ENG 101 B- Essay 5

Section 1: Introduction

Hello, my name is Aurora May. I am a freshman at EKU and I am from Berea, Kentucky which is about 10 minutes outside of Richmond. I was a little nervous about taking this course even though I had previous experience with writing, thanks to AP World Civilization and U.S History. When I found out that we would be doing at least two reading responses per week I thought for sure that this was going to be my hardest course. But after understanding what Professor Benningfield was looking for and actually becoming interested in what I was reading I felt that I could actually do the work. I can tell that this course has definitely improved my ability to express my thoughts through writing as well as my writing as a whole.

Section 2: Government

            In order for a government to be considered ideal by its citizens, certain needs have to be met. The government should be woven into our society, retaining some of its power while still trusting the people to do what is best. Lao-Tzu says that “if you want to govern the people, you must place yourself below them. (32)” It is important that the citizens do not feel repressed by the government that rules over them because the citizens play an important role in our government. It is the citizens that elect the leaders of our society and pay taxes that are used to help support our government. They are interconnected; you can’t have one without the other when they are so dependent upon each other.

Section 3: Wealth and Poverty

             As society has continued to progress the gap between the rich and the poor has become even more evident. As long as this gap continues to grow, the greater the amount of friction between the rich and the poor will be. The poor starts become envious of the rich, while the rich begin to look down on the poor. So in order to shrink this gap, wealth must be distributed in a way so that it is put to good use. Meaning that it cannot simply be handed out; it is important to know that you can receive assistance but you have to work hard in order secure it. In “The Gospel of Wealth” Carnegie states that “in bestowing charity, the main consideration should be to help those who will help themselves; to provide part of the means by which those who desire to improve may do so (400).” Because, by giving to someone who will not make the effort to help themselves you may actually be doing more harm than good.

            In the United States we tend to overlook those who are in need of assistance. And in “The Position of Poverty” Galbraith states that “while our failure to notice can be explained, it cannot be excused. (415)” It is important for those who are wealthy to help out those who are less fortunate. Because there is simply no excuse for family’s to go hungry and children to be taken away from their parents because they couldn’t the assistance they desperately needed.

Section 4: Justice

            Justice is the notion that when a wrongful act is committed some sort of consequence will follow. But there are instances when injustice occurs; it is easy to put on blinders and think that in this day and age injustice is just a thing of the past but that just isn’t the case. Considering the fact that Elizabeth Cady Stanton fought for equality between men and women, instances such as the “Stoning of Soraya M.” should never have occurred. And this isn’t the only example either, hundreds of women and a few men have been subjected to this extremely brutal form of punishment. And what makes it even worse is that some of the men and women being punished, have been falsely accused of adultery or other assorted accusations.

              Why do injustices such as these occur? We are all human and therefore all essentially equal. There may differences such as gender or the color of our skin, but we are all the same. The Dalai Lama states that “you may have the impression that the Dalia Lama is somehow different. That is absolutely wrong; I am a human being just like you (8).” If we would start looking at ourselves as equals rather than divided laws that are unjust and immoral may cease to happen.

Section 5: Ethics/ Morality

            Ethics and Morality are essentially the same thing but with one minute difference between them. Ethics are the set of values or beliefs that you personally consider to be right, and morals are what you have been taught to value as right. What Singer and Mason discussed in “The Ethics of Eating Meat” is a perfect example of what has been deemed unethical and immoral in our society. Singer and Mason state that “if a being treats others in a particular way, then humans are entitled to treat that being in an equivalent way. However, this does not follow as a matter of logic or ethics. (773)” There is no reason as to why animals should be treated so inhumanely but yet it still continues. However the more people that becomes aware of this problem the quicker big businesses will wise up and change their habits.

Section 6: Individual

            The idea of being an individual can mean a lot of different things. It could mean standing up for what is right, when everyone else just turns the other cheek or taking care of things yourself rather than rely on someone else to do it for you. Having the sense of individuality is a very important thing but it is also equally important to be considered part the collective. As humans we have the natural tendency to seek approval from the people that surround us. So I would have to disagree with Emerson and say that is impossible to be completely individual and non-conformist. However I do believe that it is possible to be both an individual and a conformist at the same time. Emerson states that “it is hardest to be immersed in society and still retain your individuality” and I certainly agree with this statement. Because even though we do things that make us individuals whether we realize it or not we are conforming to what society deems “normal” everyday.    

Section 7: Conclusion

            Overall I really enjoyed taking this course; I obtained skills that further improved my writing and was introduced to authors that I truly enjoyed reading. Although it was occasionally a challenge to understand what an author was trying to say, I was pushed to think about things in different way. Even though I am not really into history I must say that Professor Benningfield chose works that were very interesting. The section I liked the most was probably the section on Justice; it has always been a topic of interest to me and I am happy to have learned even more about it.

Section 8: Works Cited

Carnegie, Andrew. “The Gospel of Wealth”. Ed. Lee Jacobus. World of Ideas. New York: 

               Bedford St. Martins, 2000. 387-402. Print.

 Emerson, Ralph Waldo. “Self Reliance”. Ed. Lee Jacobus. World of Ideas. New York: Bedford

              St. Martins, 2000. 255-267. Print.

Galbraith, John Kenneth. “The Position of Poverty”. Ed. Lee Jacobus. World of Ideas. New

             York: Bedford St. Martins, 2000. 405-415. Print.

Lama, Dalai. An open heart: practicing compassion in everyday life. Ed. Nicholas Vreeland.

             Boston: Little, Brown, 2001. 5-25. Print.

Mason Jim and Singer, Peter. “The Ethics of Eating Meat”. Ed. Lee Jacobus. World of Ideas.

             New York: Bedford St. Martins, 2000. 767-787. Print.

Stanton, Elizabeth Cady. “Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions”. Ed. Lee Jacobus. World

             of Ideas. New York: Bedford St. Martins, 2000. 201-208. Print.

Tzu-Lao. “Thoughts from the Tao-Te Ching”. Ed. Lee Jacobus. World of Ideas. New York:

              Bedford St. Martins, 2000. 21-33. Print.

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