Thursday, January 16, 2014
Time to Reconsider
Perhaps we've confused psychological relationships to time with time its self. Consider this perspective. If "we are prisoners in the present, locked in eternal transition between our past and our future" then at least historians will never be out of work. Return, please, to the handout on history as an area of knowledge. Provide one instance of historical knowledge from which you have gleaned self-knowledge. Do the same, then, for literature. Be specific about the instances, the revelations they provided, and when in your life they occurred. Finally, extract a knowledge question from the historical knowledge, the literary knowledge, or their intersection. Please complete this writing by Monday evening at 9:30 (local time) and, as always, arrive Tuesday having read one another's posts.
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Just in case anyone had the same problem that I did in not knowing how to define "self-knowledge", this is how Stanford does it (Self knowledge refers to ones' particular mental state, including ones beliefs, desires, and sensations.).
ReplyDeleteA specific instance of History in which I've learned something about myself is when we talked about the CCP and Mao's communist (or is it democratic?) China. We've been discussing it for about the past week, and we've been talking about the people, and the way they reacted to Mao as their Great Leader, along with his idea's to embrace self-criticism (the 100 flowers movement), industrialize all of China (through land redistribution and practically starving his entire country), and generally change everything about their culture previously all for this one guy. We also talked about what part the people played in it, what part education played (they weren't taught to think critically, like we do; they were taught to follow the Mao Zedong Thoughts).
So this instance taught me a little bit about my own ideas about humanity, and what I believe is right and wrong. I learned how different I am from these people I'm reading about in my history book. As a teenager, I'm learning all the time about right and wrong and what I want to be doing or saying or basically who I want to be right now (and for the rest of my life). I guess you could call this the "defining period", where I'm learning a lot about different things. It connects to history because in school I'm learning about all the things people have done before, all the ways they've lived and everyone who has died and mistakes and victories through war or politics or culture. Knowing all of this helps me define either what I'm not or what I don't want to become. Basically it's never just one instance in which I'm learning about myself through history; it's throughout every handout and reading passage. The same's also true for literature, maybe even more so because literature comes from people telling stories about what has happened to them; you can learn more about yourself when you evaluate how you react to stories and books.
A specific instance of self-knowledge through literature was when I first opened The Blood Telegram; the story of a forgotten genocide, by Gary J. Bass. I read the preface and my mind just kind of exploded with the thought of an entirely untalked about and unrecognized genocide. Sure, there are always going to be aspects of history, literature, and especially stories that are told based on perspective, because that's how we see things. So the book could be pretty biased. But at the same time my knowledge of the world expanded. My beliefs about right or wrong, my size compared to the rest of the world, and the unbelievable size comparison between what I know and what I don't grew. The same is true for any book, if you think introspectively about it and about your reactions to it.
My knowledge question is; To what extent does the way we are educated affect our knowledge of right and wrong (or ethics in general)
Just in case anyone had the same problem that I did in not knowing how to define "self-knowledge", this is how Stanford does it
Delete-Self knowledge refers to one’s particular mental state, including one’s beliefs, desires, and sensations.
The first instance that comes to mind where I have gleaned self-knowledge was in history class a few days ago. We talked about the CCP and Mao's communist (or is it democratic?) China fromt he 1950’s through the 1970’s. We've been discussing the people and the way they reacted to Mao as their Great Leader, as well as his ideological views, which were to embrace self-criticism (the 100 flowers movement), industrialize all of China (through land redistribution and practically starving his entire country), and modernize their culture based on Marxist/Chinese ideas. We also talked about what part the people played in allowing these massive changes to happen, some of which ultimately had negative effects. We learned thatthis may partially have been due to the education they were given; they weren't taught to think critically, like we are in our schools. Instead they were taught to follow Mao.
When I think about the difference of my opinion and the Chinese peoples’ on the way culture should change, it’s striking how different I am from these people I'm reading about in my history book. It really matters because in school I‘m taught how to think critically, and through this experience learning about Maoist China I learned that because of the education I’ve had, my perspectives are very different from other peoples’. They may be either close minded or open minded, but they have been shaped by my education. Because of this, when I form opinions I have to acknowledge that some of what I agree with and disagree with come from the education I’ve had about it. The same is also true for literature, maybe even more so because literature comes from people telling stories about what has happened to them; you can learn more about yourself when you evaluate how you react to stories and books.
A specific instance of self-knowledge through literature was when I first opened The Blood Telegram; the story of a forgotten genocide, by Gary J. Bass. I read the preface and my mind just kind of exploded with the thought of an entirely untalked about and unrecognized genocide. Sure, there are always going to be aspects of history, literature, and especially stories that are told based on perspective, because our words come from our perspectives. At the same time my knowledge of the world expanded when I read The Blood Telegram, purely because it came from a previously unknown perspective. I learned more about my own incomplete education, and the way that it affects my thoughts and beliefs. Consciously, I thought about how my education has guided my beliefs about right or wrong and my size compared to the rest of the world. The unbelievable size comparison between what I know and what I don't grew. I thought pretty introspectively about the amount of knowledge that had been given to me because I believed what others told me, and what conclusions I’ve come to by putting my own various perspectives together.
My knowledge question is; To what extent does our knowledge depend on our education?
For this post I am going to trace back to the motherland, AFRICA. The place of food, my true home, heat and color (in all different forms). The place of many riches, but not rich people. The place of corruption, war, and media portrayed poor and desolate people, as if other world power do not have the same. I realized a lot of things about Africa. Its actually very rich in resources and riches such as gold, precious stones, oil and cocoa, yet we are the number 1 poorest and less developed continent in the world. With all these resources why are my people starving, why are they struggling to make ends meet? Everyone on Africa should be at least in the middle class but where does the money that we make from our abundance of resources go? It goes to corruption; leaders who don’t know what they are doing and let other leader take advantage of them. It just really bother me so much how America and Europe have so much, but do not have have the resource to get their gold, or cocoa or precious gems. Meanwhile the continent where these materials come from is starving to death, contracting aids, uneducated, suffering because they don’t know. Of course world powers aren’t stealing from Africa, but theres something wrong if Africa has so much but their people have so little and if world power countries have so little, but their people have so much. Now, of course these world powers should not be poor, but the economic divide between Africa and the rest of the world power is too large.
ReplyDeleteI learned about the fruitfulness of Africa and the history of its abundance in resources when I was about 12 and my father was telling me that there was still racism in the world and that I would have to work 10 times harder as someone who is lighter than me, to get the same job, pay, part in a play, into the same college and more. This instance of learning of what Africa had to offer pushed me to think of how I could make my homeland grow into something more than it is. It made me think of what I want to do as a job and become a biomedical engineer. I do not want to work in America, but I have to start somewhere and the best place to start is here But once I get on my feet and I know what I am doing, I am going to start my own research center based somewhere in Africa and try to help my continent educate itself in the terms of science, and research for hiv/aids. I want to encourage African to go back home and educate their country in their field of work so that Africa will become more advanced in that aspect.
For literature I want to refer back to The Things They Carried. When we had to write about the things that we, ourselves carry I thought about a lot that I carry such as my brother, my race, my ethnicity and my religion. In the paper I wrote about my brother, but in this post I want to focus on my ethnicity. I probably first learned I was Ghanaian when I was about 3. Throughout the time I have been alive my parents have spoken the language to me, cooked the food, and sung the song from my country. Knowing that I am Ghanaian brings about a lot of pride in me which is great thing to say for me because when I was much younger I used to hate being black. I hated that my skin was darker than a paper bag. I was not proud of my heritage, but reading the Things They Carried enforced and emphasized that I am from a great continent with wonderful people who share a history together. I am really form a place that I can call home.
KQ: To what extent can the knowledge of your background influence how you see the world.
For this post I want to trace back to the motherland, AFRICA. The place of food, of my true home, of heat and color (in all different forms). The place of wealth but, not wealthy people. The place of corruption, war, and media portrayed poor and desolate people (as if other world powers do not have the same). I realized a lot of things about Africa. It’s actually very rich in resources and riches such as gold, precious stones, oil and cocoa, yet we are the number 1 poorest and undeveloped continent in the world. With all these resources why are my people starving? Why are they struggling to make ends meet? Everyone on Africa should at least be in the middle class but, where does the money that we make from our abundance of resources go? It goes to corruption; it goes to leaders who don’t know what they are doing and let other leaders, from other countries, take advantage of them. America and Europe have so much but, do not have have the resource to get their gold, or cocoa or precious gems. Meanwhile, the continent where these materials come from is starving to death, contracting aids, uneducated, suffering because they don’t know. Of course world powers aren’t stealing from Africa but, there is something wrong if Africa has so much but, their people have so little. World power countries have so little but, their people have so much. Now, of course these world powers should not be poor but, the economic divide between Africa and the rest of the world is too large.
DeleteI learned about the fruitfulness of Africa and the history of its abundance in resources when I was about 12. This instance of learning of what Africa had to offer pushed me to think of how I could make my homeland grow into something more than it is. It made me think of what I wanted to do as a job and I came to the conclusion of becoming a biomedical engineer. I do not want to work in America but, I have to start somewhere and the best place to start is here. Once I get on my feet and I know what I am doing, I am going to start my own research center, based somewhere in Africa, and try to help my continent educate itself in the terms of science, and research for hiv/aids. I want to encourage Africans to go back home and educate their country in their field of work, so that Africa will become more advanced in that aspect.
For literature I would like to refer back to the novel The Things They Carried. When we had to write an essay based on the things that we carried in life, I realized that I carried many physical and non physical things such as my brother, my race, my ethnicity and my religion. In the paper I wrote about my brother, but in this post I want to focus on my ethnicity. I probably first learned I was Ghanaian when I was about 3. Throughout the time I have been alive, my parents have spoken the language to me, cooked the food, and sung the song from my country. Knowing that I am Ghanaian brings about a lot of pride in me which is great thing to say for me because when I was much younger I used to hate being black. I hated that my skin was darker than a paper bag. I was not proud of my heritage but, reading the Things They Carried enforced and emphasized that I am from a great continent with wonderful people who share a history together. I am really from a place that I can call home.
KQ: To what extent can the knowledge of your background influence how your knowledge on the world as a whole?
Historical knowledge:
ReplyDeleteAfter learning about Mao and his Communist Party these days with Karen, I found things are interpreted very differently from those in Chinese textbooks or common belief. One of the reading in our history textbook says that Chinese government established the Young Pioneers and the Youth League to foster young people’s love towards Mao and the Communism when the new China just established. These two organizations are mainly viewed as propaganda groups for young people. These two organization still exist today in China. I used to be a member of the young Pioneers and three years ago, I joined the Youth League without knowing what I was really doing. At that time, I only knew teachers only let better students join the Youth League so I just joined it and felt honorable. After learning the real purpose of these organizations in the ib textbook, I no longer feel proud. I learnt that there are always two sides of everything. I understand why Chinese government does such things, but after learning the objective side of view, my attitude towards Mao and the government has changed.
Literary knowledge:
In the fall term, we read Kate Chopin’s The Awakening. The book is about Edna who went against social norm to achieve her ideal life. Edan lived in the Victorian Era, during which women were only children’s mother and husband’s possession so they devoted everything to their family instead of themselves. However, Edna found her interests and the value of living for herself. Since then, she no longer took good care of her children and had an affair with another man. The book ends with Edna’s suicide. After reading this book, I automatically related Edna to my mother. My mom is absolutely a “mother woman”. She does not have a job. She quit it two years ago because she wants to take better care of my dad, my grandparents and I. Although my mom becomes even busier after becoming a housewife, she tells me she is much happier than she was. Comparing Edna and my mom, I definitely want to become a “mother woman”. Although achieving personal fulfillment is important, it is worthwhile to sacrifice it due to responsibility. From The Awakening, I learns that being responsible can definitely make people feel happy or at least content.
Knowledge Question from historical knowledge: How people process contradictory knowledge?
Historical knowledge:
DeleteAfter learning about Mao and his Communist Party these days with Karen, I realize things are interpreted very differently from those in Chinese textbooks or Chinese citizens' common belief. One of the sections in our history textbook says that Chinese government established the Young Pioneers and the Youth League to foster young people’s love towards Mao and Communism when the new China just established. According to the author of the textbook who is objectively looking at China at that time, these two organizations are mainly viewed as propaganda groups for young people. These two organizations still exist today in China. I used to be a member of the young Pioneers and three years ago, I joined the Youth League without knowing what I was really doing. At that time, I only knew teachers only let better students join the Youth League so I just joined it and felt honorable. After learning the real purpose of these organizations in the IB textbook, I have pretty complex feelings. I learnt that there are always two sides of everything. I understand why Chinese government does such things, but after learning the objective side of view, my attitude towards Mao and the government has changed.
Literary knowledge
In the fall term, we read Kate Chopin’s The Awakening. The book is about Edna who went against social norm to achieve her ideal life. Edan lived in the Victorian Era, during which women were only children’s mother and husband’s possession so they devoted everything to their family instead of themselves. However, Edna found her interests and the value of living for herself. Since then, she no longer took good care of her children and had an affair with two other men. The book ends with Edna’s suicide. After reading this book, I automatically related Edna to my mother. My mom is absolutely a “mother woman”. She does not have a job. She quit it two years ago because she wants to take better care of my dad, my grandparents and me. Although my mom became even busier after becoming a housewife, she tells me she is much happier than she was. Comparing Edna and my mom, I definitely want to become a “mother woman”. Although achieving personal fulfillment is important, it is worthwhile to sacrifice it due to responsibility. From The Awakening, I learns that being responsible can definitely make people feel happy or at least content.
Knowledge Question from historical knowledge
How people process contradictory knowledge?
My moment for self-knowledge in history isn’t a moment, but it’s rather a collection of moments. We’ve been learning about dictators in history, and have read about how their upbringings influenced their political ideas. Many of us take pride in being open minded, yet we still have this bias in us from the day we’re born. We’re being taught ideas of how to think and act since we were babies, and that has to affect us in later life. These teachings don’t have to be intentional either, they could be subconscious. Simply by hearing the comments my mother makes when watching political shows, or watching he face change as she reads a newspaper article could be influential. Through learning about these dictators, and how Mao and Hitler grew up, I’ve begun to think about how I’ve grown up and how many things I’ve learned from my surroundings that influence the decisions I make.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite writers is John Green. One of my favorite books that he has written is “Looking for Alaska.” My favorite line from the book is “I am in search of a great perhaps” (I’m not sure what page that one is on, I don’t have the book in Thailand, sorry, Green). I read that book for the first time a year ago, and I remember having to put the book down and think about that line. Was I in search of a great perhaps? Even if I didn’t know it, was I always searching? What is a great perhaps? Is it the meaning of life? A reason to live? Do I need a great perhaps? I’ve read that book many more times in the past year, and throughout the 365 days I’ve decided that a great perhaps is meaning, and happiness. Even if we don’t know it, we’re searching for happiness. We base or decisions off of things that we know will affect us positively (most of the time). We’re looking for something to fulfill our goals. We all are searching for a great perhaps, even if it is subconscious.
History knowledge question: How does the knowledge that we gain when we are little influence our decision making in later life
Literary: Is searching for a purpose in life essential to happiness?
My moment for self-knowledge in history occurred recently, in winter term of IB History. I was reading about Hitler, and how he traveled to Austria and observed their political system by what he thought was right and wrong. He had a bias of what he thought would work, based on how he had been raised and then he used what he knew to create Nazi Germany. This led me to think about how our upbringing affects our morals, and views of right and wrong. Many of us take pride in being open minded, yet we still have this bias in us from the day we’re born. We’re being taught ideas of how to think and act since we were babies, and that has to affect us in later life. These teachings don’t have to be intentional either, they could be subconscious. Simply by hearing the comments my mother makes when watching political shows, or watching her face change as she reads a newspaper article could be influential. Through learning about how Hitler grew up, I’ve begun to think about how I’ve grown up and how many things I’ve learned from my surroundings that influence the decisions I make. The ideas that I’ve been exposed to through my family have led me to be partial to a political party, and take specific views on certain events in history, such as the Vietnam War. If I had been raised by a different family or, in a different part of the world, or even a different part of the country, my perspective on the issues and how the world should be run might be drastically different.
DeleteOne of my favorite writers is John Green. One of my favorite books that he has written is “Looking for Alaska.” My favorite line from the book is Francois Rabelais's last words, “I go to seek a great perhaps” (I’m not sure what page that one is on, I don’t have the book in Thailand, sorry, Green). I read that book for the first time a year ago, and I remember having to put the book down and think about that line. Was I in search of a great perhaps? Even if I didn’t know it, was I always searching? What is a great perhaps? Is it the meaning of life? A reason to live? Do I need a great perhaps? I’ve read that book many more times in the past year, and throughout the 365 days I’ve decided that a great perhaps is meaning, and happiness. Even if we don’t know it, we’re searching for happiness. We base or decisions off of things that we know will affect us positively (most of the time). We’re looking for something to fulfill our goals. We all are searching for a great perhaps, even if it is subconscious. Personally, I think it is essential to be searching for a great perhaps. If you are not, you are just floating through life and not even living. A great perhaps can be something like a huge goal of going to Rolex, or something as little as getting sushi for lunch. We’re always searching for things that are in our best interest.
History knowledge question:
To what extent do the influences in our childhood have over our knowledge of the world today?
Literary: To what extent does knowledge impact someone’s decisions versus the extent that impulse does.
Recently I have been learning about history in many different ways. I absolutely love history as a class and I specifically, although not this year, remember enjoying the stories of different religions. Every religion has a different god or gods that they worship and believe in. I was raised as a catholic by my Carholic, and very religious mother, and therefore ended up going to church every Sunday, and learning that there is "only one god, and there are no other gods besides him." When I was young I never questioned the stories of the bible the teachings that were recited every Sunday at church and in Sunday School, or every evening at dinner time prayers. However, as I grew older and began to think for myself a bit, I wanted to see what else was being said and taught in the world.
ReplyDeleteOne day in freshmen World History class, we began learning about many different religions, from Hinduism to Islam, Muslim to Buddhism. I was particularly struck by the morals of Buddhism, and the idea that all living things were equal (this, influencing my veganism a bit). Anyways, this religion worshiped a man named Buddha, which was a bit dumbfounding at first because I was never aloud to look at other religions nd therefore couldn't really believe that there was actually another higher being that was looked upon for purpose in life. My moment of historical self-knowledge came today however, when I visited a Buddhist watt in Thailand and experienced the religion first hand (monks and all), after being curious about learning another religion from Catholicism. It was interesting seing the different perspectives on worship, and how history has taught many religions each a different past. For Catholics they learn of Jesus redeeming the people, Buddhists learn that Buddha helps brings people to enlightenment.
As far as literary revelations of self-knowledge, one specific book comes to mind. In John Green's "Looking for Alaska," the main character, Miles, narrates the novel constantly looking for the answer to one single question: How does one go about escaping the labyrinth of life? We are never told what escaping is exactly, so the reader is left to wonder whether or not escaping is finding happiness, purpose, or like Alaska (a mysterious friend/love interest), death. In the end we find that there is no answer, and this is where my literary revelation came about. I was struck by the mysteriousness of the question, and how it relates to time. We spend our entire lives trying to answer that question of how to improve how we live, passing time day by day. What is it that we are looking for? How is it that time defines the labrynth?
My knowledge question is this: How is it that time and beliefs define our paths in life, and why exactly do we give it the power to do so?
A historical moment that was significant to me and others in my generation was when we learned of hurricane Gilbert and how it devastated the country in 1980. What we learned from this experience is to build our buildings from stronger and more robust material. A huge reform was made in the architectural building procedures for homes and public buildings. Many people even planned to build their homes on higher ground to prevent flooding. Historical events like these are very helpful because it prevents humans from making the same mistakes that were made and can often save lives. One knowledge question that can be extracted from this instance of historical knowledge is, is it rational to make future decisions based on the past when we are not sure if the past will repeat itself?
ReplyDeleteAn important lesson to me from literature was from reading “Feed”. Reading this novel was an eye opener because it made me aware of something I was slowly falling victim to; consumerism. It presented the horrors of pollution, dependence on technology and consumerism if humans continue in our current path. Though this novel was set in the future a lot can be learned from it. There are several knowledge questions that can be extracted from the novel. Since feed was an extrapolation and extrapolations aren't exactly accurate, should we be concerned that a dystopian feed world will be the result of our current actions?
A historically significant moment I can pull to memory was when I learned of hurricane Gilbert that ravaged Jamaica in 1980. This was not only a significant lesson in history for me but many that lived through it and others who have learned about it. There are many things that can be learned from this event whether individually or as a nation. One lesson Jamaicans as a whole learned from this is the importance of building sturdier edifices using more robust materials. Following hurricane Gilbert, a huge reformation was made in the architectural building procedures of homes and buildings. Many people even went as far relocating their homes on higher grounds to prevent flooding if a similar occurrence might take place in the future. Historical events like these are very helpful because they prevent humans from making the similar mistakes that were made and can often save lives. One knowledge question that can be extracted from this example is; how can we be sure that knowledge of the past is helpful in making present decisions? After all, there could be other factors that played into a past event that no longer exists.
DeleteAn important lesson to me from literature was the one I gathered from reading “Feed” by M.T. Anderson. Reading this novel was an eye opener for me because it made me aware of something I was slowly falling victim to; consumerism. It also presented the horrors of pollution, dependence on technology and capitalism if humans continue in our current path with these things. Though this novel was set in the future a lot can be learned from it concerning present day situations. It also important to note that ‘Feed’ was an extrapolation of present day activities and might not be an accurate portrayal of future generations. Bearing this in mind a good knowledge question is; how should we be careful when using knowledge of extrapolations to govern present day actions?
One historical moment that I gained from later in life, was 9/11. This very well known day happened when I was 4 years old, and was an event that I had not full understood until later in my life. I remember being at home with my mom, sitting at the table coloring in my coloring book, when she suddenly turned up the volume on the news and a look of pure shock crossed her face. She had started crying and ran to call her mother to make sure she was okay. I learned later that my grandmother worked in a building not too far from the twin towers. I don't remember if I saw what had happened on the TV that day but I later learned that terrorists had flown a passenger plane into the twin towers in New York and many people had died.
ReplyDeleteSince then, patriotism has been stronger and security has been tighter, yet we have also become more fearful of the evils and dangers within our world who have such strong hatred against the USA, that they are willing to kill themselves and others to make a point. This day, I didn't gain self-knowledge, as I was too young to understand what had happened, but as I grew up and gained an understanding of the horrific events that occurred, I have learned quite a lot. As I grew up and learned what the people flying the planes had believed in, I learned about my ideas on the different views of the world. I learned that I do not agree with every perspective of the world and that not every perspective of the world is good. When I was young, I believed that the world was good and everyone had pure intensions, as any child does. I learned that the world is not as pure as I once thought. I also learned that I myself, am not as pure as I once thought. I learned that my opinions are fine to have, but not always innocent, as the day of 9/11 I learned that not everyone in this world is innocent.
One moment in literature that I experienced a moment of self-knowledge was when I read “The Fault in Our Stars” by John Green, the summer of my junior year. This book was about two characters who loved each other and had cancer, although one kept it a secret. Augustus, a main character, was dying from cancer, but did not tell the girl he loved, Hazel-Grace, who also had cancer, until he was only weeks away from his passing. This book took the reader through the difficulties of young love, but also the difficulties of teens with cancer. John Green portrays the difficulties of those with the cancer as well as the families and loved ones who it affects as well.
When I read this book I was just getting done with a difficult year and was still having my own personal problems to get through. While reading this book, I not only learned that everyone has their own problems, but that I truly have a great life and I can make it through any situation. I learned that I was not aware of all that I had and that I took for granted quite a lot in my life. By seeing the struggles that the two main characters and their families went through, I realized that I have a lot to be grateful for and that I shouldn’t take as much for granted as I do. I realized that there was a lot to be happy for and that I was only focusing on the bad things in my life.
Knowledge Question: How does time develop a knower’s knowledge of themselves.
The destruction of the twin towers on 9/11 was one historical moment that helped me experience a moment of self-knowledge. This tragic day happened when I was 4 years old, and was an event that I had not completely understood until later in my life. I remember being at home with my mom, sitting at the table coloring in my coloring book, when she suddenly turned up the volume on the news and a look of pure shock crossed her face. She had started crying and ran to call her mother to make sure she was okay. I learned later that my grandmother worked in a building not too far from the twin towers. I don't remember if I saw what had happened on the TV that day but I later learned that terrorists had flown a passenger plane into the twin towers in New York and many people had died.
DeleteSince then, in America, patriotism has been stronger and security has been tighter, especially in airports, yet we have also become more fearful of the evils and dangers within our world who have such strong hatred against the USA, that they are willing to kill themselves and others to have others fear them or believe as they believe. This day, I didn't gain self-knowledge, as I was too young to understand what had happened, but as I grew up and gained an understanding of the horrific events that occurred, I have learned quite a lot. As I grew up and learned of the beliefs of the terrorists, I learned about my ideas on the different views of the world. I learned that I do not agree with every perspective of the world and that not every perspective of the world is good. When I was young, I believed that the world was good and everyone had pure intensions, as any child does. I learned that the world is not as pure as I once thought. I also learned that I myself, am not as pure as I once thought. I learned that my opinions are fine to have, but not always innocent, as the day of 9/11 I learned that not everyone in this world is innocent. This day made me realize the truth of not only the world, but also of myself.
One moment in literature that I experienced a moment of self-knowledge was when I read “The Fault in Our Stars” by John Green, the summer of my junior year. This book was about two characters who loved each other and had cancer, although one kept it a secret. Augustus, a main character, was dying from cancer, but did not tell the girl he loved, Hazel-Grace, who also had cancer, until he was only weeks away from his passing. This book took the reader through the difficulties of young love, but also the difficulties of teens with cancer. John Green portrays the difficulties of those with the cancer as well as the families and loved ones who it affects as well.
When I read this book I was just getting done with a difficult year and was still having my own personal problems to get through. While reading this book, I not only learned that everyone has their own problems, but that I truly have a great life and I can make it through any situation. I learned that I was not aware of all that I had and that I took for granted quite a lot in my life. By seeing the struggles that the two main characters and their families went through, I realized that I have a lot to be grateful for and that I shouldn’t take as much for granted as I do. I realized that there was a lot to be happy for and that I was only focusing on the bad things in my life.
Knowledge Question: How does time develop a knower’s knowledge of themselves.
For an instance of historical knowledge I’ve taken self-knowledge from, one event sticks out in my mind. Back in 2009, I was 12, I believe, and I can clearly remember going to the voting polls with my dad. That year my dad voted for Barack Obama, and when we were walking out of the voting polls he said to me “Just think, in 50 years from now, you’ll be able to tell your grandchildren that you’re dad voted for the first African American president.” This moment was quite significant to my self-knowledge. This was the first time I realized that I was forever a part of history, no matter what I was partaking in. Up until that point I lived in the present moment and this new concept was mind blowing to me. Every living moment we have will be history, even a few seconds after it happens. When I wrote the first sentence of this blog post, it was in the present time, but now that I’m on my 15th or so sentence, it is now history. It hasn’t even been 50 years and I’m still amazed to say that my dad voted for the first African American president of America. That instance really proved to me just how quick history can happen. A lot of times we think along the lines of “it takes hundreds of years to change concepts in our society,” but I’ve realized it doesn’t necessarily take that long.
ReplyDeleteRelating to literature, I’ve read many things that have caught my attention and that have changed my self-knowledge. This week I was reading The New York Times: upfront and a small article popped out to me. It wasn’t life changing, and it hasn’t affected my daily life, but nevertheless I found it interesting. It was about a man who was in a serious car accident and he injured his nose to the point here they just had to remove it. Scientist figured out how to take cartilage from this mans ribs and implant it into his forehead. This may sound strange, but once they moved the skin around and molded it to a nose shape, this man had a nose growing out of his forehead. The point of this was that they could take this grown nose off his forehead once blood capillaries were formed, and sew it on to where his old nose used to be. This, once again, blew my mind. I had no idea science could grow a nose on a person’s forehead. It was such a simple article, but it really opened my eyes to the growing field of medical science. Laboratories have come so far that they can now grow artificial organs and even a nose. I realized that our world has made so much progress, even when it seams to stand still. Research in this moment is taking place for something so wild we cannot even imagine it. While this is terrifying it was also a hopeful moment for me, demonstrating that there are still positive advancements taking place.
Knowledge Question: Do new pieces of knowledge change the knower’s past, or how they perceive it?
One moment of historical knowledge that I’ve taken self-knowledge from was during the 2009 presidential voting season. On voting day my dad took me to the voting polls so I could get an idea of how the whole process worked. That year Barack Obama was up for election the first time, and when we were walking out of the voting polls my dad said to me “Just think, in 50 years from now, you’ll be able to tell your grandchildren that you’re dad voted for the first African American president.” This moment was quite significant to my self-knowledge. It was the first time I realized that I was forever a small part of history, whether I took part in something big or small. Up until that point I lived in the present moment and this new concept of being a part of history was amazing. Every moment will be history in a matter of time. Whether the moment was a few seconds ago or a few decades ago, it is now history. This really proved to me just how quick time takes place. Going back to my moment of historical knowledge, it hasn’t even been 50 years and I’m still amazed to say that I lived in a time where the first African American president was elected.
DeleteA moment of literary knowledge that affected my self-knowledge was more recent. In the course of my life, I have read many different pieces of literature that have changed my self-knowledge. A simple example of literary knowledge that affected me was reading The New York Times: upfront. An article about medical science caught my eye. It was about a man who was in a serious car accident, injuring his nose to the point where it was necessary to remove it. Through medical science, scientists figured out how to take cartilage from this man’s ribs and implant it into his forehead. Once they molded the skin over the cartilage, in the shape of a nose, the skin formed blood capillaries and healed. Once this process took place, the scientist removed this artificial nose of the man’s forehead, and with surgery, place it where his damaged nose had once been. This moment of literary knowledge struck me, I had no idea science was this advanced. My eyes were opened to the growing field of medical science and experimentation. Laboratories have come so far that they can now grow artificial body parts. My moment of self-knowledge within this was that our world has made so much progress, even when it seems to stand still. Research in this moment is taking place for something so wild we cannot even imagine it. While this is terrifying it was also a hopeful moment for me, demonstrating that there are still positive advancements taking place within society.
Knowledge Question: To what extent does the knower’s perspective of time affect their knowledge of a situation
Historical Knowledge:
ReplyDeleteAfter I learned about the First and Second World War, I found out that the relationship among countries is so complicated. There were always a tension between France and Germany, because Germany conquered two cities from France which made French shamed. Britain was allied with France, but France became greedy and only focus on their own interest while Britain tried to create a peaceful environment in the post First World War time. Britain became nice to Germany. The relationship among Russia, Austria, and Germany during the First World War, the relationship among Russia, America, and China, and the relationship among Oceania, Europenia, and Eastasia in book 1984 are so confused. I loved to read newspaper everyday after I came back from elementary school. I had great interest in politics, and I dreamed to study international relations in college. But after I study those relations, I found out a decision that country makes is not that easy. A economic policy is not only about economic. As I grow up, I learn more about the politic, and I found out that I'm not suitable as I thought was.
Literary Knowledge
I read The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck. I had a heart-to-heart talk with the book. The book is like my private psychiatrist. Once I got upset and lost my energy, it taught me to delay gratification. I learnt that I need to do what i am supposed to do but not what I want to do. After that, I tried to push myself had full concentration on the homework first, then social with friends. I really got benefit from it.
Knowledge Question:
To what extend that people receive the same message the author sent through the book?
Historical Knowledge:
DeleteAfter I learned about the First and Second World War, I found out that the relations among countries are so complicated. There was always tension between France and Germany, because Germany conquered two of the cities in France, which made French felt dishonored. Britain was allied with France, but France became greedy and only focused on their own interests while Britain tried to create a peaceful environment in the post First World War time. Britain became friendly towards Germany. The relationships among Russia, Austria, and Germany during the First World War, the relationship among Russia, America, and China, and the relationships among Oceania, Eurasia, and Eastasia in book 1984 are so confusing. When I was young, I loved to read newspaper everyday after I came back from school. I had great interests in politics, and I dreamed to study international relations in college. But after I have studied those relations, I found that a decision a leader makes is not that easy. For example, an economic policy is not only about economy. As I grew up, I learned more about politics, and I found that I'm not as suitable as I thought was.
Literary Knowledge:
I read The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck. I had a deep talk with the book. The book is like my private psychiatrist. It taught me the right attitude toward the difficulties. It taught me how to love and how to think individually. Once I got upset and lost my energy, it taught me to delay gratification. I learnt that I need to do what I am supposed to do but not what I want to do. After that, I tried to push myself to have full concentration on the homework first, then socialize with friends. I really got benefit from it. The book is like an experienced old who is more close to me even than my mother. It is plainspoken, and I was filled mentally after I read only part of it.
Knowledge Question:
To what extend that people gain the same knowledge the author sent through the book?
One historical moment from which I have gleaned self knowledge is the 1994 Tutsi genocide. My family and I have been commemorating for the victims that were killed in the 1994. As I went on growing up, I kept asking myself why the genocide happened. I still can’t find an answer for that question. I don’t understand why some people kill each other just for no reason. How people kill each just because they were born differently. A lion cannot kill a lion and neither can a dog kill another dog for no reason. But it is surprising how human beings, who are much wiser than any other animals, are the ones who kill each other for no reason. This is really a shame. I have realized that there is no love among people. I have realized how much useless anything is when it is done with no love. I was greatly affected by genocide since my family was victim. This has helped me discover how sensitive I am when it comes to any matter that is related to war. Growing up seeing genocide survivors at home, has taught me that luck exists and that it only exists when you keep a smile on your face like my family does, despite the harsh realities of life you are going through or have already experienced. What I have mainly learnt from this is that, anything bad that a person does to another, not only affects him/her but also other generations that come from him/her.
ReplyDeleteHistory Knowledge question: To what extent does our historical knowledge affect our feelings?
With literature, I can start by talking about a book that fascinated me a lot, “The Awakening”. The book mainly focuses on how women in the Victoria era were denied most of their rights and freedom due to gender inequality. One of the main characters, Edna was treated as a possession by her husband. Reading this book has really opened my eyes as I just realized that even though women have been given their rights, the same gender imbalance exists. It is not surprising that there is gender imbalance up to today but what is surprising is that most of the women do not realize it. I thought about how a girl’s name changes when she gets married as she gets his husband’s last name. For example, my mother also has my father‘s last name. But why can’t it be the other way round? Why can’t a man allow having her woman’s last name? I told my brother that I am never going to take my husband’s name and he was so pissed saying that, I will have broken the rule. But which rule anyway? “The Awakening” helped me to open my eyes as I started realizing that as a girl, I am still undermined by men. There is still great gender inequality in the world.
Literary Knowledge question: To what extent does literature change our understanding of a particular concept?
One historical moment from which I have gleaned self knowledge is the 1994 Tutsi genocide. My family and I have been commemorating the victims that were killed in the 1994. As I kept growing, I kept asking myself why the genocide happened. I still can’t find an answer for that question. I don’t understand why some people kill each other just for no reason. Why do people kill each other just because they were born differently? A lion cannot kill a lion and neither can a dog kill another dog for no reason. But it is surprising how human beings who are much wiser than any other animals, kill each other for no reason. This is really a shame. This has helped me realize that there is not much love among people. Most of the people who took part in organizing the genocide are now in jail or have escaped Rwanda in order not to be punished. From this, I have learned that anything done without love is useless. As I grew up learning more about what actually happened in the genocide, I became more sensitive to issues that are concerned with any sort of divisions among people whether as a tribe, clan or color. This was because divisionism was the major cause of the Rwandese genocide. I was greatly affected by the genocide since my family was victim. Growing up seeing genocide survivors at home has shaped the most part of my characters. Realizing this, I have learned that anything bad that a person does to another not only affects that person, but also affects his/her other upcoming generations.
DeleteHistory Knowledge question: To what extent does our historical knowledge shape who we are?
With literature, I would like to refer to a book that fascinated me a lot, “The Awakening”. This is book written by Kate Chopin that mainly focuses on how women in the Victoria era were denied most of their rights and freedom due to gender inequality. One of the main characters in the book, Edna, was treated as a possession by her husband. Reading this book has really opened my eyes because it has helped me realize that even though women have been given their rights, the same gender imbalance exists. It is not surprising that there is still gender imbalance today. What I find surprising is that most of the women do not realize it just like Edna was before she got awakened. I thought of how in most cultures, it’s a tradition for women to have their husband’s last name. For example, my mother has my father‘s last name and so do many other women that I know. But why can’t it be the other way round? Why can’t a man allow having her woman’s last name? I told my brother that I am never going to take my husband’s name and he was so pissed. He answered by saying that, I will have broken the rule. But which rule anyway? “The Awakening” helped me to open my eyes as I started realizing that as a girl, I am still undermined by men. I had forced myself to believe that gender inequality is completely fading away. But to my surprise, I realized that here is still a lot of gender inequality in the world.
Literary Knowledge question: To what extent does literature change our understanding of a particular concept?
Self Knowledge-Knowledge or understanding of one's own nature, abilities, and limitations; insight into oneself.
ReplyDeleteOne very significant historical event from which I have gleaned some aspects of self knowledge goes back to the Before Christ era. There was once a man named Job who had remained faithful to God, so God decided to let the devil tempt him to test his faithfulness. God had killed all his servants, animals, destroyed his home, let his wife and children abandon him and removed the fertility from his farm. Job was left with nothing, but still he remained faithful to God and was patient, resisted the devil and eventually was made rich again. I heard this story when I was about 4 years old, but I only understood it in my early teenage years. From this event in Christian history, I have learnt that I have the ability to be patient and slow to anger, as hard as it may seem to carry out. The documentation of this event taught me that as hard as things get, and as difficult as life becomes, once I have patience everything will eventually be made better. I think that had I not been exposed to this event in history, my whole insight on life or on human’s hidden strength to be patient would not have been so dominant as it is today. The fact that Job was a normal human being, who went through so much but still remained patient, proved to me that all humans have the nature of being patient, but at times we are ignorant to use it. Without this event in history I don’t think I would have viewed patience from the perspective as I do today. I don’t think I would have pushed myself to be as patient as Job. I would not have realized my own ability to be patient and humble in all sort of bad situations. Before learning so much about patience, I was not a patient person nor did I try to be. This specific historical event provided me with self knowledge on patience.
In my literature class last year, we read a book called The World of Prose, which included a recollection of many short stories. One short story which I read that enabled me to glean some forms of self knowledge from it, was Emma. In Emma, a little girl named Dory indirectly compared her life to a card game where if in the end you are left with a little joker you lose, which she would always play with her mother, Emma. Emma, had been in a broken relationship with her husband, and had died from getting hit by a truck after seeing her husband with another woman. When she died, a little bloody joker laid beside her on the street. She had lost in the game of life As strange as it may seem, I started comparing my life to a game, and searching for my little joker moments where I was defeated by life. Ever since then, I've been trying to find my inner strengths in order to overcome life and not be overcome by life. This short story made me realize my many strengths and weaknesses that I have, it has made me learn from mistakes and has exposed me to many of my little bloody joker moments in life to prevent them from happening again.
Knowledge question : How can our knowledge on the world enable us to overcome the world?
Self Knowledge-Knowledge or understanding of one's own nature, abilities, and limitations; insight into oneself.
DeleteOne very significant historical event from which I have gleaned some aspects of self knowledge can be traced back to the Before Christ era. There was once a man named Job who was faithful to God, so God decided to let the devil tempt him to test his faithfulness. God had enabled the devil to kill all his servants, animals, destroy his home, cause his wife and children to abandon him and remove the fertility from his farm. Job was left with nothing, but still he remained faithful to God and was patient. He resisted the devil and eventually was made rich again. I heard this story when I was about 4 years old, but I only understood it in my early teenage years. From this event in Christian history, I have learnt that I have the ability to be patient and slow to anger even in the midst of the most trivial situations. The documentation of this event taught me that as hard as things may get, and as difficult as life may become, once I have patience everything in life will gradually become better.I think that if I had not been exposed to this event in history, my whole insight on life or on human’s hidden strength to be patient in the most trivial situations would not have been so dominant as it is today. The fact that Job was a normal human being, who went through so much, but still remained patient, proved to me that all humans have the nature of being patient, but at times we are ignorant to use it. Without this event in history I don’t think I would have viewed patience from the perspective as I do today. I don’t think I would have pushed myself to be as patient as Job. I would not have realized my own ability to be patient and humble when placed in a trivial situation. Before learning so much about patience, I was not a patient person nor did I try to be. This specific historical event provided me with self knowledge on patience.
In my literature class last year, we read a book called The World of Prose, which included a recollection of many short stories. One short story which I read that enabled me to glean some forms of self knowledge from it, was Emma. In Emma, a little girl named Dory indirectly compared her life to a card game where if in the end you are left with a little joker you lose, which she would always play with her mother, Emma. Emma, had been in a broken relationship with her husband, and had died from getting hit by a truck after seeing her husband with another woman. When Emma died, a little bloody joker laid beside her on the street. She had lost in the game of life As strange as it may seem, I started comparing my life to a game, and searching for my little joker moments where I was defeated by life. Ever since then, I've been trying to find my inner strengths in order to overcome life and not be overcome by life. This short story made me realize my many strengths and weaknesses . It has enabled me to learn from my mistakes and has exposed me to many of my little bloody joker moments in life to prevent them from happening again.
Knowledge question : How can our knowledge on the world enable us to overcome the world?
ReplyDeleteHistorical Event:
There are many instances in history that we gain self-knowledge. Everyday we learn something new just by waking up and going through our day. Through that we create our own history fro which we can gather self-knowledge. However, there are some instances in history that stand out in particular to be extremely significant in our self-knowledge. One instant in my personal history that continues to expand my self-knowledge occurred 11 years ago when I was 5. My family and I traveled to Ireland for Christmas. I remember very little from that trip besides our visit to the Blarney Stone. The tradition when visiting this site is to bend down, upside down, and kiss the stone for good luck. I remember my dad asked me if I wanted to do it. I said yes, excited about the potential opportunity for adventure. Back then I was perhaps 3’9…maybe shorter, anyway, the point is I was very small and the stone was very big. My dad turned me upside down and gently guided me to the stone. All I had to do it reach a little bit and kiss the stone. The fear of the height, the size of the stone, and the fear that my dad would drop me resulted in me chickening out. I never kissed the rock. 3 cm away, I chickened out…silly Franny. Anyway, that moment stays with me always, and I have learned so much through it. Whenever something scares me, I push myself, reach a little higher and go for it. That knowledge of my own history gives me knowledge of myself everyday. As much as it pushes me to reach higher and overcome my fears, it also shows me that one can learn from an experience. One can improve. I know that if I went to that stone again, I would kiss it. The knowledge question I can extract from this experience is: Can self-awareness and growth occur without history; thus without a knowledge and understanding of ones past?
Literature:
As it is with history, literature affects us everyday. From every piece of literature we read we can extract something that connects to self-knowledge. Even ‘gunk’ like O.K magazine….
A piece of literature that will continue to glean my self-knowledge is George Orwell’s, 1984. Although I just recently read the book, I have taken so much from it that it is hard to put in words. First of all, it is an excellent book. But, as far as its effect on me (Cause lets face it, its all about Franny here…) I have drawn an understanding of the power I hold as a thinker, a knower, and an individual. Through the society Orwell creates, I keep reminding myself how important it is to have an understanding of what is going on around me. For example, since reading that book I have paid much more attention to political, economical, and social headlines and information. The haunting world that Winston Smith lives in drew way to many parallels to the society I live in. I mean, seriously…the government can record our phone calls, there are people who hack into private accounts everyday, and technology continues to advance. Thus, the idea of a telescreen is old news! I know it’s far from reality, but nevertheless, it is scary to think that the society I live in right now has the potential of becoming Oceania. The knowledge question I have extracted from the self-knowledge George Orwell gave me through 1984 is: Even with the awareness of ones self as a knower, a thinker, and an individual, does brainwashing and indoctrination have the power to change ones mind, feeling, and belief in something?
One instant in my personal history that continues to expand my self-knowledge occurred 11 years ago when I was 5. My family and I traveled to Ireland for Christmas. I remember very little from that trip besides our visit to the Blarney Stone. The tradition when visiting this site is to bend down, upside down, and kiss the stone for good luck. I remember my Dad asked me if I wanted to do try it. I said yes, excited about the potential opportunity for adventure. Back then I was perhaps a little over 3 feet high…maybe shorter, anyway, the point is I was very small and the stone was very big. My Dad turned me upside down and gently guided me to the stone. All I had to do was reach a little bit and kiss the stone. The fear of the height, the size of the stone, and the fear that my Dad would drop me resulted in me chickening out. 3 cm away, I chickened out…silly Franny. That moment has stayed with me till this day. Through it I have extracted the determination and willingness to try new things, conquer my fears, and push myself a little harder. I consider that moment to be one that improved my-self knowledge for several reasons. First of all, I use it every day: in riding, school, and in normal aspects of life. Second, I have accepted my defeat that day and have grown from it. Although sometimes I look back at my five year old self and laugh, I mostly look at myself today and see improvement. I know that if I went to that stone again, I would kiss it. I would reach higher and conquer the fear I had of it back when I was 5. The knowledge question I can extract from this experience is: Can self-awareness and growth occur without history; thus without a knowledge and understanding of one’s past?
DeleteLiterature:
A piece of literature that will continue to glean my self-knowledge is George Orwell’s, 1984. Although I just recently read the book, I have taken so much from it that it is hard to put in words. I gained a better understanding of historic, political, and social issues and how important it is to be aware of them. Through the society Orwell creates, I keep reminding myself how important it is to have an understanding of what is going on around me. For example, since reading that book I have paid much more attention to political, economical, and social headlines and information. The haunting world that Winston Smith lives in drew several parallels to the society I live in. An example of this is the recent news about the government tracking phone calls. Another example is the continues advancement of technology. When considering Oceania and the government's use of technology to control and maintain power over their citizens, one can begin to question whether or not 2014 is steadily moving into that direction. Thus, the idea of a telescreen is old news! I know it’s far from reality, but nevertheless, it is scary to think that the society I live in right now has the potential of becoming Oceania. The knowledge question I have extracted from the self-knowledge George Orwell gave me through 1984 is: Even with the awareness of ones self as a knower, a thinker, and an individual, does brainwashing and indoctrination have the power to change ones mind, feeling, and belief in something?
Thinking about a specific moment in history that caused self-knowledge in myself was was a very difficult task for me. I do not doubt that this probably happens everyday, but it is hard to pinpoint one exact event that made me realize something in myself. I assume one of the events that I have gleamed self-knowledge would be over a long period of time, not necessarily one specific moment, because I myself have just realized it. Coming to SBS, was not voluntary on my part; I solely came in 7th grade because my mother insisted that it would be a good opportunity that I would later thank her for. At the age (I was 11 turning 12 a month later) when I first came here, I was not by any means open to the idea of going to school and staying away from the only place I knew as home. For the first year and change I pretty much despised my mom for sending me to a boarding school because I felt as though she only did it to make herself happy, not me, so any moment I had the chance I would make an unnecessary comment about her decision to send me here. However, with time, I am still at SBS, and I am a junior now. With my age and experience I have learned that the saying that “mother’s always right”, is in fact true. Though it has taken a while for me to realize, reflecting back on my 11 year old self and 16 year old self today, I realize that I have grown to be a person I do not think I would have been able to be had I been in the schools of NYC. I guess to summarize, this period of knowledge sparked the self-knowledge in me that though I doubted SBS and the concept of boarding school at first, it has changed my beliefs in that I now understand the great opportunities I am now open too.
ReplyDeleteKQ: To what extent does change (good or bad) affect the knower and his/her beliefs.
For knowledge which I gained from a work of literature, I automatically think back to a really great book we read in English class called The Things They Carried. I refer to this book, because it is rich with morals and lessons which I then, found in myself. One major concept in this book was that we as humans are constantly carrying things because of our emotions and beliefs, and also because of our responsibility. When I had thought about the things I carry, I realized that before reading the book I probably would have came up with rudimentary things such as clothes or my bookbag on a daily basis. But, after reading I realized I carry a lot more than I think, and each thing I carry, an extra burden on myself, is simply because of my strong feelings or emotions for something. So, basically, I realized in myself, from this book, that I deal with a lot of background things that I push to the back of my mind and pay no attention to, but continue to carry because of my morals and what I value the most or least for that matter.
KQ: How can a knower’s realization of a specific thing be affected by something else unrelated to themselves personally?
Thinking about a specific moment in history that caused self-knowledge in me was a very difficult task. I realize that this probably happens every day; learning something in the world of history that triggers some type of self-knowledge within ourselves, but it is hard to pinpoint one exact event that made me realize something in myself. I guess one of the events that I have gleamed self-knowledge from was not a specific moment but instead a series of unrecognized events (of which I just realized), over a long period of time. Coming to SBS, was not voluntary on my part; in short, I came in 7th grade because my mother told me to and claimed that I would thank her later. When I first came here I hadn’t even turned 12 yet, so I was not by any means open to the idea of going to a school far away from home and the people I cared about. To explain briefly, I basically tortured my mom every time I went home continuously making unnecessary comments about her decision to send me here whenever I possibly could. However, with time, I am still at SBS, and I am a junior now. With my gain of age and experience I have learned that the saying that “mother’s always right”, is in fact true. Though it has taken a while for me to realize, reflecting back on then and now to today, I realize that I have grown to be a person I do not think I would have been able to be had I been in the schools of NYC. I guess to summarize, this period of history sparked the self-knowledge in me that though I doubted and refused to accept something at first, that same “something” changed my beliefs in that I now understand the great opportunities I have been opened too. The message I’m trying to convey through this time of history, is that while change may be forceful, it can affect a person for the good or bad without the person’s recognition of their change.
DeleteKQ: To what extent does change affect the knower and his/her knowledge in him/her?
For knowledge which I gained from a work of literature, I automatically think back to a really great book we read in English class called The Things They Carried. I refer to this book, because it is rich with morals and lessons which I then, found in myself. One major concept in this book was that we as humans are constantly carrying things because of our emotions and beliefs, and also because of our responsibility. When this book inspired me to think about the things I carry, I realized that before reading the book I probably would have came up with rudimentary things such as clothes or my book bag on a daily basis. But, after reading I realized I carry a lot more than I think, and each thing I carry, an extra burden on me, is simply because of my strong feelings or emotions for something. So, basically, I realized in myself, from this book, that I deal with a lot of background things that I push to the back of my mind and pay no attention to, yet still continue to carry because of my morals and what I value the most (or least for that matter).
KQ: To what extent can a knower’s knowledge of themselves be affected by an outside source (such as a piece of literature)?
One instance of historical knowledge from which you have gleaned self-knowledge was when Ias listening to a podcast on Radiolab about inheritance. The podcast talked about DNA and how thats is the basis of who you are that can not be changed, but there are also certain circumstances and variables that can affect how you grow as a person and what kind of person you become. We are also learning about DNA in Biology and about its structure, the discovery of it, and its role in the human body.. This knowledge about DNA and the history of it got me thinking about the history of me and all of us. We all have a history of being born and having our own DNA that basically defines who we are.
ReplyDeleteI thought about the history of my parents and the fact that my DNA is connected to their DNA and their history. I thought about how we share quite a few traits with our parents, yet we’re have our own individuality. I thought about how I started out as few cells with DNA and now I am my own person with my own thoughts, beliefs, feelings, and so on . This historical knowledge of DNA allowed me to reflect on where I came from and where I am now, an even though my DNA has always stayed the same, I have grown and changed so much as a person. I have gleaned self-knowledge about my self, and how my DNA and cells make up who I am, yet I have become so much more than that.
For literature, In English, we recently finished reading the Interpreter of Maladies. This book was a great representation of Indian culture and different aspects of life for people with different circumstance. A lot of this book was set in Boston which is where I live. It mentioned places like Commonwealth Ave or Davis Square, all places where I have been many many times. This got me thinking about my own awareness of my community and my role in my community. I had no idea about Indian culture in Boston. I realized that I have not really taken the time to learn about other cultures in my community at home. I know that it definitely is somethings that I now want to start getting involved in.
Knowledge question: To what extent do historical knowledge and literary knowledge connect or differ in the process of a learner’s understanding of and relating to a given piece of knowledge?
One instance of historical knowledge from which I have gleaned self-knowledge was when I was listening to a podcast on Radiolab about inheritance. The podcast talked about DNA and how it is the basis of who you are and it can not be changed. There are certain circumstances, however, that can affect how you grow as a person and what kind of person you become. I am also learning about DNA in Biology and about its structure, the discovery of it, and its role in the human body. This knowledge about DNA and the history of it had me thinking about the history of myself, and humanity in general. We all have a history of being born and having our own DNA that defines our physical being.
DeleteI thought about the history of my parents and the fact that my DNA is connected to their DNA and their history. I thought about how we share quite a few traits with our parents, yet we have our own individuality. I also thought about how I started out as few cells with DNA and now I am my own person with my own thoughts, beliefs, feelings, and so on. This historical knowledge of DNA allowed me to reflect on where I came from and where I am now; and even though my DNA has always stayed the same, I have grown and changed so much as a person. I have gleaned self-knowledge about myself, and how my DNA and cells make up who I am, yet I have become so much more than that. The DNA that has made up who I physically am, has also laid the pathway for my changing and growing thoughts and beliefs; I am able to have a mind of my own and critically think about and challenge or agree with new ideas. This historical knowledge about DNA has made me more aware of the big picture of life and how amazing the human body and the different complex layers of my own being and mind are.
For literature, in English, we recently finished reading the Interpreter of Maladies. This book was a great representation of Indian culture and different aspects of life for people with different social circumstances. A lot of this book was set in Boston which is where I live. It mentioned places like Commonwealth Ave or Davis Square, all places where I have visited or walked by many, many times. This made me start thinking about my personal awareness of my community and my role in my community. I had no idea about Indian culture in Boston. I realized that I have not really taken the time to learn about other cultures in my community at home. I know that it definitely is something that I now want to start getting involved in. I also gleaned self knowledge about my own culture and its reflection in my community through this book.
Knowledge question: To what extent does historical knowledge and literary knowledge connect or differ in the process of a learner’s understanding of and relating to a given piece of knowledge?
My historical gleaning of self-knowledge comes from reading about Mao in Jon Halliday and Jung Chang’s “Mao, the Unknown Story” two years ago, this book gave me new insight into Mao as a leader, previously, when I learned about Mao in China, he was portrayed as a great Leader and little was said about him that had a negative implication. So from the time that I was very young, I have always thought about Mao in an extremely positive light. While reading the book about Mao, my idea of him changed completely. It wasn’t until recently that I read the reviews of the book where it said that that the book was completely biased, and very one sided. This instance helped me glean self knowledge of how easily changed my mind, and I really had no opinion of my own. My own opinion reflects whoever’s opinion was given to me.
ReplyDeleteLiterature Gleaning of self-knowledge:
A while after I read the Glass Menagerie in 10th grade, I realized that the three main characters in the dysfunctional Wingfield family are all exaggerations of one side of a single person. Laura is extremely shy; Mrs. Wingfield is very backwards and stuck in her past while Tom constantly seeks escape and is somewhat reclusive. These are what make up a modern human being. Personally, I felt a very strong connection with Laura, and that was my moment of self-knowledge.
My knowledge question at the intersection of history and literature is: What can knowers know about themselves through their interpretation of knowledge?
Edit:
DeleteMy historical gleaning of self-knowledge comes from reading about Mao Zedong in Jon Halliday and Jung Chang’s “Mao, the Unknown Story” two years ago. This book gave me new insights into Mao as a leader, previously, when I learned about Mao in China, he was portrayed as a great Leader and little was said about him that had a negative implication. So from the time that I was very young, I have always thought about Mao in an extremely positive light. While reading the book about Mao, my idea of him changed completely. So after reading the book, my opinion of Mao went from very positive to very negative. It wasn’t until recently that I read the reviews of the book where it said that that the book was incredibly biased. This instance helped me glean self knowledge of how easily changed my mind could be, and I really had no opinion of my own. My own opinion reflects whose ever opinion was given to me.
Literature Gleaning of self-knowledge:
A while after I read the Glass Menagerie in 10th grade, I realized that the three main characters in the dysfunctional Wingfield family are all exaggerations of characteristic of a single person. Laura is extremely shy; Mrs. Wingfield is very backwards and stuck in her past while Tom constantly seeks escape and is somewhat reclusive. I think that we all, at least I, have times where I am more like Tom, or Laura or Mrs. Wingfield. Having realized this, I reflected on which character I am most like. Most times, I feel a very strong connection with Laura, reading about Laura reminds me of myself, so that was my moment of self-knowledge.
My knowledge question at the intersection of history and literature is: What can knowers know about themselves by analyzing their own interpretation of knowledge?
About 6 years ago, I experienced the first African American person become president. I deem this an instance of historical knowledge that is self-knowledge. The primary reason for this is because I actually experienced the event, and it wholly comes from my own knowledge because it happened in my lifetime. I remember that I was enrolled in 6th grade at my middle school in Queens New York. Classes were stopped, and the whole school went into the Auditorium to watch Barack Obama’s inauguration on the overhead projector. I did not learn that Barack Obama was the first black president from a textbook, but from the people around me, the news broadcastings, and posters. Most of the other historical events that I have learned have been in a classroom setting, are facts and ideas that have been around for a long time. Like in a game of telephone, these messages have been interpreted in many different ways and may have been changed and/or altered.
ReplyDeleteAn instance when I learned a piece of historical information from literature is when I studied Anne Frank-Diary of a Young Girl the summer before 9th grade. It was the first book that I read about the holocaust. I did have some prior knowledge what the holocaust was, and how it happened, but I didn't know the holocaust in detail. the book gave me detailed historical knowledge on how it was to grow up around the same time as the holocaust. It taught me about anti-semitism in Europe, and restrictions against Jewish people at that time.
These two different instances of historical knowledge- self knowledge and knowledge by means of literature leave me with the knowledge question:
generally,which type of knowledge does a knower deem more reliable- self knowledge or knowledge based on literature.
I am curious about this because both types of knowledge can be altered. Even though I experienced Barack Obama become president, the government could have easily hid the true history away from us and told the citizens that he was the first black president. Literature can contain false history as well.
One moment in history in which I have learned about myself is when Barack Obama was elected as the First African-American president of the United States of America. I specifically remember watching the news all night on the last day of elections. The whole family was rooting for Barack Obama, and for the past couple of months his name was mentioned everywhere. It definitely brought up controversy. Almost everyone that I knew supported him, but I heard about people who did not support him not because of his plan for the country, but because of his race. But that night when they announced Barack Obama as the new President-Elect, I took away a new message from the series of events that happened throughout those past months. I experienced the historical event that resulted in the first African American President in American records. I watched Barack Obama struggle with gaining support from people, and I learned of racism that was directed at him. In the end though, I learned many life lessons in that one historical event. I learned that there will be drawbacks and large obstacles in the way of your dream, but the right amount of determination cancels it out. I also learned that it may be harder for me along with other people of color to reach their successes, and sometimes I would have to work harder than other people to get what I want.
DeleteAn instance in which I learned a piece of historical information from literature is when I studied Anne Frank-Diary of a Young Girl the summer before 9th grade. It was the first book that I read about the holocaust. I did have some prior knowledge what the holocaust was, and how it happened, but I didn't know the holocaust in detail. the book gave me detailed historical knowledge on how it was to grow up around the same time as the holocaust. It taught me about anti-semitism in Europe, and restrictions against Jewish people at that time. From this book, I learned to appreciate my living and social situation. I realized that I was living pretty comfortably, compared to many other people.
Knowing that I learned and still learn things about myself through history and literature ( literature in many cases is influenced by history) leads me to draw the conclusion that history plays a very strong part in who you are and what you think of yourself. Many people say that history is important because it gives you the ability to learn from the past in order to create a better future. I agree with this, and I also think that history is important because it gives you the ability to learn events from the past and develop yourself based on your opinions about the past. If I had not experienced Barack Obama contest to become President of The United States, I would not have the same opinions and thoughts that I have now. I would not know what I know now about determination and success.
These two different instances of self knowledge-knowledge through history and knowledge through literature leave me with the knowledge question:
Generally,which type of knowledge does a knower deem more reliable- self knowledge from history or self knowledge from literature.?