Month: September 2015

Marathon Write

Ever hear of a Marathon Write? In a marathon write, you never stop writing. It is total stream of consciousness writing. So, if I’m writing about something and start thinking about cookies, I write about cookies, though I do try to get back to the topic. Similarly, if I’m stuck, I simply write, “I’m stuck”

Edward Albee once said, “I write to find out what I’m thinking about.” That’s the point of a marathon write, to find out what you’re thinking about. I’m going to have you write your thoughts on what you’ve read and the online TodaysMeet discussion for the last 10 minutes of class. Just write what you are thinking. Don’t worry about how it sounds. If it is really ridiculous, I won’t publish it to the blog.

Here is the transcript of our conversation.  https://todaysmeet.com/room/1955738/transcript

or

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwJtGlkVK5mkX0NJcm1wZXhTc3U3T0w1MEVma2xUa2FMRWtR/view?usp=sharing

Confucius, The Way and the Buddha

As we’ve said, China is an ancient society. For a long, long time it was the most advanced society in the world. In ancient times, only Rome matched it. The Chinese invented printing, gun powder, paper, the wheelbarrow, kites, alcohol!, and silk among other things.  In this video, I’d like you to watch from minute 8 to minute 22 (or so)

The pacing is slow. But the visuals are fantastic. That’s really why I want you to watch it.

 

I’d also like you to read chapter 10 in this easy packet of reading that I’ve scanned.

https://drive.google.com/a/friendscentral.org/file/d/0BwJtGlkVK5mkVDEyRTNTWmxhOVBwWXF0Vm1PYk9JeVd5Rmww/view?usp=sharing

Please respond in comments to the following open ended question in paragraph form.  I’d like your answer to be 6-8 sentences long.

What is your reaction to the reading and video? (hints for helping you to write- Did anything surprise you? What did you learn that you didn’t know before?  Do you have a favorite Chinese philosophy so far?

 

 

On the Nature of Man is Evil

Babiesphoto by Jill Greenberg

 

Do you think the Nature of Man is evil? I asked this question to my class. We had a discussion both backchannel style and whole class about this very question.  Here is a transcript of our backchannel conversation that accompanied our talking in class.

https://todaysmeet.com/room/1925099/transcript

There is some 9th grade silliness, but also some impressive thought.

The Matrix and The Cave

Our reading on Plato’s Allegory of the Cave asks us to imagine a reality that isn’t actually reality.

You may have heard the saying, “Ignorance is Bliss”. There was a very popular movie that came out when you were born called, The Matrix. In the Matrix, machines have taken over the earth. However, they have to keep humanity alive…. because the machines feed off of the electronic energy of the human brain. But to keep humanity docile, they have created an artificial reality for all of humanity.  For people in the Matrix really are in pods such as this picture: Image result for matrix film people in pods

Here is a video of a character, Cypher, who betrays his fellow rebels trying to overthrow the Matrix, because he decides he’d rather live back in the Matrix.

What is Plato trying to tell us in the allegory?

What is like the cave in our world?

How are your ideas of reality shaped by other people? Are your understandings and beliefs a cave of sorts?

Deep question- how do we know things are true? What is true and how do you know it?

What is Plato trying to tell us in the allegory?

What is like the cave in our world?

How are your ideas of reality shaped by other people? Are your understandings and beliefs a cave of sorts?

Deep question- how do we know things are true? What is true and how do you know it?