Overview
Your Concluding Essay
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Living An Examined Life
You complete this class by completing a final reflection.
You have been encouraged to live "an examined life." It is in this spirit that I am asking you to use this last assignment as a way to evaluate yourself not just academically, but philosophically.
In that sense, this assignment can be understood as one of the ways you can practice philosophy.
You do not need to use these prompts, but they may help you think about your semester:
• What are three takeaways from this course? Explain.
• Did you find yourself becoming more interested in living an examined life? Why or why not?
• What are three important critical thinking questions to keep in mind? Have you found yourself using these questions? Why or why not? Explain.
• Did you find yourself thinking about class content when you did not have to, such as finding yourself discussing course content with friends or family?
• Do you see how many of the problems we face in the United States and in the world are directly related to the lack of critical thinking? Can you provide an example that can demonstrate where you see, for example, government policies that are based on ideological positions rather than evidenced-based arguments?
• Have your studies of the Humanities contributed to how you understand the world and your place in it?
• Has your academic experience enriched your life?
• Your personal philosophy is revealed in the choices you make. Can you see any changes in how your view of the world has changed as a result of thinking critically about an issue that concerns you?
• Can you give examples of where learning about critical thinking has helped you make better decisions?
Scoring
• Your final assessment must be at least 800 words to receive credit and qualify for a C, 900 words to qualify for a B, and more than 1000 words to qualify for an A.
• If your essay requires proofreading it cannot earn an A.
• Please break your essay up into paragraphs of no more than ten sentences.
• Please include a header as shown in the examples.
• A final assessment that is late is not accepted.
Your score is based on two rubrics:
• The seriousness of your content and the level of your engagement. Did you take the time to write a thoughtful assessment?
• Applying the academic writing skills discussed above.
Please Check the Example Before Posting Your Assignment Final Assessment Example
Example
Here is a final assessment that earned an A.
[Your Name]
HUM 31
Dr. Glorian
December 15, 2021
[A Title]
The Examined Life
This semester, I was invited to live an examined life. I was told to watch what I say and “this is how you can be a better ally.” I was told to speak up for the oppressed and the voiceless. Luckily, I grew up in a household that encouraged us to speak our beliefs. My parents are very conservative, and I’m pretty liberal. However, they don’t mind that we differ when it comes to politics. They just always make sure that I am informed and making my decisions based on my own, personal beliefs.
I think that openness to express my feelings really helped me in this class. I was already really into social justice and speaking out, so now it was just a matter of finding a place to do it. I really think I engaged myself in this class. I was very open about my beliefs and even formed friendships based on those beliefs. I always participated in class discussions, and I wasn’t afraid to speak against somebody. To me, it was important that I spoke up, because maybe it would inspire somebody else to explain their feelings.
I appreciate that the class discussions helped me vocalize my thoughts. It’s weird with me because I know how I feel, but the words just swirl around in my head. I need to speak out loud to think it through for me to get my thoughts clear and in order. This class offered me a chance to do that. I usually speak to my roommate about these things, but she doesn’t listen much. She just kind of nods and lets me rant on. However, after taking this class, I was able to speak less emotionally and more academically, and I think that made her listen more.
I really believe I did a lot in this class, even though it may not show on paper. I went out of my comfort zone, and I was able to ask for help. I was able to put away my pride and let some people know that I was hurting. I really believe that this class inspired me to take better care of myself. It helped me be ok with what had happened to me. I learned how to speak openly about it. The lectures and text readings gave me some tips on how to communicate better. For example, I learned from the Rosenberg book that I need to first get in touch with what my needs are. When I get upset, I have been trying to ask myself: What is so upsetting? What need is not being met? It is funny that when I am clear about what I need, most people have been happy to meet my needs. I learned that I have been disappointed in my boyfriend because I expect him to read my mind. How unreasonable is that? Anyway, discussing this with him has made our relationship stronger and happier.
I believe my midterm project did a lot for me, as well. One of the things I worked on in my ILP was time management. I learned that my lack of organization and letting work pile up is a cause of much of my anxiety. I learned to keep a desk calendar and I write all of my schedules for work, volunteering, doctors, and school. It helps me from scheduling ten things at once, which used to be a huge problem. I’m also cleaning my desk and my part of my room more often.
I know that some of this might not seem like it fits into philosophy or communication, but I think it does because it has helped me explore and “own” my worldview. I am learning to think and take responsibility for myself. My ILP showed me that the littlest things can change the world. It shows that things can be different. That one small act can change a lot, and that’s really important to notice.
This class reaffirmed and helped me put words to some of my values. For example, I believe in equality and the power of one person who wants a change. Before taking philosophy, I tended to think that only powerful and important people could bring about real change. While this might be true for some things, I now feel empowered to make my little piece of the world a better place. I no longer feel so apathetic. I understand a little better why people give my generation a hard time about not caring.
One big takeaway for me was learning that part of my turning away from big issues is that all of the problems are so overwhelming. I remember the day that Provost said that caring about everything (impossible) or nothing at all was a false either/or choice. While I can’t deal with everything, I can pick the thing that “breaks my heart” the most and try in some way to make that a little better. For me, that is animal cruelty. As a result I started volunteering at the SPCA. I love it and it feels great to be doing something instead of just complaining about everything. The only problem is that I want to take all of the dogs home with me.
In terms of communication, another big takeaway for me is to learn to speak with more intellectual or academic force instead of so emotionally. Before, when speaking about what I believed, I was very emotionally driven. This was how I felt and I’m going to yell and cry and be passionate about it until the good person in you finally gets it. I had facts to back it up, and on paper it was good research, but my tone of voice would always cover up anything I was saying.
This class showed me that I needed to take a step back, and just think, ponder, and contemplate. That is what I have come to love about philosophy. It makes space for not having to always know what the answers are. This class is what I really expected a college class to be. I didn’t want a bunch of facts spit out at me. I wanted to have a class where we could discuss and have our opinions heard and we build on our knowledge to make us more prepared to go out into the world, where people will tear you down.
For me, I also found myself being inspired by this class. My whole life, people have told me that I am special and that I am going to do something great. I never felt great, though. I never felt I was going to change the world, and I think that was because I had these toxic ideas that I was broken for some reason. I had these toxic ideas that because I was a girl, and I was sad, that I wasn’t going to do anything good. This class really showed me that I could use that to do something good with my life.
I loved that we watched videos that showed the human sides of people we admire now, such as Martin Luther King Jr. I liked that it showed that the people who do good in the world aren’t always perfect; they’re human. And they do bad things. And that’s ok. It shows that anybody could change the world, because you don’t have to be a perfect saint. It was really inspirational.
All in all, I very much enjoyed this class. It helped shape my ideals and how to express them. It also helped me express my own feelings and not be ashamed.
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