Relationship to the Animal Kingdom

Hearts On Fire - Cut Copy

lyrics here

Awesome male + cute dog = collective “awww” around the world.

You will find that many girls, when asked what qualities they find attractive in a mate, will respond with ‘kindness to animals’. This is not because girls are naïve, fantastical beings who believe in world peace and fluffy kittens, but because the way in which a human treats an animal offers sight into ‘the abyssal limit of the human: the inhuman or the ahuman, the ends of man…the border crossing from which vantage man dares to announce himself…calling himself by the name that he believes he gives himself.” (Derrida 26) If anything, it is the best indicator of the compassion and sympathy within others, for the way in which a human treats an animal is an example of the adage "If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals."

Lord of the Flies shows the depravity that can overcome the ‘human spirit’

Humans put themselves on such a high pedestal; we believe that our capacity for intelligence and emotions far exceeds those of animals, yet we turn a blind eye to the things that make us depraved and sick. We forget that as humans we are still capable of rape, torture, and murder. While the thought processes that go into making decisions of whether or not to act on these urges is attributed to humans, I believe that a decision to commit any of the three examples listed above lowers the human and makes them “no better than a brute” (X35), a “BEAST” (X35). We also forget the emotions such as jealousy, greed, pride, and hatred, that when acted upon, can really make us inhuman. As the Cheshire cat says, “We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.” (Derrida 24)

So perhaps what makes us “human”, what we define as “one of the ‘properties’ of man” (Derrida 22) is not our ability to think, but our ability to feel and to make a choice regarding that feeling. This, I believe, is what allows us to give ourselves the title of “being humane” (X37), because it is within us to act with “civility, courtesy, politeness, good behavior; KINDNESS, [and] obligingness.” (X37) When we are faced with someone in pain, we feel sympathy for them and “a desire to relieve it” (X41), but what truly makes the human being amazing is its ability to act on that feeling.

Baby chicks, not nuggets.

We then forget the feeling that is shared with the most fervor between humans and animals: love. For those who argue that a mother bear protects its cubs because it is hereditary, that the it simply has instincts to protect it’s genes, and that these actions are masked by the feeling of love, I say that the same argument could be made for humans, that any of our feelings are simply because they are “programmed” (Dick 59) into our genes, thereby making us no more than androids. As Bentham states, “the question is not, Can they reason? Nor, Can they talk?” (Bentham 47). We should not be asking questions about animals, but about ourselves. Do we have the capacity for compassion? Can we make rational decisions? The answer is yes, and because it is so, because humans are able to resist temptations and ignorance with wisdom and gather within a “community of feeling” (X43), then it is our RESPONSIBILITY, our DUTY, to relieve “the suffering or distress of another” (X41).

Darwin 3

Personal Jesus - Depeche Mode

lyrics here

Groups like these make me question the “love and acceptance” that claims to be within religion.

I think it’s absolutely wonderful that people have found something in which to believe, and that it is something that can bring souls together. And while I do not yet know what my exact denomination is, I know the importance of accepting other people’s differences and respecting their religious beliefs. This world, after all, was made to inspire variety. My biggest qualm with religion, however, is the way it has been used to abuse others. A particularly strong example is “God Hates Fags” (http://www.godhatesfags.com), an anti-homosexual website of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas. These are the same people who decided to picket Heath Ledger and Bernie Mac’s funerals, because of the former’s role in Brokeback Mountain and the latter being African-American. Other obvious examples are the September 11th attacks, which were, once again, based on a twisted belief in a certain religion.

While I know that the majority of religious affiliations do not carry their beliefs to these extremes, such examples as the aforementioned seem contradictory to me in religion. I always thought of “God as a loving being” (Darwin 654), and seeing people use their religion as an excuse to hurt others is enough to make me shun faith entirely.

Not exactly the way in which I would have said it, but you get the point.

At this point, I don’t know if I believe in a god. The creative, spiritual side of me wants to believe in something bigger, for how could I not, when I see all of the beauty in the world? But then the rational, scientific part of me kicks in, reminding myself of the “attributes of woe” (Tennyson CXVIII) and “evil dreams” (Tennyson LV) that exist in the world, and especially all of the phenomenon that have already been explained by science. The thing is, I don’t quite like having my fate in the hands of someone else. I don’t like the idea of my future being decided by whether or not I make Someone pleased with my actions on Earth.

Forget Harvey Dent—I believe in Jenny Zhang.

To this day, I have come to only one solid belief that has not wavered, and that is a belief in myself, in people. I believe that all I have accomplished in my life is because of my actions and the actions of others, not because of some higher power. I see religion as a way for people to find hope and strength in what is, ultimately, their own selves. They are simply using religion, a “trust [in] the larger hope” (Tennyson LV) as a means to get to that point. For if you think about it, isn’t everyone’s definition of god different? I feel that many people mould the idea of what their god is like to satisfy their lifestyle and to best apply it to a situation. Stevenson states that, “if no god existed, nature was but a vast machine indifferent to the sufferings of living beings” (Darwin 654), but I disagree: the nonexistence of a god does not mean that compassion and love do not exist, just as the existence of a god does not mean that evil and hate do not exist.

At the same time, I believe that man has used God and the omnipotent as a way to blame and explain away the ills of the world. “He has invented supernatural forces, finding it easier to suffer when he can rail at God and Fate for his ills.” (Darwin 654). Again, in times like these, it seems to me that people are just shirking their responsibilities and using God as a scapegoat.

Not only does Zen Buddhism agree the most with what I believe, but it makes me feel closer to my relatives, despite the huge gap that exists between us.

I suppose my beliefs are most in line with Zen Buddhism, and that is what I have identified with most to this day. It is not so much of a religion as a philosophy, for its followers do not worship a god. Religion or no religion, what I believe is most important is acceptance and understanding of those who have different beliefs. This is why I recently picked up a copy of the Bible: I want to understand, and I do not wish to choose one specific thing without knowing what else is out there. Everyone wants to believe in something, be it a god, no god, or several gods.

Darwin 2

Under Pressure - Queen & David Bowie

lyrics here

These Victoria’s Secret models may be the ‘fittest’ in the body department, but what of their minds and their characters?

My view of being the “fittest” is being the “best”, and while a quick definition of “the best” may include in terms of wealth, beauty, offspring, and brains, I extend the definition to include compassion, empathy, kindness, and overall goodness. In my big picture of the world, I judge people based on how good of humans they are, and this does not measure only their financial or physical accomplishments, but their decency. This take on life is idyllic, I’ll admit, but I am someone who often goes on feeling, and the trait which I value above all else in others, is “the duty to be loving and kind” (Ruse, Wilson 510)

Of course in the world of careers, this sentiment is often ignored, because many employers care for the quality of the work, not the quality of the person behind it. In almost any field of work, it is preferable to outdo and outwit others vying for a position, because at the end of the day, it is ‘every man for himself’. “Two parties can strike a mutually profitable bargain, but each could gain still more by withholding its contribution.” (Nowak, May, Sigmund 403) The world of careers is one ridden with competition, jealousy, and double-dealings. It may be nearly impossible to promote an environment in which healthy competition governs the workplace.

In Japan, this proverb is regarded as the Golden Rule

I do agree with the idea that “ethics is a shared illusion of the human race.” (Ruse, Wilson 510) It seems that only humans have this code of what is right and what is wrong, and the fact that this code has been molded and changed throughout the centuries is proof of its arbitrary nature. Incest was once encouraged, slavery glorified, and the oppression of women was once accepted; yet all of these things violate our moral code today. I believe that what exists today are “human ethics based upon love and personal sympathy.” (Kropotkin 400)

The character Dwight Schrute on The Office is the very extreme of someone who will do anything to get ahead in the workplace.

I very much agree that “those who desire to improve may do so; to give those who desire to rise the aids by which they may rise; to assist, but rarely or never to do all.” (Carnegie 397), and perhaps it is that best sums up my idea of the perfect balance of compassion and competition in both the workplace, and life. Without either, we would not be the species we are today, and a mixture of the two can bring out the best qualities in each person.

The Portfolio Exam

This website taught me all I ever needed to know about HTML, and introduced me to the possibilities of web design.

There exists a place on the Internet called “Neopets.com”, in which every child’s grader’s dreams are realized, in which one can live in a virtual world, much like Second Life, but for children. This is where I spent the majority of my youth, taking care of “pets” and attempting to earn money dubbed “neopoints”. It was at this website that I first learned HTML, whilst trying to add moving text and colored fonts to my shop.

The instructions on the website referred to the use of a website maker, such as Dreamweaver or FrontPage, but I have always had difficulty using such programs. I actually tried using iWeb, but to my disappointment, it was confusing and impossible for me to understand. Thus, using the method of “forging ahead and muddling through”, I decided to use HTML to make the website. I actually prefer diving straight into the backbone of what makes a webpage look the way it does, for it is much easier for me to rearrange and redesign when I can see the problem firsthand. While HTML seems complicated to a beginner, all it takes is a good tutorial site and ten minutes to understand the structure of the language.

Even within these two companies, there exist hundreds of different operating systems.

I disagree with the statement that “mindlessness has replaced mindfulness.” I am confident that every single student in our class read and reread the instructions for the website portfolio, and went even further to question previous students. However, computers are never a “sure thing”, and with scores of different operating systems, interfaces, and browsers floating about, just one pure set of instructions aimed at only two operating systems is bound to cause confusion.

“Though they were highly verbal, like other college students they seemed to prefer someone showing them what to do, an instant fix, rather than “reading,” detailed directions." While I do agree that the act of reading instructions, especially with something one already knows how to accomplish, can be cursory, I do not think the quoted sentiment applies to our assignment. I believe that everyone, even me, would have appreciated and followed, to a T, a detailed list of instructions, especially with something as new and confusing as website technology. Not many students have been asked to deal with the creation of a website before, at least not in the scale and amount of categorizing asked of us, and even though the instructions on the website were helpful, they certainly did not address every problem that one could have encountered along the way.

First Semester Experiences

Who Are You - The Who

(lyrics here)

The typical scene at Town Lake: Joggers, baby strollers, and half-naked men.

I had forgotten just how beautiful Town Lake looks in the morning. I had forgotten the sting of cold air in my lungs at the inhale, the feeling of rocks in my running shoes, and the way that the sun rippled itself across the water, floating like an oily orb. Crew teams rowed past, their coaches’ orders amplified by microphones, and dogs passed by with belabored pants, tongues flopping as their owners urged them to run faster. It was a great feeling to be back on the familiar turf of the place that had known me so well before I had gone to college.

During the break, I somehow managed to drag myself to Town Lake everyday, often alone, because I found that I had a nasty habit of waking up at two o’clock in the afternoon, which was the time during which all of my friends were busy. Previously, I could not even stand on the trail without a friend by my side, petrified at the prospect of being alone. After being completely surrounded by people all the time at UT and in the presence of my roommate even when it was least expected and largely despised, I discovered that being alone was the most wonderful feeling. Over the break, I relished my time at Town Lake, alone, triumphant, having two to three hours to myself, doing naught but walking and running towards blinding sunlight.

One of my favorite haunts: Mozart’s Coffee. I spend more time here than is healthy, and I don’t even like coffee.

I do not think that this “alone time” made me into a recluse, instead, it brought out independence. After Town Lake, what else was I willing to try by myself? To avoid hurt friends and slighted engagements, I ventured forth during the daytime, settling into coffeehouses with a book in tow, hiking through Wild Basin and secluding myself between the rocks, and even volunteering to do menial errands for my mother, glad at the opportunity to hone my growing independence more.

In a way, I am grateful to my first semester at UT, thankful for the ceaseless noise and the ever so torrential crowds that flooded me, for it brought out a side of me that I had previously thought to be a depressing thing. I have come to realize that being alone is not necessarily a negative thing, for it forces me to be more independent, something that I lack significantly.

This eager child was the exact opposite of me in grade school.

With independence also comes leadership, something that we hammered on profusely in class first semester (and I assume second semester as well). Previously, I was only vaguely aware that I was often hesitant to voice my opinions, and in front of my friends, I often swallowed rebuttals and forced myself to agree with them to avoid altercations. In high school, I always waited for someone else to say what I wanted to say, hoping that they would ask the questions I wanted answered. In retrospect, these memories make me squirm, but I still find myself guilty of these actions from time to time. This is what I had hoped the University would dissolve, for it is “’the tree of knowledge’ and ‘the paradise of the learned’.” (X638) The idea of a university that I had before I started my semester was that of a place that taught me things that would make me a cultured and well rounded. My current conception of a university, now standing on the other side of the year, is that it is integral to teaching attributes and whetting characteristics that can carry on through life.

The most important things I learned from my first semester at UT were not the lessons taught in classes, but things about myself that I wanted to change or improve. Newman’s idea of a University, that “it is more correct, as well as more usual, to speak of a University as a place of education, than of instruction…” (X310) applies wholly to my experience thus far, for I believe that education calls for learning through experience, while instruction entails information being doled out. Just as Jude thought of a university as a “city of light” (Hardy 23), I am faithful that my future experiences at UT will reveal more and more the type of person I wish to be.