According to the article, “A Question of Values: Six Ways We Make the Personal Choices That Shape Our Lives”, the writer said that how can we arrive at these evaluations and beliefs if values are freely chosen by them. Are the four basic modes of developing values truly complete? Are there really no others?

I completely agree with his four basic modes which can help people to recognize and find values. Just like the writer said “These modes not only describe how we approach things in general , they also describe how we develop and choose values.”(page 11) In sense experience, we can learn knowledge through our eyes, ears, noise, skin and tongue to feel and understand our world and values. For example, while I did not know the cheese cake’s taste and just knew that it must be delicious because I always saw people in TV eating cheese cake with smile face, I had a taste with cheese cake  in US finally, I have to say it is not the value what I want. I use my eyes to see TV to get first impression and use my tongue to make sure my first feeling and its value to me. I think different things have its value to different people. Sometimes I also use other basic modes to find values. Even though I do not know what the meaning of “vegetarian” and just know the meaning of “vegetable”, I still prove that word is related with vegetable because I use logic mode. Other basic modes are also useful to understand values.

I am not sure that there are really no other modes, but I am sure that I use these four modes that mentioned before to develop values is enough for me. People can discuss the way to find values and its balance.

source: Lewis, H. (1990). A Question of Values: Six Ways We Make the Personal Choices That Shape Our Lives. Axios Press.