Fact and opinion

Fact or opinion?

• A fact can be checked and proved true or false. It does not depend on what anyone believes.
• An opinion is a belief, feeling or judgement. It differs from person to person and cannot be proved.

One question settles it: could someone check this, or does it depend on how you see things?

Facts from the letter:

• 'I started my working life soon after our country became independent.' (checkable)
• 'values that I saw in my mentor and supporter here in Anand, Tribhuvandas Patel' (he was real, and was his mentor)
• 'Service to our nation's farmers was not the career I had envisioned for myself.' (a fact about his own plans, which only he knows)

Opinions from the letter:

• 'Speaking on the telephone only gives us an immediate but fleeting joy.' (many would disagree)
• 'I knew I could make a more meaningful contribution by working here in Anand.' ('more meaningful' is a judgement)
• 'Life is a privilege, and to waste it would be wrong.' (a value, not a measurement)
• 'failure is not about not succeeding.' (his own way of seeing it)

Watch for mixed sentences. 'The magnificent ceremony in which the President awarded me the Padma Vibhushan in 1999.' The award and the year are facts; 'magnificent' is an opinion inside the same sentence.

An opinion is not worth less than a fact. It is a different kind of statement. Kurien's opinions are the heart of his letter. Just know which is which.