Red Rover and Darwinism

On Tuesday we played "Red Rover," (picture of the game above) which, at the time, I thought was just a game, but if you look further, it is more of a Darwinian playtime activity. Red Rover is a game where two teams call on the other team to have one of their team members "come over" and try to break through the human chain of linked hands. In most cases, the teams prey on who they think would be least likely to break through the chain. On our first turn to call on the other team, we called on Cat, for no reason other than the fact that we thought since she is little (not in a negative way, love ya Cat!) and wouldn't be able to break through our chain. Well, Cat surprised us and kept running through the chain and broke through, stealing one of our members and taking them back to her team. Cat was able to break through, but Robert (love ya too, man) proved to be the weakest link (according to Bump and his facebook picture captions), which is surprising since it is the opinion of many that men are the stronger sex, especially in the case of Cat vs. Robert since Robert is clearly bigger. Here is Cat breaking through...
Darwin states, “Man can act only on external and visible characteristics: Nature…cares nothing for appearances” which shows that humans are concerned with the physical (whether showing strength, status, etc) and therefore perform selection, but based on different means than Nature. By definition, Social Darwinism is a hypothesis that competition among all individuals, groups, nations or ideas drives social evolution in human societies. The term is an extension of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, where competition between individual organisms drives biological evolutionary change (speciation) through the survival of the fittest. My opinions about Social Darwinism are mixed. On one hand, I think that Social Darwinism does drive evolution because I think that people are and should be constantly striving to better their lives and the lives of their families, but I don’t necessarily think that money should be the driving factor. I think that the basic people should do all they can to satisfy Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, but even when those needs are fulfilled goals should not be considered reached. Maslow's Hierarchy: I think that people have survived because of several different factors: Some people are lucky, some people work hard enough to survive, and some people have enough money to ensure they survive. I am not saying that money ensures survival but I think it is true, but unfortunate, that some people who have more money than others happen to get better medical treatment and more treatment because of their ability to afford it. I am not saying that a rich person necessarily gets better treatment at a hospital, but I do understand that there are certain medical bills that some people can afford and others just can’t. I think that is the most crushing factor of social Darwinism, and also the reason I refuse to accept that it is a fact of life. (But I won’t go on since the whole medical thing is a political debate and I don’t want to go into that). Anyways, back to Red Rover—I think that Red Rover was proof that the theory is wrong because, since it is a game of strength and speed, you cannot decide who will survive (or win) based on their social status. Since we do not know everyone’s socioeconomic background, we simply chose on size and who we thought would be fun to watch run (aka it was funny to watch Bump try to break through the chain). Darwin writes in “The Origin of Species” about a country that has new life forms come into it, and the disturbance it causes, which I think can relate to the fact that someone running from the opposite team to your team and breaking through, causes a disturbance to your team, but strengthens their team: “If the country were open on its borders, new forms would certainly immigrate, and this would likewise seriously disturb the relations of some of the former inhabitants.” Darwin wrote about medical advancements and their effects on lower class families in “The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex:” “Thus the weak members of civilised societies propagate their kind. No one who has attended to the breeding of domestic animals will doubt that this must be highly injurious to the race of man. It is surprising how soon a want of care, or care wrongly directed, leads to the degeneration of a domestic race; but excepting in the case of man himself, hardly any one is so ignorant as to allow his worst animals to breed. The aid which we feel impelled to give to the helpless is mainly an incidental result of the instinct of sympathy, which was originally acquired as part of the social instincts, but subsequently rendered, in the manner previously indicated, more tender and more widely diffused. Nor could we check our sympathy, even at the urging of hard reason, without deterioration in the noblest part of our nature. ... We must therefore bear the undoubtedly bad effects of the weak surviving and propagating their kind; but there appears to be at least one check in steady action, namely that the weaker and inferior members of society do not marry so freely as the sound; and this check might be indefinitely increased by the weak in body or mind refraining from marriage, though this is more to be hoped for than expected.” He talked about sympathy, and in my opinion made it clear that reason shouldn’t trump sympathy and compassion. The clip that follows shows that social Darwinism can be overcome despite unfavorable circumstances:

Darwinism and Red Rover

On Tuesday we played "Red Rover," which, at the time, I thought was just a game, but if you look further, it is more of a Darwinian playtime activity. Red Rover is a game where two teams call on the other team to have one of their team members "come over" and try to break through the human chain of linked hands. In most cases, the teams prey on who they think would be least likely to break through the chain. On our first turn to call on the other team, we called on Cat, for no reason other than the fact that we thought since she is little (not in a negative way, love ya Cat!) and wouldn't be able to break through our chain. Well, Cat surprised us and kept running through the chain and broke through, stealing one of our members and taking them back to her team. Cat was able to break through, but Robert (love ya too, man) proved to be the weakest link (according to Bump and his facebook picture captions), which is surprising since it is the opinion of many that men are the stronger sex, especially in the case of Cat vs. Robert since Robert is clearly bigger. Darwin states, “Man can act only on external and visible characteristics: Nature…cares nothing for appearances” which shows that humans are concerned with the physical (whether showing strength, status, etc) and therefore perform selection, but based on different means than Nature. By definition, Social Darwinism is a hypothesis that competition among all individuals, groups, nations or ideas drives social evolution in human societies. The term is an extension of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, where competition between individual organisms drives biological evolutionary change (speciation) through the survival of the fittest. My opinions about Social Darwinism are mixed. On one hand, I think that Social Darwinism does drive evolution because I think that people are and should be constantly striving to better their lives and the lives of their families, but I don’t necessarily think that money should be the driving factor. I think that the basic people should do all they can to satisfy Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, but even when those needs are fulfilled goals should not be considered reached. Maslow's Hierarchy:

Kim, 1-8.

Wow—this book is interesting but definitely difficult to read, and I started in chapter one by looking up a bunch of unclear terms and ideas. The one I focused on was Hindustani. Hindustani is a mix of languages and idioms that mix Hindi and Urdu. There are two types of Hindustani, but both are almost identical. In connection with Kim, before the partition of British India the terms for the Hindustani and Urdu languages were used as substitutes.[1] Secondly, I was confused about the Zam-Zammah (even though there was a footnote) beacuase I was confused on why it was mentioned so much. Peter Hopkirk, who wrote Quest for Kim, states that “Zam-Zammah was cast in Lahore in 1762 and was the largest gun made in India of its day (over 14 feet lond and with a caliber of 10 inches”[2] In Kim, it was a “great green-bronze piece” and a “fire breathing dragon”[3]
Below is an image of the Zam-Zammah which stands outside the Lahore Museum in Pakistan.

Ok, weird connection, before even reading Holly’s blog I thought that Kim was a lot like Aladdin. He was of low status, begged often and helped out those who had worse circumstances than he, like the Lama. In the first few pages of the book, Kim seems very racist. On page six, he won’t let Chota Lal on the cart, and he taunts the others fathers and their religions: “Thy father was a pastry-cook, Thy mother stole the ghi, All Mussalmans fell off the Zam-Zammah long ago…The Hindus fell of Zam-Zammah too. The Mussalmans pushed them off. Thy father was a pastry-cook.”[4] He later goes on the stereotype the Irish as clever , crafty and tricky, saying “Kim’s mother had been Irish too.”[5] He was “acting Irish” because he was carefully watching and learning about the lama, seeing how he could exploit and learn from him.
In that same passage, I enjoyed the personification of the lama as a trove, and thought it was a clever way of saying he was something to be explored: “This man was entirely new to all his experience, and he meant to investigate further, precisely as he would have investigated a new building or a strange festival in Lahore city. The lama was his trove.”[6] The image that came to mind was of a dog in a new place, sniffing and looking around to make sure it’s safe and to help him learn about his new surroundings.
Kim starts out the novel seeming apathetic to those around him, but suddenly takes pity on the lama, perhaps because he is so interested in his situation, but nonetheless tells him, “Those who beg in silence starve in silence…Give me the bowl. I know the people of this city—all who are charitable. Give, and I will bring it back filled.”[7] Kim then goes to the people of Lahore and gets a bowl of rice with curry vegetables and a fried cake, a meal that seems very generous to give a beggar.
I found the passage about the creation of the holy River very interesting. Since this course is about understanding other cultures and connecting them, I immediately found a connection between this River and the sacrament of Baptism in Christianity. “And, overshooting all other marks, the arrow passed for and far beyond sight. At the last it fell; and, where it touched earth, there broke out a stream which presently became a River, whose nature, by our Lord’s beneficence, and that merit He acquired ere He freed himself, is that whoso bathes in it washes away all taint and speckle of sin.”[8] Although John the Baptist was not God, he had the ability to baptize others because he baptized Christ. In Mark, Chapter One, John the Baptist prepares the way for people to be baptized, and the first seven verses follow: “The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. IT is written in Isaiah the prophet: ‘I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way’ a voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins…And this was his [John’s] message: “After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”[9] Both rivers had the power to wash away sin, but in the sense of the River in Kim, I feel like the actual water is what “saves” them and rids them of their sins, while the Christian Rivers used to baptize are more symbolic, the water represents the cleansing of the body and sins, while actual salvation comes from accepting Jesus as your Savior and being filled with the Holy Spirit. The Old Law and Reformed Law reminded me of the Old Testament and the New Testament, although the New Testament does not change any commandments, only adds the stories of new people after the birth of Christ.
Lastly, the description of the picture of the representation of Buddha on page 8 reminded me of Renassaince paintings with Mary holding Jesus being adored by the kings and others. I looked for a painting that would have looked similar to the description, and the best one I found was the following:

“The Master was represented seated on a lotus, the petals of which were so deeply undercut as to show almost detached. Round Him was an adoring hierarchy of kings, elders, and old-time Buddhas. Below were lotus-covered waters with fishes and water-birds. Two butterly-winges dewas held a wreath over His head…”[10]
Mary and Jesus being adored.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindustani_language
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zam-Zammah
[3] Kipling, 3.
[4] Kipling, 6.
[5] Kipling, 14.
[6] Kipling, 14.
[7] Kipling, 14.
[8] Kipling, 11.
[9] NIV, Mark 1:1-7.
[10] Kipling, 8.

The Thrill of the Chase

Do sporting men hunt because of an inferiority complex? My opinion, according to what I read in Ritvo, is yes. In the thrill of the chase, fallen animals are talked about like trophies, and I think that men in this context hunt because they are trying to impress other men, or elevate their status. After a quick lamentation over a fallen animal, “The sympathy evinced by such responses, was, however, skin deep. The fallen animal soon resumed its status as an object, and the hunter as quickly prepared to fire again” (267). Hunters were seen by other hunters in “a heroic light” (266) and their killings were celebrated. Personal physique was also a big part of a hunter, “The best sport required the hunter to prove his physical mettle—to overcome a dangerous and powerful animal on its own terms. As a result, the fiercest opponents were often also the most attractive” (268). Men who felt inferior would most likely build up their strength and stamina for a big hunt so that they could “prove” their worth and not look pathetic in the eyes of other hunters.
It doesn't seem right to kill something this huge (in my opinion)

Secondly, in class the subject of how certain people reacted to eating meat was brought up. A lot of people are against animal cruelty and think that the caging of animals and their slaughter is horrific, but they still eat meat and prefer not to know how their meal was killed. Ritvo states, “The uncompromisingly physical nature of this domination was underscored by the two most frequently emphasized features of the climactic scene: a precise anatomical and ballistic analysis of how the kill was accomplished and a sentimentalized description of how the animal faced its demise” (265). I think that if every box of chicken mcnuggets you eat had the story of where the chicken was killed and how it struggled, you would think twice about eating what was in front of you.

This man is using his kill as a trophy, and I'm sure bragged about his "huge success" in order to compensate for other things...

I am not completely against hunting, but I think that certain people, men in particular, hunt because they think that they will be thought higher of by other men in the same circle if they are more skilled at hunting. I know certain people who quail hunt just for sport, and don’t even collect the birds they kill, they just like to see the bird fall from the sky. In my opinion, if you are going to kill an animal at least do something with the body, like eat it or use it for something. Don’t make its’ life completely meaningless.

This seems like a massacre...

Littlefield

Victorian House

Victorian Town Hall, Manchester

I think it is so weird how Victorian architecture can encompass so many things: flying buttresses, dragons, lions, red brick and stone, etc. The Littlefield house, on the corner of 24th and Whitis is an example of Victorian Architecture and its’ elements.
The gothic elements are represented throughout the house both in the interior and on the exterior. In Ruskin’s “The Stones of Venice” he talked about the six elements of gothic, which I will relate to the house.
1) Savageness or Rudeness: the Littlefield House may seem perfectly put together, but the “roughness of work” [1] and “the imperfection of the workman” [2] are shown in the laying of the brick and the attempt but not complete success of perfection.
2) Love of change: I think the love of change is the most prominent feature of the house. If you look at the layers, you see different iron gates, and columns that are asymmetrical, but the whole thing fits together. The layers of the balconies aren’t the exact same, and the materials even change throughout: red brick, stone, greenish iron, white columns. The love of change exhibits the “perpetual variety of every feature of the building…. great art, whether expressing itself in words, colours, or stones, does not say the same thing over and over again. To me, the change says that they welcomed variety and new ideas. Also, the shapes of the rooms on the interior are not similar to each other—one room has a circular attachment that serves little purpose.
3) Love of nature: The fences around the balconies are shaped like vines with leaves and the tiles on the top towers look like leaves. The top of the towers have tree looking things that seem to have leaves dripping off of them.
4) Disturbed imagination: The inside has the gargoyle dragons in the front room on top of the fireplace, and the top of the outside has lions heads on them.
5) Obstinacy or Rigidity: The outside, especially the top, seems very prickly and juts out at you at certain places. The top spikes of the towers project upward and look very sharp.
6) Generosity: The space between the two floors seems very large, and there is so much space that has been filled. Each detail of the exterior shows so much craftsmanship and hard work, and you can tell that there was so much labor and thought put into its’ design. Look at the space between the two floors:

[1] Anthology, 535.
[2] Anthology, 535.

Black Beauty 1

The first page of Black Beauty invokes memories of childhood and allows the reader to sympathize with Black Beauty within sentences because the first person account makes him seem human, “While I was young I lived upon my mother’s milk, as I could not eat grass. In the daytime I ran by her side, and at night I lay down close to her.” [1] If I were writing an autobiography (assuming I could remember my first few days of infancy) a sentence would similarly read: “While I was young I lived upon my mother’s milk, as I could not eat solid food. In the daytime she held me by her side, and at night I lay close to her in my crib.” The parallel between a horse’s infancy and a child’s is undeniable, as it is with many animals. Sewell calls to the reader’s sympathetic imagination from the start, perhaps because Sewell was crippled at a young age and knew what it was like to be hurt and unable to function like her peers. The way Black Beauty’s mom talks to him is exactly like my mother would talk to me when I was in with the wrong crowd or misbehaving: “You have been well bred and well born; your father has a great name in these parts, and you grandfather won the cup two years at the Newmarket races; your grandmother had the sweetest temper of any horse I ever knew, and I think you have never seen me kick or bite. I hope you will grow up gentle and good…”[2] When I got a ticket in high school, my parents would reprimand me telling me “You know better, Caroline. Now everyone is going to be talking about you, and assume we aren’t doing a good job.” Harsh.

The notion of confusion is also a universal one. In the chapter “The Fire” Black Beauty wakes up and is confused by the uncomfortable feeling caused by the smoke, and “I did not know what it was, but there was something in the sound so strange that it made me tremble all over.”[3] I have had the same feeling, but instead of a fire it was a tornado: I was Lake Texoma with my family and I woke up to an unfamiliar jolt and a flash of lights, then complete darkness. I couldn’t see anything, but my entire body shook from fear. The feeling of confusion and fear is something that is experienced by all, and should help us make the sympathetic connection with animals.


When Reuben is killed, there is an inquest held, and Black Beauty is “put on trial” and cleared of blame, just like a human would be put on trial and charged or set free. The first person nature of Black Beauty makes the reader sympathize more with him because it seems like you are reading the autobiography of a peer, and can relate to so many of his stories. I think this makes is more interesting to read and easier to read because the audience is held more captivated by the similar experiences.

[1] Sewell, 3.
[2] Sewell, 4.
[3] Sewell, 60.

Ritvo, A Measure of Compassion

“They were surrounded by evidence to the contrary in a society that exploited animals to provide not only food and clothing, but also transportation, the power to run machinery, and even entertainment.”[1]
Rodeo.
Furs.
Tours at the Grand Canyon.

What has changed besides less of a need for the power to run machinery? Not much. Horses that are hurt or too old are shot, people flock to rodeos every year (especially in Texas) to watch men wrestle sheep, or bring a bull down by its’ horns, furs are worn by those who consider them fashionable. To me, it seems that we have reverted back to the ways of the English in 1800. Our two cultures have so many similarities, especially within the first few pages of A Measure of Compassion. The idea of having laws against animal cruelty were not accepted at the beginning of the 19th century, but within 21 years opinions changed and laws were passed and publicized greatly: “Capitalizing on this increased interest in humane issues, the society distributed twenty-five thousand abstracts of the new law during the next year.” [2]

By the late 1800’s I believe that the fact that “a humanitarian crusader could celebrate the fact that ‘to an increasing part of the race, especially in Anglo-Saxon countries, this sentiment of tenderness for those of the sentient lower creatures which are capable of recognising [sic] it… has become an element in the spiritual life so strong that the continual violation of social obligations to them is a cause of pain and revolt” [3] has a strong tie with our definition of sympathy which states that sympathy is “the quality or state of being affected by the condition of another with a feeling similar or corresponding to that of the other.”[4] This especially goes with the fact that “he was strongly encouraged by the spectacle of squirrels begging confidently for food in public parks, rather than fleeing from feared torture.” [5] This connects directly with the idea of the sympathetic imagination because he (in this case I was confused on who the he was…is it Drummond, or a general he??) puts himself in the imagination of the squirrel, and perhaps he would have feared getting tortured by the humans, but the squirrels brave it out because of their need for food. If the definition of sympathetic imagination is “the ability of a person to penetrate the barrier which space puts between him and his object”[6] then he penetrates the barrier of human into rodent and the space of the two is nonexistent—he becomes the squirrel for an instant and takes pity.

Morality is the biggest part of animal rights, in my opinion. In "The Principles of Animals' Rights" Henry Salt writes, "Legislation is the record, the register, of the moral sense of the community; it follows, not precedes, the development of that moral sense, but nevertheless in its turn reacts on it, strengthens it, and secures it against the danger of retrocession. It is well that society should proclaim, formally and decisively, its abhorrence of certain practices ; and I do not think it can be doubted, by those who have studied the history of the movement, that…animals would be infinitely worse at this day but for…progressive and punitive legislation" which I believe goes hand in hand with the justification of punishing society for animal cruelty. I do, however, think that what is right and wrong is so hard to establish because of the differing religions and view of society.

The part where Ritvo describes the use of animals as transportation seemed like the use of animals as slaves. "The reports included many accounts of donkeys beaten either by their drivers, 'human brutes,' or by the 'heavy men and women' who paid to ride them" (139). Many times, there were so many animals used as transportation that seemed unnecessary. For some reason, the amount of animals used to transport connected in my mind to the scene in "300" where Xerxes is carried on an overly heavy platform by many slaves; although he is not a particularly overweight man, the platform is obviously too heavy for the slaves carrying him, just as the men, women, and cargo was too heavy for the animals used to transport them in the mid-1800's as described by Ritvo.

He treats the men like stairs, walking down their backs with no concern to their well-being, just as the men and women abused the animals, beating them with "severe blows" or "repeatedly pulled pieces of the wool from its back" (139).
The flip flop between opinions concerning animal cruelty are much like today’s: laws were approved in the mid-1820’s to 1830’s, then all of the sudden “every attempt to extend humane legislation encountered resistance and even ridicule, despite the abundant success of previous laws.”[7] I feel like this connects with today’s society because one minute someone is a vegetarian, saying that it is so cruel to eat meat, then the next day they abandon their principles for a juicy burger. I have changed my mind several times in the past week in our class discussion because each side has a valid point. (NOTE: I am not saying that I love killing animals, but I think everything has its purpose, and eventually worms will eat my decomposing body, then they will die, fertilize the soil, which helps the grass grow, which feeds the cow, which feeds me…) I am a firm circle of life believer. I do believe that a lot of people have certain eating habits because they are practicing self-control. Blake said in class that his “vegan-ism” didn’t so much have to do with animal cruelty as it did with the satisfaction of having such power and control over what he put into his body. Ritvo writes about self control and the relationship between the treatment of animals and humans, particularly children: “Thus the need to be kind to animals provided the occasions to exercise self-control, and children who refused to take advantage of these opportunities were seen as likely to grow up to be dangerous to themselves and other humans.”[8] Does that mean that they would have considered kids who do rodeo and wrestle baby cows then go eat a steak a threat to humanity?

Is this kid a threat to the rest of humanity?



Here is part or Lord Erskine's speech from when he presented his bull for "Preventing Wanton and Malicious Cruelty to Animals."

"Their freedom and enjoyments, when they cease to be consistent with our just dominion and enjoyments, can be no part of their natures ; but whilst they are consistent, their rights, subservient as they are, ought to be as sacred as our own ... Every other branch of our duties, when subject to frequent violation, has been recognised and inculcated by our laws, and the breaches of them repressed by punishments ; and why not in this, where our duties are so important, so universally extended, and the breaches of them so frequent and so abominable ?…The next generation will feel, in the first dawn of their ideas, the august relation they stand in to the lower world, and the trust which their station in the universe imposes on them ; and it will not be left to a future Sterne to remind us, when we put aside even a harmless insect, that the world is large enough for both. This extension of benevolence to objects beneath us, become habitual by a sense of duty inculcated by law, will reflect back upon our sympathies for one another ; so that I may venture to say firmly to your Lordships, that the Bill I propose to you, if it shall receive the sanction of Parliament, will not only be an honour to the country, but an era in the history of the world" [9].

[1] Ritvo, 125.
[2] Ritvo, 128.
[3] Ritvo, 126.
[4] Sympathy Printout
[5] Ritvo, 126.
[6] Sympathetic Imagination Printout
[7] Ritvo, 128.
[8] Ritvo, 132.
[9] http://www.animalrightshistory.org/timeline/animal-rights-law.htm

Sympathy...

Austin as my Oxford...
When Hopkins writes about how “his love for the city grows more ‘sweet familiar’ with each passing term,” (633) I couldn’t help but think of my time in Austin. I came here three years ago and was overwhelmed by the “crowdedness” and mass of people all around campus and Austin. The traffic was horrible, both on foot and in a car, but as the semesters passed, I found ways to avoid the traffic and explore on foot both the campus and the city. There are so many buildings to be explored and looked at and I can relate to Hopkins in his increasing love for the buildings and surroundings of Oxford, or in my case, Austin and UT.

The aesthetics of colleges seem to be becoming less important—as noted by the RTF building, a modern abomination, and there are less and less Victorian structures that are highlighted. When Butler looks at the buildings and contemplates faith, he says, “Nothing remains but Beauty” (633), which reminded me of on of my favorite poems by Dickenson.
I DIED for beauty, but was scarce
Adjusted in the tomb,
When one who died for truth was lain
In an adjoining room.

He questioned softly why I failed?
“For beauty,” I replied.
“And I for truth,—the two are one;
We brethren are,” he said.

And so, as kinsmen met a night,
We talked between the rooms,
Until the moss had reached our lips,
And covered up our names.

There are so many references to the destruction of nature in Hopkins' writing, and the poem about cutting down the trees is one that is still important.



"Be a good boy, remember; and be kind to animals and birds, and read all you can." (Jude) This quote goes with sympathy, I think, because one of the definitions of sympathy from the printouts was, “Conformity of feelings, inclinations, or temperament, which makes persons agreeable to each other, community of feeling; harmony of disposition.” The cruel treatment of animals is a subject that is so important today, and like Smith says, "we have no immediate experience of what other men feel, we can form no idea of the manner in which they are affected, but by conceiving what we ourselves should feel in the like situation" (handout). If this is true for man, why is it not also true for animals. They have similar reproductive and nervous systems, so why do we figure they are without feelings. One of the things that disgusts me most is the exploitation of animals for fights or pharmaceutical testing and other things like the following video shows, so if you have a week stomach, do not watch...

Patterns of Conversion

Thirst for experience and the purpose of this class….

The search for the infinite and the thirst for experience directly relates to Alice and our college experiences.. When Alice takes a bite of the mushroom, she is curisous to know what will happen to her if she takes another bite of the other side—this constant search for experience and knowledge is the quintessential college experience. We are constantly biting new mushrooms, trying new classes, going to different rallies, etc to find out what our place is exactly or to figure out who we are. Like Tennyson, we participate in these outside experiences sometimes to cover up our pain. “the solution to a deeply personal problem was endemic to much verse.” (593)—we often join causes to distract us from problems. I know that when something is wrong with me, I choose to dive into a new project or book to take my mind off of the subject at hand. I agree with Browining when he says, “the fulfillement of desire meant spirtual death, for it removed the hhigh remote ideal that had giben motive power to the soul” (593). We can never be truly satisfied with how much we know, and when our desire for knowledge dries up, we are basically dead because if you aren’t learning anything new, what are you doing. This class is one where you are constantly thinking about what is next, what is behind you and what you are currently reading. I have yet to fully understand a text, and I am constantly going back to previous reading, and looking forward to what we will be reading about next to see what can be applied.

This class is also about getting over your fears—whether they be speaking in public, time management, computers, etc. There is like this thin film of fear that surrounds the class—you don’t want to be called on and not know the answer, or stutter or say something stupid, so you are forced to stay on task and keep up with your reading. Most classes should have this type of structure, but few do because the teachers lack authority.
]" width="400" height="326">]" />
When I read what Carlyle said about happiness in The Patterns of Conversion, “the source of a man’s blessed Unhappiness in the permanent desire for the Infinite which could never be quite submerged in the depths of the Finite” (594) I couldn’t help but think of Jude’s constant search for happiness in others. His unhappiness was derived out of the fact that he looked for happiness through other people—happiness must be found within yourself, or it will be a failure. If an artist/person is constantly looking for happiness and perfection in others, than they will fail, and to truly succeed and be happy, Ruskin says, “the demand for perfection, for the perfect finish, rather than the lovely for, was always a sign of the misunderstanding of the ends of art; for the great artist never stopped working till he had reached his point of failure.” (594). If you are going to fail, fail because you worked until you know you can’t anytmore, because “imperfection was [is] in some sort essential to all we know of life” (594).

]" width="400" height="326">]" />

Alice--If you are looking to peer review, see the next two posts

Going back to my roadmap, I just have to bring up the topic of everyone being in such a hurry.

Will you walk a little faster?"
Said a whiting to a snail,
"There's a porpoise close behind us,
And he's treading on my tail.
See how eagerly the lobsters
And the turtles all advance!
They are waiting on the shingle -
Will you come and join the dance?
Will you, won't you, will you,
Won't you, will you join the dance?
Will you, won't you, will you,
Won't you, won't you join the dance?

I feel like my parents are the ones treading on my tail--not that I am angry about it, but it may take more than four years for me to learn everything I want here. I have had some experiences, but I feel I have only eaten off one side of the mushroom. I have been the person watching and now that I have fallen into the rabbit hole, I am ready to dance and partake, and that might take me more than a year more, so they will have to learn (and hopefully fund).
I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Don't know why I have to drive so fast
My car has nothing to prove
It's not new
But it'll do zero to sixty in five point two

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Can't be late, I leave in plenty of time
Shakin' hands with the clock
I can't stop
I'm on a roll and I'm ready to rock

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Oh, I hear a voice
That says I'm running behind
Better pick up my pace
It's a race and there ain't no room for someone in second place

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why -Alabama "I'm in a hurry."

Alice says that in her country, running fast leads you to where you are going, but I agree more with the Queen when she says, "Now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place" (165). Sometimes, with the mountain of homework, tests and projects I feel like no matter how fast and how far I run, I end up further behind that when I started.
I get so tired sometimes that I give up, and that sets me back even further. Some nights I study for hours, and the next morning I cannot recall anything I had learned. Alice encounters the same problem when she meets the Caterpillar and cannot remember anything. "I ca'n't remember things I used--and I don't keep the same size for ten minutes together" (49). (Sidenote--freshman year I too could not keep the same size for ten minutes--I got pretty chubby...)
(I had a pillow in my stomach but still...)

Long story short, we are Alice's because college is just one big well waiting to swallow us all. You have to find your own way out...If you want out at all

]" width="400" height="326">

Paper 1

My paper is below, but this link should work.

https://webspace.utexas.edu/cs4445/project1.html?uniq=6259nv

Copy and paste the link. The pictures aren't showing up for some reason, but they are posted in the blog below.

The Big C-Paper 1

My Battle with the “Big C”

“Who are you?”
“I—I hardly know, Sir, just at present—at lease I knew who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then”[1]

      Math was my strong suit in high school, I was always a year ahead and always made the best grades. I looked forward to every day in statistics because that was where I did best. I never took calculus in high-school, but the four years of advanced math I did take were reflected on my report cards with “A’s.” I didn’t know who I was, but I knew I was good at math. The day I decided who I was was a day like any other. I woke up late, rushed to school, and floated along without care. I was a senior, and absolutely positive that I would be getting my acceptance letter from Washington and Lee University. The day I decided who I was was just like any other—until I got home from school. I received a letter rather than the usual acceptance package with dorm sign-ups and meal plan information. It read somewhat like the following: “Dear Ms. Shuford, we regret to inform you, you are neither smart enough nor talented enough as the rest of the applicants, BUT, if some idiot decides they don’t want to accept our invitation, we will let you know and you might be able to attend.” (Perhaps it wasn’t as harsh, but it may as well have been.) Waitlisted. At the college where I knew I was to end up, at the place I was certain to be accepted. Like Jude and Hardy, my Oxford dream was denied. Nothing has changed since the Victorian college experience—people still get disappointed, but with any luck, make the best of what they get. Determined not to give up, but still devastated, I looked at my other options. Texas was the only other place I had expressed interest in, so I decided that if W&L didn’t want me outright, then they shouldn’t be exposed to my gifts—even if a coveted spot on the waitlist opened. So, on February 16, 2005 I decided that I was a longhorn, and UT became the well that struck my curiosity, and as soon as I tried to see the bottom, I was lost. Thus began my journey—as an Alice, a Jude/Hardy, and a confused adolescent trying to unlock every wrong door.



Lost, confused and with blurred vision, I began my journey.[2]
Caroline Shuford, iphoto

“Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly…First, she tried to look down and make out what she was coming to, but it was too dark to see anything.”[3]

What had I fallen into?[4]
http://www.adamcline.com/illustrations/illustrations2005/aliceinwonderland05.htm

The same uncertainty presented itself within two hours of freshman orientation. I decided that I was going to transfer to business, major in International Business, and perhaps get a minor in government. The well I fell into was filled with fraternity punch, and seeing as I didn’t make it to the next three orientation “wing meetings” on account of my hangover, my dreams of becoming an international businesswoman were sunk. With my dreams drunk I settled on becoming an economics major—stupidly thinking that economics was “basically the same” as business. Both have something to do with money, and both required Calculus. Calculus—the heartless wench who I deemed the most useless of all mathematics in a non-engineering world decided that her job was to confuse, torture, and haunt me. My second semester in college was largely spent at the FAC, getting tutored and babysitting for tutoring money. No matter how hard I tried, I could not grasp the subject that was required for my major. “Now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that.”[5] I was getting out of breath, and fast.

“You have never loved me as I love you—never—never! Yours is not a passionate heart—your heart does not burn in a flame!
You are, upon the whole, a sort of fay, or sprite—not a woman!”[6]

The wench I call Calculus[7]
http://gallery.hd.org/_c/maths/math-calculus-diagram-DHD.gif.html?sessionVar=spider&sessionVarLocale=de

Calculus was my Sue Bridehead. We flirted occasionally, and sometimes she would flirt back, giving me an “A” on homework, or letting me understand one concept, but never fully letting me grasp her. As soon as I felt in control, Calculus would rip the rug from under me and leave my knees bleeding and my spirit broken. At one point, like Sue, I knew that Calculus must have loved me, because for a time I succeeded. “At first I did not love you, Jude; that I own. When I first knew you I merely wanted you to love me.... and when I found I had caught you, I was frightened…. I couldn’t bear to let you go—possibly to Arabella again—and so I got to love you. But you see, however fondly it ended it began in the selfish and cruel wish to make your heart ache for me without letting mine ache for you.”[8] Our relationship began and I tried much harder to love her than she love me. Despite my greatest efforts, I could not understand Calculus, but still knew I must love her; for who is an economics that doesn’t love Calculus. She was the cheating lover, who everyone wanted but she would not give herself fully to me. All I needed was a “C.” I just needed her to love me enough to pass, to move on to the next level, but Calculus was a tease, and some days would show affection, and others she would bitch-slap me until I cried. After barely making the passing grade, Calculus and I officially broke up. She went back to her former lovers, the engineers and doctors, and I went to my Arabella, the one who I originally married but who my parents disapproved—English.

“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends on where you want to get to,” said the Cat.
“I don’t much care where—so long as I get somewhere.[9]"

At the crossroads, I chose my passion.[10]
http://soulterminal.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/07/crossroads.jpg

Similar to Newman, Hardy and Carroll I am convinced that the university part of my life is just the beginning. The University of Texas motto, “What starts here changes the world.” Things start here, they don’t end. I came to Texas as a shell of a person, not knowing much besides basic high school requirements. Like Jude and Hardy, I decided that my path to knowledge would undoubtedly use literature as its vehicle. “ The study of literature was thought to be an important means of building character. It was the keystone of the liberal arts, and I believe it still is. It is not the only truth, however. We each need to find our own.”[11] Calculus may have spited me, but I decided to bite back, this time stinging with the venom of the arts. She may have tripped me at the starting line, but even if I did not win the race, I new I would run somewhere. Since transferring to English, everything has certainly not come easy, but I learned with greater passion comes greater benefit. My grades improved because I struggled less to understand how the things I learned applied elsewhere because “English graduates are people who read and think and know how to communicate effectively.”[12] Like Alice, I hope to end up somewhere—anywhere—as long as it is different than where I started. Though my progression is gradual, I feel like I am moving, perhaps like the snail but I plan to join the dance. [13]

“I cannot express it; but surely you and everybody have a notion that there is, or should be, an existence of yours beyond you.
What were the use of creation, if I were entirely contained here?”[14]
What's next?

What is beyond the university? Hopefully, unlike Jude I will not have regret. I am where I want to be and the only relationship I wish to forget is my torrid four month affair with the ever so daunting, Calculus. I plan to continue to explore as Carroll did and embrace every corner of the liberal arts education as described by Newton. The Victorian university experience is much like mine, “‘Who in the world am I?’ ‘Ah, that’s the great puzzle!’”[15] Discovering and defining yourself is one of the key elements of college life. I have gone form wanting to be an international businesswoman, to hopeful doctor, to struggling economics student, to an english major. Change is the only constant that we can rely on, and that is what is shared through all college experiences. Few people, including me, know their life’s plan and are unwilling to budge. The college experience has changed little; there are still the people/subjects that torture you but make you stronger, there are still people who won’t understand you, but distinctly, there is a place where everyone fits, and as long as you don’t give up (like Jude), you are apt to find your place and excel accordingly. Regrets exist, but you don’t have to have them.

“‘In the days of my youth,’ father William replied,
‘I remember’d that youth could not last;
I thought of the future, whatever I did,
That I never might grieve for the past.’”[16]



The future is not as scary as it once was[17]
http://http://ucdavismagazine.ucdavis.edu/issues/su07/future_power.html

Jude and Hardy alike seemed to lament to much on the past and place their happiness in other people. By doing so, their success was limited to the success of their counterparts, so I learned from the Victorian experience to make your own happiness and success will follow. I was the caterpillar whose patience could not match the nesting time of a cocoon and standing at a long narrow hallway with too many doors and not enough keys. I am now an English major; uncertain about my future, but fearless nonetheless, knowing that when I look back at my college experience I will know that I tried most of the keys and found the door that was just my height and fit my key. My battle with the “Big C,” Calculus was won, and no longer will I have nightmares of logarithms and imaginary numbers stealing my children.

WC: 1353



[1] Carroll, Lewis. The Annotated Alice. Definitive ed. New York: W. W. Norton &
Company, Inc., 2000. 47.
[2] Shuford, Caroline. Foggy Glasses. Photograph. 2008. Caroline Shuford, Photo
Booth. Electronic.
[3] Carroll, Lewis. The Annotated Alice. Definitive ed. New York: W. W. Norton &
Company, Inc., 2000. 13.
[4] Cline, Adam. Alice in Wonderland. Ink and Watercolor. 2005. Adam Cline. 6 Feb.
2008 .
[5] Carroll, Lewis. The Annotated Alice. Definitive ed. New York: W. W. Norton &
Company, Inc., 2000. 165.
[6] Hardy, Thomas. Jude the Obscure. Ed. Norman Page. 2nd ed. New York: W. W. Norton
& Company, Inc., 1999. 277.
[7] "Mathematics." Chart. DHD Multimedia Gallery. 2007. Damon Hart-Davis. 6 Feb.
2008 .
[8] Hardy, Thomas. Jude the Obscure. Ed. Norman Page. 2nd ed. New York: W. W. Norton
& Company, Inc., 1999. 277.
[9] Carroll, Lewis. The Annotated Alice. Definitive ed. New York: W. W. Norton &
Company, Inc., 2000. 65.
[10] Damian. "Where are the Messages, Teachers, and Guides?" Weblog entry. 22 July
2007. Be the Change- Tread the Path. 6 Feb. 2008
.
[11] Newman, John Henry. "Newman and the Concept of the Liberal Arts." Victorian
Literature. By Jerome Bump. Austin, TX: Copyright Clearance Center,
2008. 320.
[12] University of Texas English Department. "Our Mission Statement." Victorian
Literature. By Jerome Bump. Austin: Copyright Clearance Center, Inc.,
2008. 339J.
[13] Reference to the snail and turtle in Alice.
Carroll, Lewis. The Annotated Alice. Definitive ed. New York: W. W. Norton &
Company, Inc., 2000. 102-3.
[14] Bronte, Emily. Wuthering Heights. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2004. 100.
[15] Carroll, Lewis. The Annotated Alice. Definitive ed. New York: W. W. Norton &
Company, Inc., 2000. 23.
[16] Carroll, Lewis. The Annotated Alice. Definitive ed. New York: W. W. Norton &
Company, Inc., 2000. 49.
[17] Future Power Picture. Photograph. 2007. UC Davis, California. "Future Power." By
Sylvia Wright. UC Davis Magazine 2007. UC Davis Magazine Online. 2007. UC
Davis. 6 Feb. 2008 .

Paper One

file:///Users/carebear3824/Desktop/Spring%202008/E375L/p1.htm

There's No Room at the Temperance Inn

Does happiness even exist in this novel? "She's (Sue) never found peace since she left his arms, and never will again till she's as he is now!" (322). It seems like every time someone begins to coast through in the book, something has to rain on their parade. The constant battle between happiness and love is somewhat similar to my college experience. I was originally an economics major hoping to transfer to business, but I was so unhappy. I was always studying and still making C's. Once I switched majors I was happy, and then the love began to wane as I realized that I still wanted to study business, but couldn't....Then came the lightbulb...I could minor in business!
In part fifth, Jude and Sue's struggle is one close to heart. "People don't understand us,'" he sighed heavily. "I am glad we have decided to go." (241). In high school all of my friends never understood why I took such interest in my schoolwork, and they often made fun of me, especially when I didn't follow most of them to Ole' Miss. I am glad now that I decided to go where I am understood, and I, like Jude, was uneasy in high school. "But in the country (high school) I shall always be uneasy lest there should be some more of our late experience." (241).

The sanctity of marraige, and the questioning of it are highly discussed. Perhaps Sue had it right when she said, "But I think I would much rather go on living always as lovers, as we are living now, and only meeting by day. It is so much sweeter--for the woman at least, and when she is sure of the man," (203). Take a modern day couple, like Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn who have been together since 1983, have one son of their own, and share Goldie's other three children. They have never been married, yet remain together saying that they are fearful that marraige would end their relationship. I sometimes think that I agree with that. So many people date for so long, perhaps all throughout college and after, but within a year of marriage, everything changes and divorce is eminent. Sue hits the nail on the head when it comes to men and committment, "Apart from ourselves, and our unhappy peculiarities, it is foriegn to a man's nature to go on loving a person when he is told that he must and shall be that person's lover. There would be a much likelier change of his doing it if he were not told to love" (203). The same applies with several things in a university setting. When things like homework and tests are forced upon students, they often are angered by the amount of work and either don't complete is, or wait until the last minute. Either way, something that is forced usually will not be enjoyed. Tests are this way to me, which is why I enjoy being an english major. Papers aren't like tests, there is not one best answer on a multiple choice test that sounds the same as the other four. When learning, like love, is less constricted, we are more free to be ourselves, say what we think/mean, and be open without consequences.
Lastly, to me, color has always represented freedom. Black, white, and grey can seem oppressive and containing, but a myriad of color has always been inviting. When Sue recieves the letter establishing her divorce from Phillotson, colors invade the prose. "Sue went upstairs and prepared to start, putting on a joyful coloured gown in observance of her liberty; seeing which Jude put on a lighter tie" (203).

College Dreams

"His face wearing the fixity of a thoughtful child's who has felt the pricks of life somewhat before his time" (11).



Within the first few pages of Jude I related to his feeling of uselessness after his aunt explains that "I am obliged to let him earn any penny he can," (12) because I have been mooching off my parents for twenty years. I know that part of a parents job is to take care of their offspring whether it be financially, physically or emotionally but I am ready to repay them for the decades they have spoiled me. I also relate to Jude with his passion for reading, and once, in high school when one of my teachers switched to a private school, I begged my parents to send me there. My college dream is to take advantage of what I have been given while learning everything I can about everything.

Also, like Jude, I take pity on animals. While I don't have any current pets, my heart breaks when I see a stray cat/dog or a bird who didn't get the crumbs in time. "'Poor little dears!' said Jude alound. 'You shall have some dinner--you shall. There is enough for all of us...Eat, then, my dear little birdies, and make a good meal!'" (14). I can't help but give money to a homeless person when they are traveling with a dog.


"Christminster is out across there, by that clump. You can see it--at least you can on a clear day. Ah, no, you can't now" (18). Somedays I feel like I am so close to achieving my college dreams, like they are right in front of me and all I have to do is follow the path that I can clearly see. Others, I feel completely lost, my mind foggy and dreams faded and invisible to me. Jude happens to climb the roof on his way to Christminster yet he chose a day that was a rare cloudy one, in which his sight remained unseen. (Could this be foreshadowing?)


During my last few weeks at high school, I felt just as Jude did in the fact that I was ready to leave Dallas and head to Austin. I felt embarrassed that I seemed to hate my hometown so much and was ready for a change, to leave everything behind and begin my college career. "He was getting so romantically attached to Christminster that, like a young lover alluding to his mistress, he felt bashful at mentioning its name again," (21). I would get practically giddy when people asked where I was going to college, and would talk about how cool Austin was basically like I was talking about a boyfriend.
My absolute favorite part is at the end of 1-3 when Jude talks about Christminster. I think it is a poem that can be duly used to describe Austin, its' inhabitants, and its culture.
"It is a city of light
The tree of knowledge grows there
It is a place that teachers of men spring from and go to
It is what you may call a castle, manned by scholarship and religion
I would just suit me" (23).


+

=


My focus was on Book 1, and I especially love the last part because of its soap-opera theme. Arabella--what a biotch, doing what sadly, lots of crazy women do in love: Fakes a pregnancy to get a marriage then admits it was a lie afterward. This is definitely no one of my college dreams--tricking someone into marrying me. I hope to eventually marry, but what is the hurry. YOU ARE ONLY A KID ONCE. PLAY AND DON'T TAKE YOURSELF TO SERIOUSLY!

Trying to make my conservative parents love their little liberal...

Mom? Dad? Why don't you love me? I swear I'm not socially awkward and weird...




Pertaining to persons of superior social station...who so is vertuous [sic]...gentle, curteous [sic]...a soft meeke [sic] patient, humble tranquill [sic] spirit (318B)." I am the only daughter of four who chose an education in liberal arts rather than communication or business. I am also the least favorite daughter. You should note in the picture below that I am not in it. Those are my other three sisters and my mother...Ouch





But, from the reading I have built a strong case against the favoritism of my parents after reading these articles. They think that because I am not in business or some type of media major that I am wasting my time. Little do they know that I will graduate with a general knowledge of EVERYTHING. Science-check, government/economics- check, arts/humanities-check, business-check, readin'/writin'/'rithmetic-check. Newman says that "Liberal- freedom from narrowness of mind...all branched of knowledge are connected together; therefore, to give undue prominence to one is to be unjust to another." (319).



The COLA at UT does exactly that. They make sure that they seven parts of a liberal education are fully covered. While I may complain that I hate the 18 hours of natural science, or 16 hours of Italian, I have noticed an increasing curiosity for everything. I like how JP included Goldberg's statement about curiosity--that curiosity enables us to access for information and different ways of doing things, and when Goldberg says "The greatest value of an education is a strong sense of curiosity" (326) I couldn't agree more. Curiosity didn't kill the cat, mediocrity did.
Or I killed the cat...?




I've noticed in many previous posts that people mention how the liberal education is one that is deemed less worthy or important than say engineering or business, but we are the people who put those two areas together. People with liberal educations are the ones who will be the top dogs--others will be servile to us. "Following completion of their undergraduate studies at liberal arts colleges, graduates often do obtain specialized training..." (318d). We aren't done learning ever. If liberal arts is "appropriate for the free man" and "contrasted with the servile arts" (318d), then aren't we, the liberal arts students, the ones who will eventually top all of the brown-nosing b-school kids? YES.

One thing I love about the liberal education is that it forces you to socialize. While you are great as one, you are much greater as many. In his Yale freshman address, Giamatti says, “So a process moves an individual to membership in a community; so a though, begun in the seminary of a single mind, participates in the construction of a citadel of living ideas…we make a city out of green thoughts…of ideals tempered by application, a civilized life not alone but in concert.” (321). I think that quote could be the motto of this class… “A civilized life not alone but in concert.” For some reason I really love that quote. Liberal arts forces you to work together in groups and learn to work with others while still maintaining your ideas and opinions. This class also seems to live out what is stated in the Daily Report from The Chronicle of Higher Education. “More and more of the goals of liberal education, such as analytical thinking and communication skills, require technological proficiency,” (328).

“All knowledge of the inner nature and feelings of others must come through the imagination” (339b). This quote is also one of my favorites because it is so true. We have no idea how other people are feeling, so we must imagine what it is like to be them in a certain situation. “Though our brother is upon the rack, as long as we ourselves are at our ease, our senses will never inform us of what he suffers,” (339c). I hate to be cliché, but its like for Christians, we can never know how Christ felt nailed to the cross, but we are supposed to live every day like it was us up there and live in his image. Though hard to do, putting yourself in others shoes (even though they might not be the designer ones you wanted) is most important. What I took from the “Sympathetic Imagination” article was that in order to truly understand something or someone you have to be fully committed to your imagination and immerse yourself in their world.

So, mom and dad, love me. (I'm totally kidding they love me...sort of...who wouldn't love this?)


Yes, sometimes I sit for hours playing with the iPhoto photobooth. It's both entertaining and socially satisfying.

The non "Coca" COLA

COLA: College of Liberal Arts or College of Lazy-asses (Who weren’t smart enough to get into business.) **Not that I’m bitter about the unbelievable high standards for transferring into the B-school.**

Within reading two paragraphs of “The Origins of Universities” my entire idea of college was negated. The image that was conjured in my head was that of a haughty British university where wigs were still worn and men were its only inhabitants. “The whole body of teachers and scholars engaged, at a particular place, in giving and receiving instruction in the higher branches of learning, with definite organization and acknowledged powers and privileges…and forming an institution for the promotion of education in the higher or more important branches of learning” (340). First of all, I was never asked for my opinion or my original thoughts in a lower division course. I was neither engaged nor acknowledged—I was a UT-EID and a seat number. Secondly, who is to say which branches of learning are the highest and most important? For a lawyer, english and history would be deemed more important than an astronomy class, but the astronomer will argue that astronomy is the “end-all-be-all” of college courses. Skipping down a few paragraphs, the article bolsters my idea of British (or in this case European) stuffiness—“the oldest institutions of higher learning that have always satisfied the modern definition of a university were in Europe” (340).

What am I doing in liberal arts? Honestly—writing is the only subject in which I excel, and English is taught in the ever so daunting and overpopulated “COLA.” (Side-note: abbreviating the schools initials to the name of a sweet and bubbly drink does not represent the college well. There is nothing sweet about having to take random sciences like “the Biology of AIDS” to fulfill a credit requirement.) Until this reading, I hadn’t a clue to what a liberal education really is, and was, in fact, quite annoyed that I have to take 18 hours of a natural science or 16 hours of a foreign language. According to Newman, an education that is considered liberal is one where, “A habit of mind is formed which lasts through life, of which the attributes are, freedom, equitableness, calmness, moderation, and wisdom…” (309). What a resume starter… “Well, Mr. CEO, you should hire me because not only am I filled with wisdom, but I am calm, free, and quite equitable.”

In my opinion, Newman hits the nail on the head with his idea that the key role of a university is the cultivation of intellect. If intellect is the capacity for thinking and acquiring knowledge, then my suggestion is to trash the grade system and teach every class like an upper division English class—a class based on discussion. To me, tests are satanic. Nothing is gained when a 19-year-old takes adderol and drinks a few Red Bulls to pull an all-nighter just to memorize 50 multiple-choice questions that he/she will forget as soon as the caffeine buzz wears off. Knowledge should be pursued for its own sake, just like Flawn said, “…knowledge is not merely a means to something beyond it, or the preliminary of certain arts into which it naturally resolves, but an end sufficient to rest in and to pursue for its own sake” (306).

I guess my ranting leads to the fact that who I am is a college student who excels in English courses but bomb the others. According to my transcript, I am an average student with mostly B’s and a few C’s in my science classes. The A’s only stand next to courses starting with an “E” I am here to improve my critical thinking, but feel suppressed by the universities grading system. I agree with Newman—learn for learning’s sake, and focus on constantly cultivating intellect.