I was raised Catholic and still identify as one. When I was in Catholic school, I learned that while the Protestant Reformers may have had a good point or two, the Protestant Reformation was terrible for Christianity. Of course, Protestants have a very different point of view.
Teaching and learning about history remind me to be humble. There are multiple truths.
Sometimes, we can look at the same event from a very different perspective. And sometimes, new truths replace older truths.
I am mindful of this poem.
Worst Day Ever?
by Chanie Gorkin
Today was the absolute worst day ever
And don’t try to convince me that
There’s something good in every day
Because, when you take a closer look,
This world is a pretty evil place.
Even if
Some goodness does shine through once in a while
Satisfaction and happiness don’t last.
And it’s not true that
It’s all in the mind and heart
Because
True happiness can be attained
Only if one’s surroundings are good.
It’s not true that good exists
I’m sure you can agree that
The reality
Creates
My attitude
It’s all beyond my control
And you’ll never in a million years hear me say that
Today was a very good day.
—
Now read it from bottom to the top, the other way,
And see what I really feel about my day.
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1CxNNL5LTPuUY2fBD_oe2IzksS7kqRVY2vDB7pENh0k8/edit?usp=sharing
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1CxNNL5LTPuUY2fBD_oe2IzksS7kqRVY2vDB7pENh0k8/edit?usp=sharing
very adamant that he will always be negative/positive depending on which way you read it.
1. Point of view is a very personal thing, and something that is subject to singular people.
2. Many people see things differently based off of what they were taught and how they were raised, and even where they were born/grew up.
I think this Point of View is very interesting because this happens on the daily. If you are trying to figure out a situation or do something you can look at it from many different angles to figure out the best outcome. And for more “important” events that have happened in the past it gives us a chance to reflect.
It’s interesting to see how the exact same scenario can have many different implications and meanings based on the perspective you see it through.
This poem shows that there’s two sides to everything, like the protestant reformation. To catholics, or at least catholics in the 50s, the reformation was an evil thing but to the protestants, it was a good thing.
My Catholic way of thinking- admittedly biased- still thinks it is a shame that Christianity is split into more that 44,000 different sects. That’s why I wish the Church took some of Luther’s ideas about reform and incorporated them. The irony is that in the Council of Trent, the Church did just that. But by that point, there was no way the Protestants were rejoining because their criticisms had moved to teachings and doctrines.
Elio- continued… but in the 1950s, Catholics were discouraged from going to non-Catholic schools, colleges, hospitals, cemeteries, and especially from going to Protestant churches. Admittedly, Protestants were equally forbidden from going to Catholic churches.
To me, this really speaks to the fact that there can be good in everything. Even if something seems bad, it could possibly be a learning opportunity or open a door to something great. All this to say that nothing in life is purely bad.
To me, point of view is very interesting because the idea that although one thing seems one way if you look at it in a certain direction, but it could mean a whole different thing if you look at it from a certain direction, is almost a good idea to live by. Although some things may seem bad in the moment, all you need to do is look at it from a different perspective to see the good.
This poem emphasizes the idea that one event/ idea can have so many different outcomes and reactions based off of one’s point of view. This idea is very important in today’s conflict-ridden world. Maybe conflict could be resolved more easily and with less pain, if we could all recognize others’ points of view.
The poem shows the importance of point of view. When read forwards, the poem’s view of goodness and happiness is very negative. When read backwards, the point of view regarding goodness and happiness completely changes to positive and optimistic. This can be applied to other situations. Even if a situation looks bad on the surface, choosing to look for the good in the situation is a very helpful technique.
Point of view a big role in society and if world history was written by the losers of wars it would depict the victors as savages and barbaric. I liked the poem it was good. back to point of view the victors almost always write history so many old stories might be a little fake and exaggerated.
Perspective is a very subjective concept. Two different people can feel or think differently about the same event. There are wide contrasts in how people view things. Based on experiences and characteristics, people view everything very uniquely.
It’s weird that we don’t always know the POV of poems or situations until we look at all the different angles.