Exercise #4

Exercise 4: 

Working with Quotations

1. “Some years ago I was struck by the large number of falsehoods that I had accepted as true in my childhood, and by the highly doubtful nature of the whole edifice that I had subsequently based on them.  I realized that it was necessary, once in the course of my life, to demolish everything completely and start again right from the foundations if I wanted to establish anything at all in the sciences that was stable and likely to last.”  
2. Edifice- a complex system of beliefs 
3. I began to understand everything I knew was not factual.  I came to realize if I have wanted to know anything for myself I would have to unlearn many things I've known since I was a young child.  By doing this I will have learned how to obtain knowledge on my own.  
4. I don't have many issues with the quote.  The only trouble I had was defining edifice.  
5. In my essay, I plan to prove the knowledge poured into us in our early years affects the people we become later in life.  This quote supports this point just as Descartes realizes he was brought up with many bias’.  This is the truth for all of us but the question I propose is which bias are okay and which build a broken foundation (person).  Just as Descartes picks away at what he was sure he knew to be real I will pick away at the issues in children’s upbringing in the last 20+ years.  

Exercise 2

Exercise #2:

 Defining Your Terms

1.      Meditation is the basis for this entire essay. As Descartes searches himself for answers to some of life’s biggest questions,he does so through meditation. He severs himself from the rest of the world leaving him alone with just his own thoughts. 

Meditate- To be in continuous, contemplative thought; to think about doing something. 

2.      After Descartes meditates he finds himself questioning his very existence. This encourages him to not only find a definition for this word, but to also redefine what existence means to him. What of him is real? How does he know? 

Exist- To have actual being or reality; to live.

3.      Questioning his existence leads Descartes to the next big question: what makes him real?  Is it his corporeal self? He disagrees with this knowing his mind is the most important part of him.  He has processed everything he knows about this world through his mind.

Corporeal- Of a physical nature.

4.      Once he realizes his corporeal self was not his “real” self, Descartes decides everything he has learned was through his mind. This in itself had to be questioned because all he had learned he perceived to be true. Can one trust their own perception of the world? By what senses does one gain this information, and if it is through a physical nature have we really gained anything at all?  All good questions Descartes presents. 

Perceive- To become aware of by the senses; to understand; to feel or observe. 

5.      Throughout all of this Descartes questions the certainty of his knowledge. If knowledge is gained by something that can be disproven, is it really knowledge at all? This is the question Descartes faces when meditating. This is the answer he must find for himself.

Certain- Being very sure of something; without any doubt, inevitable; not mentioned but assumed.  

                I’ve always loved to read.  Even as a young child I could get lost in a book.  I guess this is why writing came so naturally to me.  I’ve always been able to empathize with the characters on a page. As I grew my love for literature grew too.  This is why I wanted to be a writer.  I wanted to make people feel what I felt when I opened a book.  I wanted people to feel at home. 

                Over time my writing changed.  I went from writing poetry to pass the time to writing songs for my youth choir.  In the beginning I’d never share my writing but as it developed I really enjoyed people hearing what I had to say.  This wasn’t the same while I was in school.  Sure, I could write a paper but I didn’t enjoy.  School sucked the fun out of writing for me.  I believe you should write what you feel; about your passions.  Most schools don’t agree.  I think that’s the reason a lot of children don’t enjoy reading and writing.  It becomes a chore; I know that was the reason for me. 

                Now a days I write for myself.  I keep a journal next to my bed for my thoughts and feelings.  Sometimes all I have is a bunch of random thought jotted down.  Other times I have a poem or a song.  I have a lot of ideas I hope to share with the world one day.  My real dream is to write children’s books and make children’s music.  Until then I hope to finish school and get one step closer to making people feel the way I did.  I still want people to hear my work and feel at home.