After reading the assigned passages from William Least Heat-Moon and getting feedback from my group about my question and answer, I feel that I have a greater understanding of the connection between Miz Alice and Least Heat-Moon. The question that I had posed was,"How does when Miz Alice says, "Learning rules is useful but it isn't education. Education is thinking and thinking is looking for yourself and seeing what's there, not what you got told was there..." relate to Least Heat-Moon and where he is at this point in his life?"
I think that what Miz Alice has to say directly applies to Least Heat-Moon at this point in his journey. After losing his job and wife, Least Heat-Moon makes the decision to travel across the country and live out of the back of his truck. Although some may argue that he is making the journey to simply get away from his problems, I think he is getting away to find himself. He is simply observing the things around him and learning about different places and himself. this point in his life Least Heat-Moon is in essence, forgetting the rules and as he says, "living the real jeopardy of circumstance." This goes hand-in-hand with what Miz Alice says about how to get a real education. As she says, "eyeballs" are all you need to put things together and think for yourself. Heat-Moon is doing just that by seeing new places and meeting new people.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
I agree with you but I also think that when Miz Alice shortly after says that once your eyes start working, "then you can see history isn't a thing of the past"(390). I think this line pertains to Heat-Moon and his journey. By leaving home, his problems with his wife, the loss of his job, and the other thing going wrong at home, Heat-Moon makes is not necessarily leaving his history in the past because he must obviously return. He is, however, creating new history for himself by discovering new people, places, and himself. In doing so, he is also learning to deal with the things he left at home.
This quote does have a lot of meaning to Heat-Moon's life at this moment. When Heat-Moon was talking to Miz Alice, he was having many troubles at home when it comes to his wife cheating on him and losing his job, so, Heat-Moon went on a trip across the country to find who is really is. This has a lot to do with the quote. What Miz Alice is stating here is what the students need to learn in school is who they really are and how to deal with real life situations first, instead of memorizing text books. She is stating that by going out into life is the way how to find who each person really is, and how they deal with real like situations. This is exactly what Heat-Moon is doing, he went on a journey when life got rough, he went out into the world to find who he is.
I think after Heat-Moon loses both his job and his wife in the same day, he decided he needed to get out. He needed to find himself, like you said. Similar to Miz Alice, Heat-Moon looked for where he fit in and connected with people and the world around him. For Miz Alice, she feels most comfortable in her home on Smith Island. Heat-Moon has not found where he belongs yet but he is searching for connections, and "seeing what's there, not what you got told was there..." His search for closure has evolved into a journey to find his identity.
Heatmoon is on a differnet search. One that I don't think Miz Alice has ever gone on. He is going to find what life is actually about, to find out what is fulfilling and meaningful to him. I think that Miz ALice has never needed to take this journey because she already knows what she believes, and she already feels at home. I think that she should take the trip, just as Heatmoon is. She could realize that her life is not what she had thought. The more we explore our surroundings, the more we learn. How Miz Alice know so much when she has remained on the same small island for most of her life?
Very good thread with excellent contributions from everybody. It's impressive how well you grasp a theme that H-M states more openly elsewhere--and you haven't even read it. He says you can't remake your ego, but you can revise your angle of vision. You can make yourself over through your vision, through what you pay attention to. And the other good point here is about the "living the real jeopardy of circumstance." He didn't have a plan, just his curiosity. Are there any applications here to all this concern people have about choosing the right major--right away?
I think that "living the real jeopardy of circumstance." can definitely be applied to the concern of choosing the right major. People feel like they should already have everything planned out, but how realistic is that? Living the real jeopardy of circumstance is something that most people experience to discover what and who they ultimately will be.
I never thought about it in the sense that Heat- Moon is getting away in order to find himself. I think this is very true. He has been using his "eyeballs" to educate himself. Learning about his new surroundings. Talking to Miz Alice and the Hopi student, he learns about their backgrounds and heritage. Most importantly, his exploration across America is helping him learn more about himself. Instead of having everything mapped out, he is going with the flow. He is stretching his boundaries and comfort level. Leaving his past in order to gain insight from his surroundings and these wise people. Like Paris mentioned, nobody can possibly have their life mapped out. People ask me every other day, "What's your major?" or "What do you want to do when your older?" I do not think I can clearly state where I am going to end up or where the road will lead me. Life is a journey not a destination. I plan to live my life day to day. Like Heat- Moon, I plan to go with the flow and go where ever the wind takes me.
I think everybody encounters a time in their life when they feel as though everything is out of control and caving in on them. Although people may believe it is braver to stare your problems in the face and deal with them, I think it is healthy and a basic human instinct to walk away and take a break. Heat-Moon realized the best way to handle his unfortunate situation was to give it time and rediscover a new life.
While Heat-Moon's problems may be more large-scale then my problems, I have days where I feel like everything is out of my hands. I think applying to college is a really hard time in life, not just for me, but all students going throught he same experience. SAT's, ACT's, applications, SAT II's, interviews, GPA, extracurriculars, volunteering work, internships, and so on. It all becomes dangerous. I found that the best way to handle all the pressure was to find a place where I could just be alone and not have to think about college. I think Heat-Moon was so overwhelmed with all the bad that was happening in his life, that he saw leaving as the only way out.
I don't think Heat-Moon left thinking that he would never return to the life he once had. He just needed some time to think for himself and realize what was best for him in life. Some people may find self-discovery selfish, but I think it is necessary. The people he encounters along his journey will guide him along the path he is creating for himself while he is primarily depending on himself through this journey. As many people do, he once depended on his job and his wife for happiness but realized that if you are not content with yourself then you will never reach full satisfaction. I think that too many people in the world today rely on people or things outside of themselves for happiness. Miz Alice is a wonderful example of someone who relies on her own mind and her own story to make it through life. As AlmostFamous pointed out, "Life is a journey, not a destination." I think people need to follow in Heat-Moon and Miz Alice's footsteps and take a step back take a good look at their life. It is important to leave your own mark, not just be apart of somebody elses.
Post a Comment