ipl-logo

Commentary On The Book 'Analects Book XIV'

1065 Words5 Pages

In “Analects Book XIV” it reads: “The Master said: “In the old days, people studied to improve themselves. Now they study in order to impress others.” (p. 1342) Over time people have limited themselves just to fit into the role of what society deems as successful. We live in a world that places a higher value on what you own rather than who you are and what you know. The social pressure of achieving the American Dream has twisted the mind of a generation into believing that the only way to be accepted in society is to follow the assembly line lifestyle of going to college, getting a degree, and landing a high paying job.
As soon as a student starts high school they are immediately pressured into going to college and planning the rest of their …show more content…

The byproduct of being rigid is causing stress to ourselves and to others around us. The stress can become so much that we snap and find ourselves damaged and isolated. “Daodejing LXXVI”, refers to living as being supple and weak, and being dead as hard and stiff. And at the end of a person’s life, the one who chooses to live weak, rather than strong, will have had a better life. This passage shows how weakness is a good thing, and when you allow yourself to be weak the pressures of being strong are eliminated, resulting in a more fulfilling …show more content…

It’s important for people to consider that they might be stuck on some of their own ideas which are preventing them from moving forward in life. Over the past few years, I have seen this more than ever, especially concerning political ideas. “Daodejing LXXVI,” says, “the weak are the comrades of life,” (p. 1354) or the flexible and those willing to adapt will find life. This applies to our culture now because America especially is at a standstill because no one is willing to differ from their own ideas and viewpoints. The inability to be weak has made it so political parties have a hard time agreeing to disagree. As hard as it is, everyone should evaluate themselves and make sure they haven’t put up blocks that would prevent them from

Show More
Related
839 Words | 4 Pages

Majority of people now a days live to tell their rags to riches story of how they’ve acquired if not all a great deal of what they own due to their individual hard work. Once a young adult is enrolled in college they consume a massive amount of responsibility and gain their own sense of independence if they didn’t already have a strong sense of the concept. “Students today aren’t lazy”, Dunn said. “But if you look at what tuition is now and what the minimum wage is now, it’s not possible given that they’re up against” (President John Dunn of Western Michigan University). This is the exact point that author Svati Kirsten Narula is making when she makes use of an effective level of rhetoric’s in order to convince readers that the task of putting

Read More
511 Words | 3 Pages

Chris’s letter to Ron Franz espouses a number of philosophies that Chris believes in. The first part of Chris’s philosophy is to do things boldly that one may not have thought of doing previously. He also encourages people to change their situation so they can be happier in life. The fundamental basis of his philosophy is that the passion for adventure and the acceptance of trying new things is what brings joy to life. As he tells Mr. Franz, “Don’t settle down and sit in one place.

Read More
1388 Words | 6 Pages

Delbanco explains how students have changed their reasons for attending a college when he states, “...yet on the assumption that immersing themselves in learning for the sheer joy of it, with the aim of deepening their understanding of culture, nature, and, ultimately, themselves, is a vain indulgence” (222). Secondary education has become too expensive for learning to be an indulgence. Students only go to college to get a degree in order to gain a high paying career. Davidson explains how dire the situation with low paying job is by saying how the process should work, “Only through productivity growth can the average quality of human life improve” (339). Unfortunately, the productivity growth only leaves a bigger pay gap.

Read More
712 Words | 3 Pages

Society has made it into a status symbol. It’s a part of the life script that we are handed saying we must absolutely go to college to be seen as ‘worthier’ citizens/human beings. That we are a part of the elite or are working towards becoming so. About “70% of high-school seniors…” (Murray 251) are expected by the majority of society to go into professional jobs. “90% of high school seniors…” (Murray 251) “…are expected to partake in college […]” as a means to get into the aforementioned professional jobs.

Read More
797 Words | 4 Pages

In today’s world, political issues are very divided. You have your right and your left, there is hardly any in between. Senators can’t work with each other, Representatives can’t work together, everyone believes that their way is the right way. Washington warned about dividing the nation into political parties. Thomas Jefferson once said, “North and South will hang together if they have you to hang on.”

Read More
603 Words | 3 Pages

But usually graduates from high school who were forced to do school in their childhood don’t want to continue after and don’t want to follow what

Read More
423 Words | 2 Pages

College educations in America are simply not needed. In the US, people everywhere are going homeless because of the student loan debts that they have because the population cannot create enough well-paying jobs. A college education isn’t as valuable as society says it is. When high school seniors choose to not go to college, it frees up so many jobs for people that have college degrees. For example, when a senior in high school goes to college, that can wreck another person’s dream of becoming an accountant, for instance.

Read More
797 Words | 4 Pages

Since childhood, politics and political thought have been important to me. I grew up in a family and school system that was made up of mostly strong conservatives, so I was not surprised by my results on the political typology quiz, which ranked me as a “steadfast conservative”. Although these views may have been implanted by the environment I grew up in, I have formulated my own thoughts on politics in recent years, and they all seem to align closely with conservative values. The factors that have undoubtedly had the greatest influence on my political socialization are my family, my religion, and my schooling. Growing up in a conservative family obviously has a great impact on a person’s political views.

Read More
1416 Words | 6 Pages

College Isn’t for Everyone "By telling all young people that they should go to college no matter what, we are actually doing some of them a disservice" (Owen). This quote from “Brookings Paper: Is College a Good Investment” goes into detail about how college isn’t for everyone. By educators, parents, and authority figures telling graduating high school seniors that college is necessary, they are limiting the potential of that student’s true skills. College isn’t right for everyone and not everyone wants to go to college.

Read More
1145 Words | 5 Pages

But, with tuition prices spiking in the last decade, college is not a choice for most students graduating high school. Not going to college is an opportunity missed within itself but colleges that vacuum all your life savings in one year also take away the opportunities of getting a great education, stable lifestyle, and job. Post-high school education is becoming harder and harder to reach and without the governments help there is really nothing we can do about it. School funds need to increase from the government so that the students of America can take the opportunity of going to a well-priced

Read More
558 Words | 3 Pages

Americans tend to believe that going to college is a must to become successful in life. I believe that it is more beneficial to go to college than not going to college because of better job opportunities that are available after college. If you go to college you further your education and job opportunities with better pay and better benefits will be available to you. I’ve always believed that going to college is the only way to get a good paying job. According to The University of North Texas in their article “Why Go to College?”

Read More
631 Words | 3 Pages

We go to school to have the material things most people only go to school for that reason not for knowledge. Most people risk there life to have have material thing. No one want the million dollars in there head they rather have one real dollar in real life. In to days world success comes from material things noting else matters if you don’t have material things.

Read More
556 Words | 3 Pages

As discussed in class on Tuesday, most of our political views are formed over time by more external entities than personal favor. It may stem from the influence of family, school, location, or religion among other things. This formation is particularly due to the people that surround an individual and with such a wide array of opinions, persuasion is bound to convince a young mind. Particularly for me, I found most of my influence stems from family, religion, and location to be the primary guidance in my political ideology. Growing up with an involved family, a country community, and strong Catholic undertones have worked together to shape both my political inclination and personal integrity.

Read More
474 Words | 2 Pages

Going to college world helps you achieve more in the future. Did you know that if you go to college it can help you get better jobs and also better pay, it is also helpful if you have a career you want and colleges teach it you may have a better time getting into what you want your career to be. College graduates earn more and also are more likely to get better jobs in the first place and if you live in america some people really care about that. Data shows that getting a college degree is still a good idea because if you get a college degree you can almost likely get a better job and even a better pay.

Read More
897 Words | 4 Pages

Going straight to college out of high school is very controversial, because of the benefits and the disadvantages. This has been a big debate among students who are getting out of high school and trying to make an important decision about what they want to do in life. Two high school graduates (Mike and Sue) are talking about what they are job going to do when they get out of high school. Mike says that he is going to college to get a good for himself after college. Sue disagrees and says that she is going straight into the workforce to make money right away.

Read More

More about Commentary On The Book 'Analects Book XIV'

Related Topics

Open Document