Monday, March 21, 2016

Journal 8- Nick Gurtler

     In modern society being a dreamer is encouraged when you are younger. However as we get older we are discouraged from creativity, dreaming, and being unique. When you get to this point you are almost forced to conform to society. Being out of the norm is seen as being an outcast and you are shunned from the rest of the population. This happened to me in high school when I was fed up with having to act a certain way to fit in and making others also conform. For the period of time that I was in the group of people who "fit in" I was discouraged from thinking for myself or to be unique. Being different or thinking differently was not an option when you wanted to fit in and if you didn't fit in you were bullied for it or exiled from the rest.
     The best way to describe how reading Holding On, is going so far for me is saying that it is an interesting read. The book is almost like a biography of everyone who is in it but the value of each single story does not seem as meaningful as a normal biography would. The passages and stories are of ordinary people. While this may be a weakness due to the lack of greater importance they have on the world around them, it is a strength in the light that it makes you realize those around you are important too. Having a narrowed scope does not allow you to look out of the lens and has you focus on a small specific portion of something or someone. In this book it does the exact opposite, it allows you to see all around you and get the bigger picture. But not one story can tell the whole meaning of the book. A question I keep asking myself as I read is, what do all of these people and their stories have in common. I honestly can say that the only similarities I have found where that they are all not special and that they all are ordinary people with different stories.
     Robert Shields, author of the World's Longest Diary, at first glance was someone who was very unique and out of the ordinary. However he wanted the same thing that everyone wants, to carry on a legacy after he was gone and make himself immortalized rather than forgotten like so many others. He passionately said, "It is impossible for me to give any motivation for it, except that when I am gone, the words that I have written will be the only thing that survive...". He really manifests what everyone wants, to be remembered. Through seeing this it shows the connections that people have regardless of what you think their actions motives are. They may have the same thoughts as you. A key theme to take away from this is that no matter how different we all want the same thing.

3 comments:

  1. i like how you described Roberts story as unique and out of ordinary not like the other story's in the book

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  2. I like that you pointed out the fact that children are encouraged to be unique. It's like we think that it's this cute little game they play. But yet society slaps us in the face for doing what we were encouraged to do as a child and labels us as weird.

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  3. It is true that when your younger you are inspire to think big and be a dreamer, and when you get older your discouraged from it. It is so strange how society works like that.

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