Philosophy Review of Concepts and Teaching Methods
Among the things I find important in my life, philosophy has always been one of the most significant. As most children do, I started asking questions ever since I could speak. While the majority of kids grew out of that stage, I didn’t. I continued to ask questions, constantly looking for answers. Even at a young age, I would try to discover new ways to do a regular task, or question why we all existed. And now, knowing that there are others like me, people who question reality, is life changing. They are philosophers. But I soon realized that although all of these philosophers are very intelligent, they have different opinions on how others should view the world. That the pulling of an imaginary lever could determine if you see the value in each individual, or if you see many people as a whole.
You can never truly know somebody. In fact, many times they do not even know themselves. This is because of a little something called “a personality mask”. Because of the pressure from society that makes you believe you must be perfect and flawless, we change ourselves to fit into these guidelines. For instance, if your group of friends were all into a certain type of music, you might put on a mask to hide how much you don’t like listening to that. You will be a different person and completely alter your opinion just to fit in. Much like a literal mask, it hides your true identity. And unless you take off the mask, nobody could know who you really are. There is not one person in this whole world who does not have one, either consciously or subconsciously. Even the most inspirational people have had some kind of mask. Don’t you think that the great Martin Luther King Jr. spoke a certain way sometimes to make himself look more honorable? He most certainly did not talk that way all the time, for in front of a crowd he acted a different way than with his peers. And just think, what would it be like if you talked to your parents the same way you talk to your friends. It would make for some very awkward conversation, since you don’t have to be as polite and respectful. Although it may seem very natural to do, this is still not exactly who you are. It is just a cover up made by the people around you.
Realizing who you are can be one of the most valuable things that you can do. Learning that you cannot just point the finger at somebody, and knowing that this is something that you were also a part of. A person who has not yet met the point of self-realization might blame something they were entirely responsible for on somebody else, as well as begin to build a destructive personality. But the one who begins to take interest into bettering themselves and taking notice to who they want and need to be, will no doubt lead the more successful life. If somebody is a procrastinator and sees this, depending on how much they want to change for good, they might become determined enough to hand in that science project a week early. Anyways, the path to self-realization may be short, and it may be long. But however long it does take, the end result will be worth the journey.
This last quarter we learned so many things. The majority of them helped change the way I think and act. But there were a few things that stood out more than others, that really helped me recognize what I want to become. The most impactful was probably learning about goal setting. Here, I learned all the steps needed to not only create a goal, but to achieve one. All my life, when I have a goal I stick with it… for a while. Eventually, I let it go and set my mind on something else. When I was five years old I wanted to be a paleontologist, at eight a teacher, at ten a classicist, and now a filmmaker. With the recent patterns, I would be giving up my goals and dreams to pursue something else. That’s because I hardly set them up right. Now, I know that I must write down my goal, and have a deadline. So with me, I want to produce a full length movie by the time I am 20. I also learned that I must anticipate obstacles, and I can better prepare for them. One of the most important things that came out of this though was the fact that it was okay to find experts to help you. Growing up, it was always common to hear adults telling me that if “I got help it wouldn’t actually be an achievement.” Being the little kid that I was, I trusted that adult and took their word. Now where am I? I have stopped looking for people to help me along the way. In my case, I have already signed up for several film workshops and classes with some very experienced directors and screenwriters. I have taken the baby steps by making short films and music videos, and if I follow this philosophy, I might just get to make my movie.
I had a rough understanding of how to set goals even before this class, and although it strengthened my skill for setting them, we also learned things I had never even heard of before. This is the study of multiple intelligences. Now, of course I knew that some people prefer learning by seeing and others by listening, but what I didn’t know is that there is so much more than that. You can be linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, spatial, intrapersonal, or bodily-kinesthetic smart. Along with the lessons in class, I realized that school only rewarded the students that were very linguistic and logic smart. Unfortunately, they hardly ever pay attention to people who are spatial and musical smart, which is what I am mostly. I’ve had some difficulty with school, and when it comes to teach somebody a lesson or maybe speaking in front of the class, I don’t usually do so well and can’t get my thoughts straight. And when it comes to logic, I can do things fairly quickly, but when it comes to actually showing my work, I find it near impossible to finally put the words and numbers on paper. I found this specifically interesting because now I know what categories of learning I need to strengthen.
Among all the philosophers we have learned and read about, I would have to say that Socrates and Plato are the ones that I can relate the most to. With Socrates, he believed that the morals that most of the Athenians in his time period were thinking too much about careers, their families, and politics, when they ought to be worried about their soul, and their well-being. I agree with this philosophy. A career and other people are important, of course, but making sure you are happy and you are in a good place is more important. People often think of others before they think of themselves, which is perfectly okay, but they then completely neglect the part where they also need to take care of themselves. I also respect Socrates for being willing to die for his beliefs. He was teaching the children in the schools his philosophy, and although he was brought to court and faced the possibility of a death sentence, he stood by what he believed in.
One of Socrates students, Plato, had an interesting way of thinking. He enjoyed studying math because of the certainty of reason. While a feeling or opinion could be different for everybody, the reason behind math and science is universal and you will always get the same answer. While this is only a very small part of his observations, I can see why he would appreciate accuracy and precision. Taking the opposite direction of most philosophers, he decided not to ask so many questions, but instead to find the answers to ones already being asked.
During this unit, my opinion about philosophy has stayed the same. However, my knowledge and love for it has greatly increased. I used to believe that the majority of philosophers all had similar thoughts to one another, but now I know that this is false, and in fact many of them have anti-theories against the others’ theory. This unit and book made me look at philosophy in a new light, as if I was hearing about it for the first time.
Socrates once said the great words “the unexamined life is not worth living”. What I believe he was meaning to say was that if you do not lead a life with self-realization, and making yourself happy without hurting anybody else, is not a life that is worth living at all. He believed that you needed to improve your life, and stop thinking so much about what will affect others. You need to achieve your goals and strive for self-achievement. I believe this is true for me. If you do not take a moment to think about who you truly are, and try to do some good for yourself, then what is the point in even living?
Studying all these different philosophers has made me wonder about the world we live on. Who am I really? Who do I want to be? How can I achieve that? And using all of their philosophies and applying their beliefs to my life can aim you straight for success. Whether it be how to set a goal, or what would be the best way to study for school, they can be used practically anywhere in your life. And I plan on doing that. This unit has taught me so many things, how to analyze decisions, and why we think the way we do. A philosopher is just an asker of questions, after all.
