Sunday, September 18, 2011
Saucy and Provoking
So the question for this first entry is, what do you think of Benjamin Franklin's "project for moral perfection"? Henry David Thoreau, a writer in our near future, once said, "I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate himself through conscious endeavor." What do you think of this sentiment? Should we always be pushing to improve ourselves, to make ourselves into the persons that we hope to be? Or should we relax, accept ourselves the way we are, and go about the business of living our lives? Walt Whitman, perhaps the polar opposite of Franklin, says, "I exist as I am, that is enough." What do you think?
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First!
ReplyDeleteI <3 Ben Franklin!
ReplyDeleteEnglish class is the bomb!!!
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ReplyDeleteWell... First off congrats Matt, you were first! lolz Now, unto work. I kind of agree with Benjamin Franklin and Henry David Thoreau. I agree that yes, man should push themselves to be great people, and not just let themselves get drowned into being the "least" that one can be. But some of Benjamin Franklin's ideas of how to get perfection, are in my opinion kind of bogus. Like having sex, to keep you "healthy". I think that is not needed at all. Or like Benjamin Franklin's number 9. Moderation. I don't think that everything per say should be taken in moderations. Because if people didn't take bold or extreme actions, how would America have had their revolution. Or how would the people in Northern Africa have achieved their freedom/rights? So, while I partially agree with Benjamin Franklin and Henry David Thoreau, I also agree with the Walt Whitman quote that Mr. Harrington posted, but to a point. I think everyone should be content with themselves and not have to always change themselves to be happy, but I don't think you should just accept that you will stay, poor forever for example. I think that you should be happy with who you are inside, looks etc, but not with who you are destined to be ( a bad/evil person, or poor, or a no one). Everyone in my opinion has a chance, if they use some of the determination from Benjamin Franklin's talks and Walt Whitman's contentness, to achieve greatness.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Maddi said. I believe that you have to find the happy medium between pushing yourself to be better and being content with who you are now. Because if you push yourself to be something your not, is that really better than where you were before? Also, I think everyone's perfection is different and that you shouldn't base whether or not your perfect on someone else's standards. Like what is listed in Benjamin Franklin's quest for moral perfection may not include what you think is morally perfect. For example, I think that somethings he lists are either unreasonable or unnecessary. Like I don't see why having some "pointless" conversations are bad or why you have to do everything in moderation. However, I don't think that one should be content with themselves if they NEVER do anything. Im not referring to relaxing every now and then and just having those days where you do absolutely nothing, I am referring to the people who do absolutely nothing all day everyday. I think that if you are in that position you should try to improve yourself. Overall, you should try to improve yourself, but in the process stay true to who you are and don't try to become something your not.
ReplyDeleteMaddie, I think what you said was well put but I have a different perspective on Franklin's Project for Moral Perfection. I believe this project can be used for both good and bad. There are many reasons it can be used for good. To start off, I believe a very good reason is because he is setting goals for himself. Obviously, he want's other people to see and follow his morals but who is he to tell you this is what you have to do? Everyone has their own opinion on right and wrong. This project can be used as a base for people who are a bit confused but their perspective will probably be different on most of his points and that's completely fine considering you have a conscious and your own opinion. Franklin needs to understand that not everyone is going to agree on what he says because he is not your master. You are in charge of your actions. This can be used for bad as well because some people might believe that Franklin is so successful so he knows what's right and wrong but really he is just a human and does not have all the answers. According to Henry David Thoreau saying, "I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate himself through conscious endeavor," I believe that no one should relax and just be lazy and let whatever happen happen. I believe that everyone is capable of making something of themselves. My dad always tells me that success comes to people that work hard and put 100% effort into whatever they do. Of course, this is not an easy task but if you can actually follow up on it you are going to be amazingly successful. If you are completely content on how your life is, sure relax. But it would be sad to have to wonder what if you gave it your all and became the best you could be instead of just actually doing it. So my belief is don't be lazy and attempt everything and when something gets hard, push through it and let nothing get in the way of becoming a successful person. Do not follow Franklin's theory, "I exist as I am, that is enough" because all that shows is laziness and someone who isn't willing to take chances and to thrive.
ReplyDeleteI think that people should try to better themselves, their position, and their habits. This is how we learn and how we improve. We do not go to school only to learn what year Columbus ‘found’ America, what the quadric formula is, or what NaCl is. We go to school to figure out how to learn and to perfect that. In 6th grade I did not study as much as I do know because I found out that I needed to study more. Trial and error. I trained myself to be able to sit longer and study more. We all have improved our handwriting and sentence forming skills since kindergarten, this is us improving ourselves. If I notice something I am doing is not working, I change it. For example in 6th grade my organization skills were horrible. Most of my bad grades were because I forgot to do homework or get something signed. Stupid mistakes. So I learned how to use the nifty planners and do much better in my classes because of it. Although I can mess up (like today I didn’t have a sign ready for a club at the clubs fair), I am a lot more organize and get things done in time. Although I agree with Natalie by not agree with all the morals Franklin set, I think his determination and persistence is admirable. I think we can all try to better our morals. Not necessarily trying to be perfect like Franklin but I know I can work on being calmer (especially when people won’t let me into a lane of the freeway) and sincere. Everyone has some trait they can work removing and might even get a job offer or make a new friend because of their newfound humility and resolution. I want to be the conscious little rock that actually has a say about where it is going to land.
ReplyDeleteWell, we have just heard a great deal of the Puritan Work ethic spouted off here, let me change that. I will start by saying that if someone won't let me in on the freeway, I speed up and cut them off. I don't spend my life pushing myself to the max yet I don't consider myself lazy, and I certainly don't go to school to "figure out how to learn and perfect that". I still don't use my "nifty planner" no matter what happened in sixth grade. Additionally I have not spent my time perfecting my handwriting since kindergarten. I do not choose to do these things, that is just the way I am. Spending one's time worrying about one's self is a narcissistic waste of time. However, since introspective self analysis is the topic of the day, here goes. Franklin had some reasonable ideas about how to be a good person and none can contest his great success in the world of politics, diplomacy, and invention. But he was a lousy husband and an absentee father. He cheated on his wife and never spent time with his children. Does this make him a good person? Or just a successful one? Now the real question is: did he choose to be this way? Or was this just who he was? I would argue the latter. It seems people tend to take refuge in both sides of the argument. To some, self improvement is a comforting thought; people like to believe they have built their own empire. In most cases luck has more to do with it than talent. Others like me enjoy entertaining the concept stated by Whitman of self acceptance. It is nice to know we have a predetermined path to walk although we may not know what the path is until we have walked it.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Stephen, "worrying about one's self" is not a narcissistic waste of time. Constant criticism of your ethics and a pursuit to improve your moral standing is an essential part of a man or woman's life. Idly living through every day will erode at moral scruples and causes irreversible loss in the quest for moral perfection. Although I realize that moral perfection is unattainable and a serious attempt at reaching it would be futile, it is a great goal to stride for in the hope of moral improvement. A healthy mind should analyze every action and interaction to weed out moral shortcomings and reinforce positive events. Benjamin Franklin takes some measures too far, unproductive conversations are anything but harmful and there is no downside to mindless relaxation as long as it is in moderation.
ReplyDeleteBen Franklin's ideas of self improvement are encouraging. I acknowledge Stephen's opinion of acceptance of one's self, and I realize that there is a large backing of that belief, but the thought of self improvement is one that definitely carries more weight with me. The feeling I get by reading Stephen's comment I think really reflects my views on the subject. He seems angry and derisive toward the world, and seems to care less about the bettering of one's self and more about the rejection of the establishment which therefore outlines his own individuality. Though he says that the decisions are not necessarily conscious, my reaction to this is that he makes just as obvious a choice to not better himself, as some of us make to do the opposite.
ReplyDeletePlease don't take this writing the wrong way, you spoke your view on the subject and I reacted to it by speaking my own.
Concerning Ben Franklin, and in agreement with the majority of the class, I believe that he has both wise points that fit in his argument, but also a few that are impractical and irrelevant. I also agree with his view on self improvement, although not as passionately. As an athlete, you must strive for constant self improvement, both physically and mentally. To stay ahead of the curve, it is necessary to consciously push yourself on certain parts of the game that need improvement.
On a different note, Kevin's view of striving for moral perfection is flawed. Whatever your moral's are is really your decision, you can't really strive for morals because they are created in the world you grow up in and in your experiences. Morals are more thrust upon you than found/achieved.
The thirteen virtues, which Benjamin Franklin states, are a very important part of our history. Benjamin Franklin was a very powerful man in colonial America, who with these thirteen virtues, tried to reach out to the public. Perhaps it was because he himself came from rags to riches, either way it was the first “self-help” book of the time. As my classmates have either taken the Walt Whitman or the Benjamin Franklin side of things, my opinion falls somewhere in the middle. While these thirteen virtues may not be agreeable with all people (number twelve.), some of the virtues are definitely note-worthy. For example, virtue number four, named “RESOLUTION”, is definitely a goal that more people should try to achieve. If all people did the things, which they set out to do, then these people would always reach their goals that they set out to do. But on the other hand, a virtue, which I fully do not agree with, is virtue number nine. If everyone had “MODERATION”, then there would be nobody to break out of the norm and fight with everything they had to meet their goals. Not all goals are easily attainable, and sometimes they might need extreme work ethic and time to achieve. All in all, Franklin’s thirteen virtues are personal to his life and he is merely giving an outline for interested people to get ideas from. But, people should be passionate about their goals in life and should be willing to do anything to get there. People might be born into a certain family or situation, but that does not mean that hard work and determination cannot get them out of that situation. Yet on the contrary, if one is happy where one’s life is, then there is really no use of these virtues for them. It all comes down to whether or not a person is interested in bettering themselves and the world around them, or not.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the goals that Benjamin Franklin et for himself were far too high, but a good idea. There is no way that he would ever attain perfection, as that task is impossible, but he could get very close. Once he started on his goal, he realized just this. While some ideals were easier to master than other, such as moderation, but to be able to complete al of the tasks was quite unreasonable. His overall ideal of improving oneself is a good idea, but not to the degree that he was implying. If your entire day is planed out on the notion of improving yourself, then you are missing out on the joy of life. If he had continued on his path to perfection, then he would have realized that if you try to achieve moral perfection, then he would miss out on the other benefits of life. Like Rosana said, happiness is something that he should have aspired to. Benjamin Franklin had a good idea, but not quite as good of a plan.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Jackie said. It is important to improve yourself through hard work, but you must also take time to relax and accept yourself for who you are. It is impossible to be perfect, so it isn't worth stressing out about things that you can't fix. However, being able to adapt and improve your faults is one of the great things about being human. It is best to live life somewhere in between the philosophies of Whitman and Franklin. If you spend too much time trying to perfect yourself, then you miss out on essential human experiences. But you also must have some motivatio to imrpove yourself, or nothing would ever get done. In the end, I agree with what Madison said; you have to incorporate Franklin's hard work and dtermination, and Whitman's self-acceptance in order to find happiness.
ReplyDeleteI agree for the most part with what David, Jackie, Ivan, and I'm sure many others have said. While Ben Franklin's goals were all ridiculous and unattainable, setting them and striving for them most likely made him into a better person. I personally believe that we as humans are very flawed and that the only way we can be better is to recognize that which we are unhappy with, and then actively work to change whatever it may be. Kevin had some very good points on this topic, if you simply accept your flaws, then you will never improve as a person. Theologian Reinhold Niebuhr wrote the now-famous prayer: "God grant me the serenity to accept the thing I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." I'm not saying that we should be extremely self-absorbed people who try to change everything about themselves. But realistically, everyone is flawed, and many of those flaws can be fixed by hard work and determination. Don't like your body? Eat right and exercise. Want to do better in school? Study more and don't write your blog response at 11:05 the day its due. By striving for perfection, you can better yourself immensely. That being said, some of Ben Franklin's goals are not consistent with my image of the "Perfect Person." Idle conversations are a great thing, and if we don't take the time to relax then we will all go insane! All in all, I think that it is important to work on bettering yourself by actively pursuing goals for self-improvement. However, I don't think that Ben Franklin's goals are the right goals to use. Many of his pursuits, such as no idle conversation or no wasted time, are goals that I don't feel are important to being a perfect person. But to say "I'm perfect just the way I am" is to doom yourself to a life of mediocrity.
ReplyDeleteyay procrastination
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Jackie, Ivan, David, Matt, and partially with Ciaran have said. Yes developing good habits and working on achieving high goals can be beneficial and rewarding, but if that becomes the main purpose of your life then your life loses its value. Because where is the spontaneity and adventure that defines life in a filled in checklist of goals? "Bucket lists" are for when you are thinking about your death - what you don't want to miss before you pass on. For this concept of self-improvement I'm in agreement with Franklin's principles of resolution and moderation. People should be happy with who they are, and if they want to improve then they should stick to it and do it on their own terms.
Let's go, period 8!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI disagree with what Stephen said. Ibelieve that one must strive for moral perfection, although complete success is unatainable. If you just sit back and let your life play out, you will never have any change. You will never leave your comfort zone, and this could lead to you not living your life to the fullest. While the goal is unattainable, you can still have success if you better yourself as a person, no matter how small the degree of betterment is. Even if you believe liek Staphen that your life is on a predetermined course, you can still make small changes just by the choices you make. Just putting a little effort into improving yourself as a person can make huge changes in your life. A lot of times, when one puts effort into improving themselves, it can make you feel happier and like you are doing something right. Even a quest for "moral betterment of oneself" can be very good for many people. A minor improvement to the way one goes about his/her life can have an affect on all of the people they come in contact with. Improvement of the self is very important in a successful society, no matter how trivial the improvement.
ReplyDeletesuccess!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteFirst i need to say that Patrick you are pure MUFF.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Ciaran when she says that we need to try to develop good habits, in our case in order to get school work done. It is reasonable for someone to set high goals for themselves as Ben Franklin did. A problem that people have is that once they set these goals they will not accept failure. I don't believe that "spending one's time worrying about one's self is a narcissistic waste of time" as Steven says although i don't think that it is healthy for someone to spend all their energy worrying about their appearance. Ben Franklin seems like a pretty chill guy he wanted to be the best he could even though he knew he couldn't be perfect.
Well, i seem to be a tad late on this assignment...oh well. =p
ReplyDeleteFirst I would like to say that I agree with most of the comments already posted, but probably most specifically with Matt's. The idea that working towards perfection is something that everyone does, even if some people don't realize it. There isn't one person out there that just sits on their couch all day and does absolutely nothing for their entire lives. While it may not be as rigid as Franklin's 'Project For Moral Perfection', doing things such as studying to become smarter or working out to become more fit are small steps to becoming more perfect. Stephen said earlier that ' Spending one's time worrying about one's self is a narcissistic waste of time' and I would like to strongly disagree with this. While Stephen may not actively strive to be a morally perfect person that Franklin wished he would have been, he still does activities in his daily life that make him a better person, even if he dosen't know it. I think that it is human nature to strive to be a better person and Franklin was just trying to create a concrete way of doing so. Even though it failed horribly, he still has the right idea. Try to be better, and you will enjoy your life that much more.