You don't have to answer all of these prompts -- try to address 2 or 3.
What is human nature?Why is a conception of human nature of important? What does it do for us?
§ What ought we to do?
§ How ought we live?
§ What kind of society should we have?
§ Who is responsible for what and why?
§ What kind of economic & political system is just?
What have you learned about death & dying that is important to you? Is surprising to you?
Has this helped you reflect on the meaning of life?
What does life mean?
Am I living a good life?
What is death?
What’s my legacy?
Q2: A good conception of human nature helps us define who we are and creates a strong foundation and understanding for us to follow as we live throughout our lives. By shaping our understanding of what we ought to do, how we ought to live, and what responsibilities we possess in our society, we are able to help shape our world into something greater than before. I feel that we ought to live a utilitarian lifestyle, helping out as many people as we can without harming ourselves and others. It is a good philosophy to live by. We should be responsible for any of our own actions and decisions, even if we regret them later in life. We should have a society that focuses on personal responsibility for our decisions and we should accept the consequences for what we do. We need to exercise better judgment in our jobs and lives instead of allowing our impulses to dictate our actions (see article http://www.infowars.com/cop-pulls-gun-on-fifth-graders-building-tree-fort/ as an example). If we practiced better judgment and ethics in every aspect of our lives, our society would be more just.
ReplyDeleteQ3: I've learned how to think about and talk about the concept of death in our lives without cringing on the inside out of discomfort. Death is inevitable, so we should be able to address it without fear since it's a inescapable event that we all are going to experience. I never thought I would be able to comfortably talk about my own death to another person.
Q1: Human nature is the way we think, act, believe, or feel. Human nature can be many things, but it all depends on the person. No one person is the same, they do not think the same way, feel the same joy or pain, or believe the same way. The definition of Human Nature, is one of those things that can be challenging to define.
ReplyDeleteQ4: This class has help me reflect on the meaning of life. To me, life means living and experiencing, becoming a special "you" and not what others want you to be. I feel as if I am living a good life. I'm doing the right things, staying out of trouble, and helping those when I can. To me, death is just another path in life that some of us take early, or later, but we all will walk it sometime, and when its your time, times up. My legacy is hard to define, as with anyone. You cannot really define your own legacy, its something others make when you pass. If I had to say what mine was, I'd say it was a good one, a caring, and helpful legacy, one that is joyful and eventful.
#1 Human nature is how we live, act, behave, survive, etc. It is what allows everyone to be able to come together even though everyone is very different. We have the ability as a society to create a great world to live in and that is what we should strive for. A great world for everyone and not just a great world for you.
ReplyDelete# 3 I really like the question what is death? The reason is because before this class, i never really thought about this question. It really seems like a straightforward answer and that is how i would have approached the question before this semester began. Now if i was to answer this question, there are some many more factors that go into answering this question and it could take a very long time to fully answer it. Also now because of this class i have really thought about what legacy will i leave? Am i living the right life for me? I'm glad this class has caused me to think about this questions rather than later in life.
Life means that you are living your life the best way that you can. That means you are finding true happiness in everything that you do and in every situation that you are in. I believe that I am living a pretty good life but in the area of my life that I am in now it is not always the easiest. With being in college and playing a sport it is hard to do while having to pay rent and bills and everything like that and you have to work all of the time in order to afford to pay the bills. This is very stressful and at times it feels like I am not living life to the fullest but I have to use good time management to focus on what I need to get done.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you will about being a athlete in school and having to worry about working and school and sports. This is very stressful at times and at times i struggle with it. That being said, i am living the way i wanted. We are on the right path to what we want to do in life and living the way we find best. A lot of people don't get the opportunity that we have and it is truly a blessing.
DeleteQ.1: Human nature is the entire collection of instincts, behaviors, thoughts, and conditions that combined define a particular individual as human. The elusiveness of a specific definition of what it means to be human is due to our own constant inability to determine what exactly is and is not necessary to all humans, and what is not. A discussion of what it means to be human often will find conflicting accounts and discussions occurring in empirical and rationalist thought sets.
ReplyDeleteQ.2: Having a concept of human nature lets us contemplate what the particular purpose of a human being is. By determining a shared purpose all human persons must share in common, it is possible to determine a methodology of behavior and an explanation of existence that can be consistent for all persons.
In my own personal beliefs, we ought to do that which is right, determined by the intent of your action, the nature of your action, and the consequences of your action, weighed appropriately according to each. We ought to live in accordance with this same concept of righteousness. A society's primary goal should be to pursue that which is right for all its members, as opposed to only a few or most. Each individual is responsible for their own moral actions, as well as for what they owe to those around them in exchange for what they receive societally from them.
A just economic and political system is one in which people live in accordance with a concept of equity, egalitarianism, and right behavior. Privileges which elevate one person above another are to be discouraged, while assistance to those who are disadvantaged are to be encouraged. Most important is that there exists a system of mutual dependency between the individual and all others in their society which does not elevate a particular element of that society above any other, and that the structure of a society exists to benefit all that live within its borders, as opposed to contrary systems focused on its members benefiting society, or only a few benefiting from all others.
http://nyti.ms/1nt5ptR NYTimes: Capitalism and the Dalai Lama
ReplyDeleteHe’s practical and empathetic. The lesson? Pass the bread.
I believe that human nature is an important concept for us because it attempts to explain what the driving force is at the center of each human being, and that if we are able to fully understand what human nature is then we be able to live more full and satisfying existence. Through this class I have also learned that the process of death and dying has two sides to it, the side of the person who is going to die and the side of the person or people the dying individual is leaving behind, and that throughout the process it is usually helpful to be proactive in the issue of death especially in the case of a loved of so that there is as little confusion as possible when the difficult choices must be made. I have also become more comfortable with the topic of death so that i hope i can be comfort to those people around me that are still freaked out by the prospect of death.
ReplyDeleteQ.1: Human nature is our psychological characteristics, the way we act, think, believe, etc. Our human nature is what brings each individual together to become alike in certain ways, but separate us by our own characteristics.
ReplyDeleteWhat is death? Thinking about what death really is allows me to think so much about life as a whole. It brings up so many questions not only about what death is, but also about what life is and what we are really living for. I feel like if I was asked this question prior to this class I would have a pretty simple answer. After going through this class though, this question brings up many other questions because of the knowledge I have gained and opinions I have heard from our class.
ReplyDeleteOne of the main things that I have learned from death and dying is to not fear it as much as I once did. At the beginning of this course my definition of death was just an end to life and nothing more. It was hard for me to grasp the concept and it was hard for me to face the fact that death is just a part of life. At the beginning of this semester we watched a movie of people on their death bed and it made me question staying in this class. However, as the weeks went on I started to get a better idea of life and started to except death as part of it a little more. I have learned that it is not always a bad thing because it can take people out of extreme physical pain and ease a family of having to see a loved one suffer.
ReplyDeleteQ3 In general life to me is going through the day to day challenges that are presented to us. It is also going through the pleasure and different opportunities presented to us as well. To be considered as good life I feel that one must be happy with their place in the world. The have little regrets of the past and are always staying positive about the future. As far as legacy goes I feel that a legacy is an imprint that you leave on society and your family. For example my dad never had it easy he is a self made man. He would always tell me stories of the struggles he went through to get to where he was today and that will always have an impact on how I view life. So to me his legacy will live on.
Life to me means living your life to the fullest and doing what makes you happy so you have no regrets. Life is crazy, fun, entertaining, and joyful. Life does not always have to make sense as long as you are happy with your decision. I think i am slowly starting to live my life. I have not always made the best decisions for myself, instead i was making decisions to make others happy instead of myself. I am not going to school for a career i know i am going to love, i got a wonderful job opportunity at Cincinnati Children's, i am planning my wedding with the love of my life, i bought a new car, and we are slowly moving forward with everything in our lives. All of these things are making me happy and i am living my life to the fullest potential i can. I am happy and i hope to continue down this road.
ReplyDeleteQ1: Human nature is characteristics including the way people think, feel, and act without the influence of the culture around them. Even though people all across the world have different believes the one thing that relates to everyone is human nature.
ReplyDeleteQ3: To me a good life is one where you strive to make something good out of everyday. Not everyday is going to be great but if you can look back on that day and take at least one positive out of the day then it was successful. In a good life you learn from your mistakes and also try to experience something new everyday. I feel as if i am living a good life. Im a generally happy person that makes decisions to better my future. I also learn from my mistakes and move forward to achieve new experiences.
It is important to have a conception of human nature because this is how we view everyone around us. For example, if there is someone from a different culture for whom we have no way to understand their rank or their role in society we have to view them through our own conception of human nature. This is the fundamental view of people, therefore based on the deed they do and how others contribute to society, be this in a positive or negative manner. This conception of human nature allows us to judge others and build relationships with them despite race, wealth, culture etc. Judging people based on the fact that they are humans above anything else is important in every aspect of life.
ReplyDeleteI have learned a lot about death and dying from this class, but mostly about the support people need around death. Before this class I had not really had much experience with death besides a few encounters in working at the hospital. I have learned that everyone dies in a unique way and everyone deals with death in different ways, both of these must be respected. With aspirations to become a doctor I am thankful for learning about the support tools needed when someone's family members dies. Such as simply being sorry for the person's loss and reassuring them that you will be there to support them with anything they need.
Human Nature: is how humans react to "human events." Emotions are a big human nature. We get sad when someone we love passes away. We get filled with joy when someone we love gives birth to someone we now love. It is a natural, biological part of humans and it exists in everyone. It drives us for why we do things. Everything we do is out of human nature, and everyone is different.
ReplyDeleteThings I have learned in death and dying is how we as human are extremely emotional. We get sad when such a natural thing like death occurs, even though we are surrounded by it all the time. That is the great thing about humans and the sometimes the thing we dread the most.
We are all responsible for our own actions unless there is a condition preventing such action. We also have a responsibility to others. This doesn't mean we just give people things to the point of dependency or have some one force us to give things to people. There is a balance as we both have to be responsible for ourselves and our own actions and face the consequences but we need to be there for people affected by situations out of our control.
ReplyDeleteWith respect to the meaning of life I feel it is the best combination of living a good life and leaving a positive legacy. Living a good life is being authentic to yourself and being authentic to yourself is doing what is morally and ethically right but also most importantly doing what brings you joy. That's it. As long as you aren't being selfish and hurting others then you should do what ever brings you happiness. A positive legacy for me is making a positive change in someone's life or making one more person happy than when you were brought into this world.
I like the 2 questions "what does life mean?" and "what is death?". Before this class, I wouldn't have given much thought to either and answered with relatively simple replies. However, after the talks we've had, I've come to appreciate the depth and complexity behind these questions. Now, to me, life is living in a balanced way that follows certain moral or ethical guidelines while also doing what you love. I would consider living an inauthentic life to be working a job simply for money even if you hate going in to work every single day. Life is too short to spend it living miserably. My parents and I have always been in agreement that we would prefer quality of life over quantity. As for death, I try not to think about it as an end, but rather a beginning. I think that it is a little easier for me to view death as such being a Catholic, but it is still hard for me to accept, especially still being fairly young and wanting to live a full life yet. This class has been good in the fact that it forced me to confront and talk about death- I know we had a talk in class about younger people in general finding it hard to face their own mortality, but I think it is better to do so sooner rather than later in life so you can accept death easier if it (more likely than not) comes sooner than you think or want.
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