Quote:
"So the idea is to give the impression that you understand everything, whether you do or not."
(Page 58)
Response:
This quote strikes me in general because it is stating something so obvious and accurate, but I have never heard the concept so simply put! It is something that I'm sure the majority of students in our country feel, but until now, I have yet to come across a statement that explains so thoroughly and at the same time so simply how students across America feel.
I find it an interesting quote, however, because it doesn't just relate to students. The way I interpreted it is that it applies to anyone that is, as Ishmael puts it, a part of our culture. Really, that means anyone who abides, deliberately or obliviously, to the system our culture has created for itself.
This quote raises a few questions for me, questions like, Why do you all go for this? Why do we all just agree to this method of giving the impression that we do understand things when a lot of times we really don't?
I think the point the author is trying to make is how we just go along with our culture and its ways, when we should really take a step back and look at the big picture of 'why.'
I would like to say my reaction to this quote it something like 'Wow! How lazy can people get- agreeing and pretending to understand out of sheer laziness and apathy!' Unfortunately, I myself am guilty of this crime. It is not others I have to blame, it is me. I am just as guilty of this as many other people in our culture, and even though I do know about this concept of giving the impression of comprehension when untrue, I can't say I've done much about it.
This makes me a little bit sad because I know that I'm not oblivious, but sometimes I either just don't know how I can make a difference in our culture and its system, or don't want to give up enough of my own possession's- mental as well as literal- to do what I need to. This is also the situation many other people are in as well.
I felt the same way when I first read this book. All of the Ishmael books were real eye openers for me. What they helped me to do was stop taking everything in life for granted and really questions EVERYTHING I do.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. We all understand that questions=teacher mad. And you never want that to happen. So we all shut our mouths and go along with it for twelve years. I also agree that I feel like I can't change anything because this is how the system is. And your questions about 'why' are valid and are what we should all be doing.
ReplyDeleteI really like the quote you picked because even though its short you have a very long and good response. Yes it is true, many other people do feel the same you do, I know I do. We've been learning a lot of things of things at school and if we don't get it, we don't do say we don't because the teacher says we are suppose to know it. If we do get like for example we understand mostly what Ishmael is talking about but there isn't much we can do or that we are going to do other than just knowing and learning a new perspective.
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