Sharing judgment

When we describe some thing or some place, or some person, or some event, to a friend, we often end up not just transferring to them the description to the other person, but also our sense of judgment about that thing, event or person. I am realizing it profoundly when I describe to my wife my past events in my life, people I have interacted with, people who I have a good opinion about, those I don't, people in my life that have transformed me and so on. I see that I not only share with them the facts, but also what I feel about them - its emotional value. Sharing judgment is sometimes good. Sometimes it is not so good. When the event, person or event is a positive one, the effect is wonderful - we are spreading happiness. But when our own perspective of the event is negative, and if the listener accepts the negative perspective blindly, it may not be a good thing.

What I am arriving at is this: It is the responsibility of the narrator to describe the story in such a way that facts are separated from his own judgment. When appropriate, it is always good to clearly indicate to the listener that what he is describing is his own judgment and not necessarily the final verdict. And as a listener, it is important to not blindly accept others judgments, and take them at full value. The listener could use the facts along with his own experience, knowledge and maturity to provide perhaps a different perspective to the subject - which is always better.