THEBEAST

"Class Connections" 1. On other blogs, I found a lot of philosophy, but few facts. 2. Mine was sort of this way, too. 3. Maybe there's not a whole lot of definite truth? 4. Some really cool ideas, not a lot of support... 5. No one really has a position on their issue.

Truth Research 4/30/08

My Topic: Nature vs. Nurture What I've found out: Not anybody really knows, but everyone has an opinion, and several different ways to redefine each term. It is also thought however that both have an impact on general IQ. Some facts
 * Child-parent correlation and verbal skills are relatively proportional for Children with Birth Parents, yet this correlation drops for adopted children raised with foster parents
 * It is thought that genetics may account for about 48% of a person's general IQ
 * Identical Twins raised together have 86% similar personalities and IQ scores
 * Identical Twins raised apart were 76% alike

Presentation: Powerpoint? Poster? Graphs? Questions: What do people in the class think about it?

The Truth About Dreams 4/7/08

The truth about dreams is that they are the factual basis for hope. Typically, that is all that dreams provide, and yet, this is enough, because dreams allow the dreamer to have a glimpse at what life could be like, and also give the dreamer enough motivation to continue pursuing their individual interests. A dream was nothing but hope to Scout Finch, as she was discouraged by the world, and yet, dreams of equality gave her the courage to continue to search for equality. Dreams were also nothing but hope for Lennie Small, who was always encouraged by the thought of tending rabbits, but never reached his dream throughout life. A similar thing is true when Philip Pirrip's life is considered; he always dreamed of Estella's love, but never found it throughout the course of his life. The similar moral of all these tales remains that dreams can only promise one thing, and that is hope.

Golding's Message Several Months Later 1/28/08

Typically, very little information would remain by now from Lord of the Flies. It is many books later, countless articles, short stories, poems and even months later, and yet only one message remains with me from the book. Fortunately, this information seems to coincide with the prompt, and I believe Golding's message about fear is truly that there is nothing to fear but yourself and fear itself. The concept of fear itself is portrayed by the boys' characterization of the beast, which the reader is aware doesn't exist, and yet, the boys made exist. The beast dwells only in the corners of the mind of the boys stranded on that particular tropical island, and yet the beast had a huge presence, and lived vividly in the minds of the children there. In an inverse manner, this is also an example of fearing yourself, as Simon discovered that the beast was really alive only in the minds of the island inhabitants, and that true evil only acted by their consciences, and was disguised by several means. Yet nature held no real reason for fear, although it was thought to. Both of these types of fear are related in the way that it was really a paranoid habit that turned the boy into savages, admittedly or not, with their own permission.

Looking Past the Obvious 10/18/07

If you only look at the facts in life, there is very little you’ll understand. Mythology is a way for a certain culture to explain something puzzling with a little added kick. We know that the sun rises, night is dark and day is light, and that seasons change. That is all that is true in myths. But, if you want to believe in something that you can’t see, read a myth. Myths are interesting, slightly informative, and still hold a little bit of the magic of wonder. I know certainly that Santa only added to the marvel of Christmas, but I missed believing in some element of enchantment. I believe myths are the same way, giving a culture something to claim that lasts forever and provokes imagination.