The Six Blind Men and the Elephant: A Lesson in Perspective

Six blind men come across an elephant for the first time. Because they cannot see, each one touches a different part of the animal to understand what it is:The first man touches the side and says, "An elephant is like a giant wall!" The second man touches the tusk and says, "No, it is sharp and smooth like a spear!" The third man touches the trunk and says, "You’re both wrong; it’s like a thick snake!" The fourth man touches the leg and says, "It is clearly like a sturdy tree trunk!" The fifth man touches the ear and says, "It is wide and thin like a big fan!" The sixth man touches the tail and says, "It is just like a thin rope!" The men begin to argue loudly, each convinced they have the "only" truth. Finally, a wise man (or the elephant's owner) explains that they are all partially right but also partially wrong because they only have a piece of the puzzle. Moral: "Nobody sees everything. Just like the blind men, we only see a small part of a situation. We need to listen to others to see the 'whole elephant'."The moderator can draw references from the previous activity: that we only see our friend for a few hours; they are a lot more as a person beyond those school hours. Respecting Differences: "Just because someone has a different opinion doesn’t mean they are wrong. They might just be touching a different 'part of the elephant' than you are." Collaboration: "When we share our knowledge instead of arguing, we can understand the big picture much faster.