Home: Meaning of This Course

Fast forward to about the halfway point :)

I know that a few weeks ago, we as a class had discussed the meaning of home and personal space. The link above is a clip of the movie Garden State, in which Zach Braff discusses what "home" means to him, and the changing definition of what home means for everyone. While reflecting on this course, it just occurred to me that really we've been discusses what "home" is for different authors. For some its a garden, the Midwest, a room and money combined, a nursery, Christian icons, etc. As this is the last blog we'll all post for this class, I guess I just felt it appropriate to post a last word on "home":

For me, home is where I have that which is most important to me. It's where I live, sleep, eat, talk, etc. It's not really associated to one particular place, but rather all the places in my life where I feel "safe". I guess my definition of home differs from other people's because my parents are divorced, so my home is with both of them: Miami and Austin. And, now that I've created an environment here in South Bend to mirror my other homes, South Bend is included in my list of "homes" or.. safe havens, I guess would be a better description.

To Greater and Bigger Adventures

I have many thoughts that sum up this class. When I decided to sign up for this class I did not know what we would do. I knew that I found history and literature interesting and this course had the two. The books that we read were different than many of the books that I typically read. They were different because they deal with the main characters finding their place in the world and society. Also, these books related to their times very well, that it made me feel like I was a part of the book. These books were a very good choice because I was able to relate on some level. The characters, similar to me, were all on a new path in their life that was different from their life before. Beginning college was a time that I started a new path in my life and reading books where the main characters were female and about the same age as us was good. Also, anther good aspect of this class was that it was very discussion based. I found this a good part of class because I truly believe that everyone has a right to their own opinion, and this class really allowed us to do that. I felt the required use of reading and saying our opinion eventually turned less an obligation and more of a want to express how we felt. The trait that was acquired, I feel it is going to be necessary later in life when we have moved on to greater and bigger things after Saint Mary's College, and more is demanded from us.
"Books were read that represent the old and the new, now that we are at the end it is a time to review. A woman went a little off the end, while a married couple found it hard to blend. An author find his muse in the Midwest, while another worried so much that she was constantly stressed. It was discussed the importance of name and place, to know the true meaning was embraced. Many stories were read, and many thoughts were said. New things were learned and our minds grew, while old thoughts we had were turned into something new."

Humanistic Studies?

In the middle of the summer I decided not to study abroad in Rome. As difficult as this decision was, I knew that it would open a lot of doors at Saint Mary's. I had to decide what classes I would be taking at Saint Mary's, and I knew this would be a good semester to get some GenEd's "out of the way." I decided to take Humanistic Studies at the suggestion of my business advisor who thought it would be a good change from the analytical business classes. So, I signed up for HUST, not knowing what to expect. Honestly, I had no idea what humanistic studies was at all!
Now, at the end of the semester of studying different people and places, I understand what this is about. Humans are not just the physical person. Rather, what defines people are often factors outside of the person. We saw in Sanders' work that he is made up of the people and simple Midwest life. I strongly connected to Sanders' love of his home and appreciation of the mundane. Others, have been greatly defined by their cultures and the cultures around them. Humanistic studies, then, seeks to study people based on external aspects that affect the internal aspects that make a person who she is. In effect, a student, like myself, of humanistic studies may come out with a better understanding of who she is- an added benefit to the GenEd credit hours!

A Powerful Choice

I was really impressed with the Omishto's choice to remain in the "natural world." Her decision in Kili really does embody her strength and illustrate her transformation. I talked a little bit about this in class, but for the longest time I just did not feel comfortable calling her a "strong" character. I felt as if her beliefs were too "wishy-washy" and she kept going back and forth from the two different worlds (the natural world and the modern world). So, as I was reading page 231, I felt as if I could finally call her a strong person. I felt as if I was watching someone (or in this case, reading about someone) who was right there making the decision to be strong. It was like I was witnessing her becoming powerful. That page really does illustrate her transformation from believing that knowledge must come first in order to believe in something, to realizing that you can believe in something or someone without ever having hard evidence. I feel as if in Omishto's case, knowledge of self equals strength.

I really enjoyed this book because it embodies every phrase we've covered in the course so far: place, displacement, and culture. I felt like this was the perfect book to end with because not only did it seemingly wrap up the course, it also had a "happy" ending in the way that I felt as if we came to a place with Omishto that we felt like we could leave her knowing she had found her place and had come to terms with herself.

Final Thoughts

Omishto's decision to live at the place above Kili represents hope for the survival of the Taiga people and the Florida panther. I was pleased with the decision Omishto made, and I realized that I would have been disappointed if she decided to live in the world we are accustomed to. This made me question my own views, choices, and lifestyle in comparison to the ancient world Omishto decided to live in.

I feel that the final paragraph is optimistic in the sense that this one 16 year old girl represents the renewal of nature and the Taiga people. Realistically I find this idea impossible, but at the same time I find myself believing in the possibility. It is disheartening to consider the impact modernization has had on nature and the historical events that lead to the destruction of many cultures. I know that I depend on many of the things that Omishto states destroy and poison the land. The question is: what are we going to do about it?

I know that I would never have the strength to leave the world we live in today, but I do feel that we all can be open to different cultures and beliefs that are different from our own. Respecting ideas, values, and traditions of other people is an important step in bridging the modern and ancient world. We can not stop progression, but we can be aware of the impact future decisions may have on other cultures and nature.

Power/course

Power. It is a word that has many different meanings. It can mean strength and effectiveness. I think Power deals with both meanings of this word. Strength in the meaning of Omishto's decision of joining the old or new world and to pick the old world and to carry on her tribe. That is a lot of pressure for a young woman to deal with, not many would choose the hard way compared to the easier route. I wish we could have found out what happend to Omishto as she got older. Did she keep on the path that she set out and believed that was her destiny? Another strength, which could also be linked with effectiveness would be giving her testimony in the courts. Either way Omishto proves herself to be a strong woman in the end.

This course has taught me some different things that I thought I would have never needed post-paper 1. I learned how to close read. Not only did I learn what it was but also how to do it. I've used close reading in my other classes and used them to help me write and extend my papers. I never would have thought it was possible to analyze on so many different levels. The close reading really teaches others to view not only books but also life at many different angles. With the study of place and why it matters, I've come to fully appreciate the city to which I grew up in. I cannot imagine my life any other way, nor do I want to. I think of all of my memories and the effect that they have had on me and the lessons that go along with them. I really enjoyed reading "This Blessed House" and I wished it was longer. I really disliked "A Room Of One's Own", I thought it was repetitive of the short excerpts that we got in the binder. However, if one thinks about it, I guess they just re-affirmed what all of the short essays were trying to explain.

Course Reflection

As I reflect on this course as a whole, I can take a lot away from it. First off, I can definitely say that I have never studied or focused on place as much as I did in this class. It has benefited me greatly because it allowed me not only to see how place has had a great affect on my life, but also how place has greatly affected the lives of authors like Sanders, Dillard, Woolf, Gilman, etc. Each of these authors helped me to assess how my life could have been different had I grown up in a different time period, setting, family, culture, and so on. Another aspect of the class that I liked was the variation of different types of writing throughout the semester between novels, short-stories, plays, and essays. As a class based off of literary works I think it is important to implement various forms of writing. Also, I feel that I profited greatly from the written assignments we had to perform. I had never done close readings in the form of a short and long paper, but I think they are beneficial in terms of strengthening the skills of analysis and expansion of analysis. The creative writing assignment was also useful because it allowed us to interpret the style of various characters and authors from the semester (not to mention it was a more enjoyable paper to write!). All in all I learned a great deal from this class. It helped me improve in the areas of writing, analyzing, and class discussion, and allowed me to evaluate how the theme of place has affected my life.

P.S. Good luck to everyone next semester. It's been fun!