Hannah Sault final

The Humanities course is built upon unanswered questions that have motivated the most creative minds. While exploring all questions with our own creative thought we interconnected art, philosophy, religion, history and science. Learning and using five units over the semester which were- the introduction unit; Humans, Nature and Sacred Space; Love, Beauty, and Art; Law, Ethics, and Human frailty. Lastly the inner journey and the meaning of human reality. Participating in class discussion gave us all an opportunity to listen, react and talk about what each individual thought was important. All while reading several different passages, watching informative movies and documentaries throughout the course we used all ways of interpreting the mind and how we view life.

The introduction unit was about cognitive and affective ways of knowing, experiences of time as well as language. The alphabet versus of goddess: the conflict between word and image by Leonard Shlain is about the differences between the right and left brain. “The right hemisphere of the brain is a portal leading to the world of the invisible”. The right side of the brain is where dreaming occurs primarily. Another major right-brain feature is its ability to appreciate music, with using the perception of sounds. The left hemisphere of the brain knows the world through the unique form of symbolization, it has the ability to process information without the use of images. What is a Myth- a short story by Karen Armstrong is about the discovery of myths and how people perceive them.

The second unit covered during humanities was Humans, Nature and Sacred Space. We talked about various art forms and types of technology that influenced the relationship with the natural world around us. While reading Second Nature and the introduction of Genesis told by many people. I learned about the portrayal of nature among different cultures and periods of time. We also watched Grizzly Man that was directed by Werner Herzog. It was a documentary film of a man who loved nature so much that he changed his life to make a difference in wildlife. It taught me the true beauty, as well as how nature can shape a person with the love of protecting it.

Love, Beauty and Art was an intriguing topic, we learned about love, true beauty and the purpose of art. We discussed the many philosophers of beauty and art- including: Plato, Aristotle, St. Augustine, St. Thomas, Ficino, Kant Nietzsche and others that made an impact on the importance of philosophy. While reading Plato's Symposium it taught me about his philosophies of art and beauty that he lived by and taught. Also when watching The Shape of Things directed by Neil Labute it showed me that many artists are different and that all art is not made for beauty, there is a chance the meaning behind art can be hurtful.

The fourth unit of humanities was Law, Ethics and Human frailty. The hebrew bibles “The Ten Commandments” from the writing of the prophets, is the ten main rules that the people live by. In this document included: thou shalt not murder, thou shalt not steal, and thou shalt not commit adultery. All ten of the commandments made a difference on society, had an effect on the individual and whether it was a universal truth or a social control. Also when reading Frank O'connor's Guests of the Nation from an introduction through literature. We answered questions about the difference between human beings, analyzing background information and so on- details that conveyed the writing. Lastly we watched the film Crimes and Misdemeanors, directed by Woody Allen. The storyline intertwines two stories, of the lives of two different people. The philosophical issue in this storyline was ethical objectivism and relativism.

The last unit covered in humanities was the inner journey and the meaning of human reality.

In conclusion, over the past last couple months of my senior year I learned a lot about myself. This class pushed me to have more of an open mind about all the possibilities life has to hold. Having class discussion got me to know more about my fellow classmates, as well as giving me a safe space to open up when I felt strong enough to do so. I learned about my own personal ethics and how my mind works, which has helped me discover a different side of me. Some of the units we went through were harder than others to wrap my head around.