The job of giving attention, in the full meaning of the word, is a difficult one. And we won t give attention until we feel there s something in it for us. Most people are afraid of giving attention. To give attention would mean to give yourself, or have yourself go toward something, for the purpose of seeing it wholly as it is, and clearly. That is a big order.
Attention is for the purpose of finding out about a person.
But most persons want attention for the purpose of feeling important. We like attentions, certainly. The idea of a shoe salesman giving us his attention is very agreeable. But attention for the purpose of having ourselves known is something else. We don t give attention entirely, because most attention is given not so much because we think it is good but because we are in a state of peril.