DISTINGUISHING

OPINION FROM TRUTH

Quarter 1 – Lesson 3
 “Plato’s Allegory of the Cave”
“Some prisoners are chained inside a cave, facing the back wall. Behind them is a fire, with people
passing in front of it. The prisoners cannot turn their heads, and have always been chained this way. All
they can see and hear are shadows passing back and forth and the echoes bouncing off the wall in
front of them. One day, a prisoner is freed, and dragged outside the cave. He is blinded by the light,
confused, and resists being led outside. But, eventually his eyes adjusts, so that he is able to see clearly
the things around him, and even the sun

He came to realize that the things he thought were real were merely shadows of real things, and that
life outside of the cave is far better than his previous life in chains. He pities those still inside. He
ventures back into the cave to share his discovery with the others—only to be ridiculed because he
can hardly see (his eyes have trouble at first re-adjusting to the darkness). He tried to free the other
prisoners but they violently resisted (the other prisoners refuse to be freed and led outside, and they
even tried to kill him)”.
ANALYSIS
1. What does this story mean?
2. How does this passage from Plato help you turn your attention toward the
right thing (i.e., truth, beauty, justice and goodness)?
Objective
• Distinguish opinion from truth
The ideas that we encounter in everyday life can be considered as truth or
opinion. But what distinguishes one from the other? Let us take a look at
the following statements and determine which one states fact or opinion.

Statement A Statement B

My sister is a selfish person because she My sister ate the last piece of pizza.
ate the last piece of pizza and did not
share it with me.

Which statements are more factual?

Statement B - Using the philosophical tools we learned, they fit into the category
of facts since they contain ideas or information that are easily verifiable.
• Fact is something that is true and can be verified as such.
• Can be checked and backed up with evidence.
• It is verifiable from observation and experience.
• Tells us what happened, and can be proven true or false.
• You can find facts in legal records, scientific findings, encyclopedias,
atlases, etc. in other words, facts are the truth and are accepted as such.

FACTS ARE THE BASIS IN DETERMINING TRUTH

• On the other hand, statement 1 can be considered as opinion.
• These statement go beyond providing facts.
• It also provides conclusions or perspectives regarding certain situations.

• Opinions are also the basis for making arguments and convincing people
that a certain claim is a fact.
• Are attitudes or judgements that cant be proven right or wrong.
• Opinion is a statement that holds the element of belief; it tells how
someone feels. In other words it is what someone believes or thinks, and
is not necessarily the truth.
• Are also the basis for making arguments in convincing people that a
certain claim is a fact.
Example of Opinion
• My husband is the most handsome man on earth.
• Our school is the best school in the universe.

• Remember that opinion is based on feelings.

In distinguishing truth from opinion we have to keep this in mind.
 Key Differences Between Fact and Opinion
1. The fact is described as the statement that can be verified or proven to be true.
Opinion is an expression of judgment or belief about something.
2. Fact relies on observation or research while opinion is based on assumption.
3. The fact is an objective reality whereas opinion is a subjective statement.
4. Facts can be verified with the help of evidence or statistics. On the contrary, an
opinion is not supported by any evidence.
5. Facts explain what actually happened. Unlike an opinion, which represents a
perception about something.
6. One important feature of a fact is that it is universal and does not differ from person
to person. As against this, every human being has a different opinion on a particular
subject and so, it varies from one person to another.
 Terms related to facts and opinion
CONCLUSION Is a judgment based on certain facts.
-the facts that form the basis of conclusion may not be disputed but the conclusion
itself may still be questioned.
Beliefs are statements that express convictions that are not easily and clearly explained by
facts.
Example: If the person says “I believe that God exists” it will be difficult to prove his
statement if we rely on facts so to judge the truthfulness of a belief one must consider persons
experiences and views.
Explanations are statements that assume the claim to be true and provide reasons why the
statement is true.
It makes things understandable by providing details or supporting ideas.
Arguments are a series of statements that provide reasons to convince the reader
or listener that a claim or opinion is truthful.
-it is made with the assumption that the truth of the claim is yet to be
determined.
APPLICATION
• Distinguish if the statement is an opinion or truth.
1. Asia is the largest continent in the world.
2. Jose Rizal is the best hero in the Philippines.
3. According to the Miss World Organization records, Megan Young was the first
Filipina to be crowned as Miss World.
4. 3+3=6
5. Socrates was the most intelligent person ever lived.
ASSESSMENT
I - Distinguish if the statement is an opinion or truth.
1. It takes 30 minutes to walk from my home to school.
2. Living near the school is better because we don’t have to spend much for
transportation.
3. The policeman firmly pushed the suspect to his knees and placed him in
handcuffs.
4. The aggressive manner by which the policeman arrested the suspect is an
example of brutality that characterizes our police force.
5. Allen, Northern Samar is one of the towns in Region VIII.
II –
6. Can be checked and backed up with evidence.(FACT)
7. Is a judgment based on certain facts. (Conclusion)
8. Are attitudes or judgements that cant be proven right or wrong. (Opinion)
9. You can find it in legal records, scientific findings, encyclopedias, atlases, (FACT)
10. It makes things understandable by providing details or supporting ideas.
(EXPLANATIONS)
11 – 15 Distinguish opinion from truth