The Perils of Dogmatic Upbringing
Upbringing based on methods of fear, suppression, and dogmatism significantly limits the development of critical thinking and creative approaches to life. When a person is conditioned from an early age solely to accept established dogmas without any attempt to analyze or prove them, they lose the ability to independently understand the world around them. In such an environment, authority and dogma become the primary guides, and any deviation from them is seen as a threat to safety. This results in personal thinking being reduced to the mechanical repetition of imposed norms, without the consideration of alternative viewpoints or a deep analysis of prior experience.As stated in one of the sources, "Faith, even if it is sincere, but without attempts to clarify or prove it, convinces little or nothing. The essence of dogmatism lies in the constant effort to move from an established doctrine to reality, to practice, and never in the reverse direction. A dogmatist is incapable of noticing the discrepancy between an idea and changed circumstances" (source: link txt). This emphasizes that without independent analysis and a critical approach, even sincere faith is unable to convince others or provide real understanding, ultimately contributing to the formation of narrow, inflexible thinking.Moreover, another text notes, "Our social thought was deliberately primitive and simplistic, always striving for simplification and fearing complexity. The Russian intelligentsia always adhered to certain doctrines that could fit into a pocket catechism... but did not love and were afraid of truly creative thought" (source: link txt). This confirms that a system designed to suppress reflection and inclined towards oversimplification leaves little room for the development of independent thinking. As a result, such a model of upbringing fosters limited cognition, where the ability to broadly evaluate and process information is lacking, which may lead to a phenomenon that could be characterized as "stupidity."Thus, the application of fear, suppression, and dogmatism in the process of upbringing aims to maintain stability and control through subjugation, yet at the same time deprives an individual of the opportunity to learn independent, critical thinking and adapt to a changing reality. This leads to a stagnation in thought, manifesting as a limited perception and "stupidity" as a consequence of the underdevelopment of creative and analytical potential.