Hi I am Ally and one thing about me is that I love to think. It’s basically having conversations all day long whilst not straining your voice too much. However, there comes a point when being in your head isn’t just cupcakes and rainbows. My parents have always described me as thoughtful, creative but also stoic and sometimes, existentialist; Thus, came my project idea.
Do you ever have those moments where you’re not necessarily alone but everything fades out and you’re left with weird truths? The best I can do to describe these moments is that question of “what if?” followed by an analysis of your whole existence. In the end you’re left with clarity and questions, about who you want to be, what you want to accomplish, and lastly, how to stop really caring about other people’s opinions. Like many other hormonal teenagers in life, for the first time ever, I have freedom and without others telling me what to do, I’m completely lost. But back to the point of my project, I want to learn more about myself, about living, perspective, and what it all means. As a person who reads, analyzes and annotates books for fun, I pretty much question the world everyday, why not actually learn the answers? As Socrates claims, “know yourself,” an unexamined life is not worth living. At the end of the day, one should be happy about who they are and understand what they do rather than believe it to be mere obligation. I mean, accomplishments are only temporary fixes in life because humans tend to reach for the next thing completely afterwards. If one wants to stop this cycle of never being satisfied, they have to look inward and think about what it is they enjoy but also think about why it is that they do certain things.
Philosophy will help me engage with morality and ethics and give me a unique perspective into mindset. Through philosophy, I think I can gain some clarity into not only myself but how certain outlooks can change our perceptions of reality. I have arranged a weekly meeting with a philosophy professor who has agreed to read and mentor. In addition to reading and writing I will also explore the city and try new things.
Project Overview: Describe your project in specific detail and make it clear how you will measure success (300 words minimum). Address your service plans as well as any seminars, X blocks, ensembles, etc; anyone reading this should have a clear idea of both the big picture and the specifics of how you will spend time for the duration of Senior Project. Your goal in this section is to make your project come to life for the reader and engage them enough that they will want to read your updates throughout the project.
Steve and I have agreed to mostly focus on the Bertrand Russell and the Huston books but if something piques my interest, I will explore these additional resources.
Each week I will read about a different philosophy and try to live that way. I have arranged a weekly meeting with a philosophy professor who has agreed to read and mentor. Not only would I be reading and writing but I would also be wandering around the city and trying new things.
Week one I will explore stoicism. Stoicism follows four main virtues that must be followed at all times: wisdom, justice, courage, and moderation. These pillars center their beliefs on the control of one’s own actions and push external values and things outside of the essence. During this week, I will not read full books but I will read segments in Meditations-Marcus Aurelius and Letters of a Stoic-Seneca.
I will also be doing additional readings based on what Steve suggests as well. We have already discussed reading a bit of Nietzsche because if I’m going to take philosophy, I might as well do it right. The philosophy professor I am working with has also suggested that I read The History of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russell. Philosophers are tough to understand sometimes. This book provides good summaries of what the main point of the theories and philosophies are.
Week two I will follow existentialism, admittedly, this will need to be refined a bit more as existentialism is a huge topic of discussion. Sartre argues that the fundamental principle of existentialism is “existence precedes essence”. Similar to stoicism, it means we create our own lives, values and that God does not exist and we were born without destiny. Existentialism is not about believing life is meaningless but rather acknowledging that life is what you make it. During this week, the main readings will be by Jean-Paul Sartre.
Week three is Epicureanism which is a branch of hedonism but rivals it because it draws on the belief that pleasure is the key to happiness. However, not in materialistic ways, Epicurius specified that the pleasure of the mind, not senses, was the highest good. He believed that ending suffering, pain, and achieving inner peace were the true means of happiness. And that the main cause of unhappiness is man. Since very few of Epicurius’ writings have survived, I would read additional writings by his disciples like Lucretius.
Utilitarianism, which I will examine in week 4, is about determining right from wrong by focusing on outcomes. Modernly, we would call this costs and benefits because it is about weighing which outcome will benefit the most people. It determines right from wrong using this code of benefits rather than focusing on “morality.” However, it can be unethical. For example, many people have heard of the trolley problem. Utilitarians might run over the one person rather than let the train run the course because it is about the best outcome for the largest number of people. However, choosing to be responsible has it’s own issues of morality. I plan on reading Jeremy Bentham’s work on utilitarianism and morality as well as Bertrand Russell’s intro chapter.
For week 5 I will dive into Buddhism, which is the belief that human life is one of suffering, and that meditation, spiritual and physical labor, and good behavior are the ways to achieve enlightenment. Siddhartha Gautama’s four noble truths: “The truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering.” In other words, suffering has a cause, end and is also the cause that brings end. Buddhism strives to detach oneself from the suffering, worldly passions, and wants through meditation, one can find bliss. The Tripitaka, Mahayana Sutras, and the Tibetan Book of the Dead will be the primary texts for this week.
Finally, in week 6 I will examine Confucianism. Confucianism centers around five main beliefs: Jen, Li, Xin, Chung and Yi. Jen is human nature, Li is about respecting others as well as prosperity, Xin is about faithfulness and honesty towards yourself and others, Chung is about holding loyalty and the bond between rules are citizens. And lastly, the principle of Yi is about righteousness, being able to tell right from wrong:
1.Accept that all people, no matter what, are capable of perfection and are teachable as well as improvable.
2.Do not chastise people for their mistakes. You should not worry about making mistakes, for mistakes help us by showing us what not to do.
3.Dedicate yourself to attaining perfection and freedom from ignorance.
I don’t know if there is a way to measure success. One can hang up a piece of art that they hate but another loves. I think instead, my project is about the self. But, of course, my professor will be reading my work as well as critiquing it. At the end, I will also keep a journal tracking what I did for the week and how it made me feel. I could see if it does make a difference or if it is possible to change your entire personality through this project, but mostly my success will be measured through my understanding of all these ideas. I have also included a timetable at the bottom of this document. I feel that philosophy is the only thing that can really help me find my beliefs and also deepen all of the conversations I have within my head. Throughout this project, I will learn to measure success, not by the external validation of grades or approval, but success within myself.
