regardless of whether it pops immediately or the criterion pops and then it leads to a number, the ultimate cause of the random number is always popping.

A thought can pop and be the first and final thought, like for example if someone asks you what kind of ice cream you prefer and you say chocolate or vanilla, or a thought may pop, which generates another thought and another thought and another thought, producing a chain of thoughts – until the last thought of that chain.

Decisions are a subset of thoughts.

What is a decision? A decision is a thought regarding an intention. It can be the answer to a simple question (“Which kind of ice cream do I want, chocolate or vanilla?”) where the answer just pops, or the answer to a complex question (“Should I have this delicate surgery?”) where a first thought will pop followed by a long chain of thoughts and the decision is, basically, the last thought in the chain of thoughts.

Where is the “free will” in decisions? Decisions are just thoughts. They either simply pop, or pop and then are followed by a chain of thoughts, every thought being produced by the previous one, and the final thought being the decision.

Stories of meaning

To make sense of events at the “micro” level, we must build our own cosmology at the “macro” level and then use it to interpret the “micro” events.

In other words, to find meaning in our personal experience, we must first create stories that explain the world. For example, they can be religious or spiritual stories, such as being part of a divine plan, cultural stories, such as the belief that hard work leads to success, or scientific stories, such as believing that relationships are driven by survival instincts or genetics. Stories are often rooted in cultural conditioning or unverifiable beliefs.

Ego/identity stories

The ego is nothing but the attachment to the identity stories we tell ourselves, stories we cling to in order to preserve a particular image and judgment of ourselves and others.

The ego is an attachment to certain stories we associate with our identity.

These stories are used to maintain a specific self-image and to preserve a certain judgment of ourselves. In other words, they arise from the need to feel special.

They often manifest as stories about worth, failure, pride, status, shame, or other human concerns. They let us sustain the image we have of ourselves, even at the cost of distorting reality.

The identifying characteristic of an ego/identity story is the amount of effort we are willing to put in to defend it. We see an example in the movie Back to the Future, Part II. The main character, Marty McFly, defends his ego/identity story—his image of himself as being brave. He accepts a challenge that gets him into deep trouble. He does this just to avoid being called “chicken.”

Marty is willing to do dangerous, even crazy things to defend his self-image—his ego/identity story.

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In summary, all stories are mental constructs. Some help us navigate reality. Others trap us in rigid frameworks. Recognizing the nature of these stories is the first step toward freeing us from their constraints.