Personal Application #3

Rationalists and empiricists discussed in the past few chapters have gotten me thinking. I don’t think I can personally call myself one or the other exclusively. I don’t believe that we can figure out everything with reason, I believe there has to be some interplay of reason and senses to help us understand our experiences. I do agree with the fact that, if we held no knowledge and were only exposed to the world full of intense sensory experiences, we wouldn’t be able to learn anything about our world, scientifically. We would learn the way it felt to stand in the pouring rain, but never know why it rains. The same thing is true for if we were brought into the world with nothing but our scientific knowledge based on evidence. That leaves no room for emotions or processing of sensory events, something that can be just as important in forming ideas.

            I think there is somewhere to find a happy medium of trusting reason and senses. Of course, common sense is one of the most valuable things a person possesses. It tells us the basic things not to do, and it is, to me, a part of the reasoning abilities we have. Though we have common sense, there are some things we can’t learn through common sense or other reasonable conclusions and concepts we are born understanding, if there are any of those. Sometimes, as they say, you have to put your hand on the hot stove to realize it burns. Though that should probably be seen as something of common sense, people still have to use their senses to experience some things and learn to do (or not do) something.

Sophie's World Reflection #3

Now that things are officially starting to get weird (as if they weren't weird before), I'm having a harder time paying to the philosophy lessons between the plot. More and more I want to know who Hilde and her father are and how Hilde’s letters are appearing to Sophie. I have to believe it’s intentional, it cannot have been a coincidence as many times as Sophie has received her letters or even found her items. I’m becoming suspicious of Alberto, wondering if he has more to do with Hilde and her father than he wants to let on. He seems to not have many answers for Sophie, but he also calls her by Hilde’s name several times, which strikes me as odd, especially if he’s never even met Hilde in person.

            It’s harder to tell now if Hilde’s father is a “good guy”, a “bad guy”, or neither. Alberto has become to appear annoyed and angry with his attempts to contact Sophie and himself, though I’m unsure as to why that transformed into such a strong dislike of him, or the reason that her father is meddling so much. I know there’s a reason, and everything will fit together, but each time I read I’m only left with more questions.

            It’s interesting that Sophie finally told her mom about Alberto, I don’t think that I would be able/willing to tell my parents about something like her situation, it all seems too strange. It would most definitely sketch out my parents, and it seems that her mother is growing concerned, or at least confused.

Personal Application #2

            The past few sections of reading have been harder to apply to my personal life, at least in the sense of religion. My father is a non-practicing Jew, my mother went to Catholic school for all of her life, yet is also non-practicing. We celebrate Christmas, but it has become more of a time to celebrate family than any religion meanings that generally come along with it. This means it’s been harder for me to relate to some of our discussions, and I haven’t yet been alive long enough to form my opinion about if there really is some sort of God out there. The idea of it is nice, but I haven’t witnessed enough to say for certain how I view the idea of God’s existence.

            In my mind at this point, I do believe that if there is a God, it isn’t one overarching, all powerful being who has entire control over people’s lives. This is where it gets into something I’m more comfortable discussing, since I’ve formed more complete ideas about it. Fate versus freewill is something that is constantly debated, even in my own mind. But I lean towards the belief that everything happens for a reason, yet we have control over the things that happen. We make choices that impact our lives, and send us down a specific path. Even if it isn’t the easiest path or the most pleasant one, it is my belief that we will come out on the other end with some sort of lesson learned, or strength gained in one way or another. For example, where I choose to go to college may be influenced by something more than just my wishes to go there (where I can get scholarship money, where it is in relation to home, etc), even if it isn’t my top choice, it’s happening for a reason, and I will come out the person I’m meant to be when the choice has been made. Although not every last bad thing to happen will teach us a lesson or make us better people, we still have control over how we view our lives and the events that have taken place.