Is it just me or does anyone else have a sore brain? I understand that many things should be questioned and verified - however, there are certain things that we accept as "constants" because they are the exact same everyday we encounter them. I have a psychology class and Speech 1A class at the same time I am taking this class and all three utilize critical thinking. I have such a headache after working on research for all three classes! Needless to say that I love my American Sign Language Class!
Ok, on to the matter at hand - if we studied a poem, that has 11 lines, for hours - how are we going to get through, let's say, Thoreau's "On Civil Government" by the end of the semester? I know it is important to analyze materials and determine what is more than likely accurate, and what is a fallacy. I also realize that by the end of this class I will be able to write a more convincing and supported paper regarding an idea or concept. I must say it is very interesting to see the different ways that people think, and the different ways people perceive the same message. I always thought that Thoreau was a naturalist, I never realized that he had something to say about the government. The writing was definitely an eye opener. I question how someone can actually determine what someone was thinking when they wrote a particular piece without actually talking to them. Seeing the different ways that each of us interpret a "message" reinforces that question even more. Mr. Crandall makes the question even stronger when he points out that there are many ways to define a particular item, such as a chair. When reading something - how do we know what the writer envisioned, unless they spell out every single little detail? I know I will get a lot out of this class (including some potential counseling sessions) and look forward to the rest of the semester.
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4 comments:
I think you're not the only one with a sore brain because I know I have a sore brain too. It's really amazing how much we can get out from a single poem with just 11 lines, and its interesting for me to listen to so many different ideas and percpective about the same matter. However, at times I think we can get a little off topic, and I really wonder how long it will take us to go through Thoreau. I know that all of the discussion somehow relates to the main subject matter, such as fallacy, but at times, I wish Professor Crandall can state the point more clearly. To say the truth, I think I was able to grasp the concept of Toulmin's method much more clearly from the examples wikipedia had. I know that the discussion is important, after all, this is a critical thinking class, but I think that it sometimes tend to drift away from the main point.
As for the question of "how do we know what the writer envisioned?", I think that we probably will never know exactly what the writer envisioned. That's why we try to analyze it, and come up with our own interpretations. I don't think there's any right or wrong answer, unless ,like you said, the author spell out every single little detail. It's important to question the author's intention in writing something, but I think what the reader finds in a poem is valuable too.I'm also looking forward to the rest of the semester and hope that I will be able to write better essays.
I'm actually testing this out and commenting at the same time.
I didn't realize this class would be so involved. I also wondered how we were going to get through this class if we spend hours on a short poem and anything that's brought up is now a new question to analyze. I get "brain-fry" halfway through the
class! After that said, I do enjoy the class and know I'll benefit from it.
I also have a question...when we post, are we supposed to just brainstorm some crazy stuff related to school to discuss and analyze? Or stuff we pull out of the news or personal interests?
If someone understands please help. Thanks in advance! :)
Professor Crandall really makes us think. I'm enjoying this class. It's very interesting to just listen to the professor talk- he starts with one subject and by the end, we've discussed and learned about a variety of things. The questions he asks the class are always thought-provoking. Even if no one is answering questions out loud, everyone is thinking about them and creating answers for him or herself. I think the reason we spend so much time on one topic, like Hughes' "Harlem," was because the questions he wanted us to become clear on had not been answered yet.
I agree with missminemo212 on the answer that we can never really know what a writer's vision was. That's why so many books are not understood or seen as meaningless. A book or piece of writing can be seen in so many different angles.
Anastasia, as for posts, of course things should be in some way relevant to the class, but if you (or anyone) thinks something kind of sort of maybe might be relevant, that's qualification enough.
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