42. What are the responsibilities of an educated person? (University of Puget Sound)
Educated people have lots of knowledge. But often they rely too much on their first impressions, trusting their knowledge alone. Of course, first impressions are important. They are the 'first' characteristics noticed to give an idea about what kind the person or thing is. However, educated people need to be open minded.
I remember when I first joined my high school. As an international school, it already had many Koreans attending it. In the first month of school, I got involved in a group project which required lots of art skills. As we were dividing the workload in our group, all the students called my name out loud when deciding the person to do the art part. I wasn't good at art at all. I told them that I can't draw well. But they keep insisting that I should be the one. So I asked them why they think that I should be the one when they haven't seen me draw or paint or craft even in their lives. Their answer simply was ludicrous; they believed that I am good in art because I am a Korean and have quite a good sense of style.
Another incident happened when our class was playing a game. A representative from each group was asked to take several quizzes. My group suggested that I should be the one because I look smart wearing thick glasses. But I had no idea about what kind of quiz it was going to be, and I knew that I am horrible at games. They didn't know who I really am but made decisions in whichever way they viewed me.
Relying on first impressions of something to make decisions is a horrible idea. First impressions merely give the idea of the outer appearance but never shows or reveals the inside, the more important element to be decided on, as suggested by the well-known proverb: "All that glitters is not gold." So, educated people should stop relying too much on first impressions and knowledge they already have.
Educated people have lots of knowledge. But often they rely too much on their first impressions, trusting their knowledge alone. Of course, first impressions are important. They are the 'first' characteristics noticed to give an idea about what kind the person or thing is. However, educated people need to be open minded.
I remember when I first joined my high school. As an international school, it already had many Koreans attending it. In the first month of school, I got involved in a group project which required lots of art skills. As we were dividing the workload in our group, all the students called my name out loud when deciding the person to do the art part. I wasn't good at art at all. I told them that I can't draw well. But they keep insisting that I should be the one. So I asked them why they think that I should be the one when they haven't seen me draw or paint or craft even in their lives. Their answer simply was ludicrous; they believed that I am good in art because I am a Korean and have quite a good sense of style.
Another incident happened when our class was playing a game. A representative from each group was asked to take several quizzes. My group suggested that I should be the one because I look smart wearing thick glasses. But I had no idea about what kind of quiz it was going to be, and I knew that I am horrible at games. They didn't know who I really am but made decisions in whichever way they viewed me.
Relying on first impressions of something to make decisions is a horrible idea. First impressions merely give the idea of the outer appearance but never shows or reveals the inside, the more important element to be decided on, as suggested by the well-known proverb: "All that glitters is not gold." So, educated people should stop relying too much on first impressions and knowledge they already have.
No comments:
Post a Comment