To say you believe in ghosts is a very loaded statement. To believe in ghosts, you must first believe there is life after death. That itself is something I am personally unsure of. Hypothetically, if there was life after death, why would spirits stay on the earth, how would that work, and what would happen to them. Those are all really complicated questions which all have to be thought of before you can say that you truly believe in ghosts. I personally think that there are things you cannot explain, whether those are ghosts or simply failures of perception and senses, I am unsure.
One instance is this; when I was about 8 or 9 years old, I clearly remember a time, when I was staying at a neighbours house, who was several years older than me. She had an old Ouija board, and if you know what those are, those are boards with a small arrow which points at letters on the board to speak to the dead. I didn't believe in such things at the time, but she put it on the ground, we did not touch the board, as this one was supposed to work without it, but we asked it a simple question, "What is around us?". It answered by spelling out a-c-h-a-i-r. Then we asked "What else?" and it put a-d-o-l-l. now, beside my friend, was a rocking chair and on top of it was an old doll. We got so afraid that we made her put away the board and left. She tried to come up with excuses afterwards, like there were magnets and cameras in the board, but it was completely irrational now, looking back on it. I still cannot come up with a proper explanation for it.
Another paranormal experience was done to a close friend of mine and her family. They had purchased an old house that was centuries old, and had once been on a cemetery. She said that the place had often been used as a hospital as well many years after it was built, during the war, for soldiers. As you can tell, it was a perfect mixture for the paranormal. She stayed there with her family for a while and said that there were several times where they could see people, in older clothes, who seemed like they were real and right in front of them, but those people were gone before they could check. Another time they would wake up in the middle of the night and find people in their bedrooms, walking through walls and doors, not paying attention to them. My friend had a little sister and apparently, this one guy would go into her room every night, and hover over the bed. Then parents could even sometimes see the person, walking near the room. These people were very normal, and didn't look like ghosts, except for their strange behavior and odd clothes. My friend swore that this was true and see had seen it with her own eyes, and that was why they never used that house anymore, and instead rented it out to thrill seekers and tourists in England.
One other story, that my mother still does not feel comfortable telling me all about, but has mentioned briefly several times, was, when she was a young child, she had practically watched her great uncle die in front of her. When she had visited him, he had been near death, and you could apparently see his life flashing before his eyes. He had been very sick with some sort of lung disease, and was bed ridden. He died shortly after she last saw him and the following events happened afterwards. My mother begun getting sick, she had strange dreams, and kept seeing her uncle around her room, his footsteps in the night, and she constantly felt a doll he had given her when she was young, was with her in the bed when it was not. She started having trouble breathing, getting ill and having a hard time sleeping, and the doctors said she was showing signs of the same illness her great uncle died from, but that had been caused by constant smoking, and my mother was too young to be showing signs of it. Then she ended up getting a physic, who was a friend of a friend in this case, and had heard about this, to tell her her great uncle was possessing her. My grandmother called a priest to speak with my mother, and he gave her a blessing, and told her that she needed to make peace with the ghost. She spent sometime reflecting and 'talking' to the ghost of her great uncle, and she remembers feeling a wave of calm go over her, and she never got bothered by the ghost again.
One of the same things, although much more negatively, happened to my mother's childhood friend. Her friend started to hear voices and act like a different person when she reached high school. Eventually everyone could hear voices speaking to the girl, and she became a totally different person when possessed. Her parents tried everything, physics and priests, but nothing could fully cure the girl. She ended up having to go to an asylum because she became too dangerous to be around. Everyone was frightened that she was possessed by a ghost.
Still, even with all this happening to people around me and to me as well, I still have a hard time believing that there are ghosts among us.
When it comes to ghosts in movies, I think that movies are just different interpretations of ghosts and fears. There is no right or wrong on something that no one is sure that exists. Each person has a different perspective on what a ghost really is, and therefore we just have to accept each person's individual views and enjoy the movie for what it is, fiction!
Monday, October 26, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Response To "Plato's Allegory of the Cave"
If you have ever read Plato's "Allegory of the Cave", you would know that it is about a group of prisoners, who, from infancy, have been chained to a wall, with the only source of 'life' is moving shadows on the wall of the cave, caused by a fire which makes shadows of puppets appear. And that, one day a prisoner escapes from his chains and leaves the cave, and when exiting it, is overwhelmed by the 3D shapes and life around him, illuminated by the sun. He realises that there is more to life than all he knew when he was in the cave, and, overjoyed by his discovery, returns to the other prisoners to share the news. The prisoners, shocked and ignorant, do not believe in a more complicated life then they have had and kill the prisoner for
his 'insanity'.
When reading this story, you cannot help but think, wow, this could actually happen. If you take the literal meanings of the actual story, and turn them into metaphors, you can really see what Plato was trying to say. I can only assume that he wanted the people who read this to realize that you cannot fully trust your senses and those who are ignorant usually do not believe they are ignorant and are happy with their own reality. But is that reality a real reality? What he means is that we should be open to new ideas and not shut them out because they are different than we first believed. It is basically all about what TOK is about, to think about thinking and how we think, and try to make our thinking broader and more accepting and to always question our realities and to decide for ourselves, what our realities really are.
We can often see the examples of societies or cultures condeming those who have come to know a different reality than we do. Religion is probably the most common, as there is no solid proof of existance for every religion, and therefore, it relies solely on our faith, therefore making it a personal issue when others question it. Jesus Christ (in Christian religions) was considered a prophet and son of God, but was stoned to death by the Jews, who believed that the prophet of God had yet to appear. Often, great geniuses were condemned by others until there was solid proof of their theories, and sometimes even after that. Leonardo Da Vinci created amazing flying machine diagrams which were later discovered to be possible, as well as several studies on human anatomy, which were only truly appreciated after his death. So many people suffer from percequetion from others not believing that reality could be so much different than how they have been brought up to believe. Only with time and study are these discoveries truly noticed and accepted. It really isn't all that fair!
Humans are giving the gift (or curse) of consious thought. If we did not use it, it would truly be a shame and waste. We can learn so much from others as well as ourselves and it is always important to allow other opinions into our way of thinking, to become more balanced and knowledgable. Another point I have is that we can never truly trust our senses, but if we didn't trust them a bit, what could we trust at all? We have to understand that sometimes our senses can be fooled, but still know that at least some of what we sense is our own reality, and if a new reality is made, we should accept that and move on then.
his 'insanity'.
When reading this story, you cannot help but think, wow, this could actually happen. If you take the literal meanings of the actual story, and turn them into metaphors, you can really see what Plato was trying to say. I can only assume that he wanted the people who read this to realize that you cannot fully trust your senses and those who are ignorant usually do not believe they are ignorant and are happy with their own reality. But is that reality a real reality? What he means is that we should be open to new ideas and not shut them out because they are different than we first believed. It is basically all about what TOK is about, to think about thinking and how we think, and try to make our thinking broader and more accepting and to always question our realities and to decide for ourselves, what our realities really are.
We can often see the examples of societies or cultures condeming those who have come to know a different reality than we do. Religion is probably the most common, as there is no solid proof of existance for every religion, and therefore, it relies solely on our faith, therefore making it a personal issue when others question it. Jesus Christ (in Christian religions) was considered a prophet and son of God, but was stoned to death by the Jews, who believed that the prophet of God had yet to appear. Often, great geniuses were condemned by others until there was solid proof of their theories, and sometimes even after that. Leonardo Da Vinci created amazing flying machine diagrams which were later discovered to be possible, as well as several studies on human anatomy, which were only truly appreciated after his death. So many people suffer from percequetion from others not believing that reality could be so much different than how they have been brought up to believe. Only with time and study are these discoveries truly noticed and accepted. It really isn't all that fair!
Humans are giving the gift (or curse) of consious thought. If we did not use it, it would truly be a shame and waste. We can learn so much from others as well as ourselves and it is always important to allow other opinions into our way of thinking, to become more balanced and knowledgable. Another point I have is that we can never truly trust our senses, but if we didn't trust them a bit, what could we trust at all? We have to understand that sometimes our senses can be fooled, but still know that at least some of what we sense is our own reality, and if a new reality is made, we should accept that and move on then.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Beautiful Person Q3
My third task is:
Has your concept of beauty changed as you have grown?
When I was younger, beauty was not quite a physical factor, I believed that those who were beautiful were people that I really cared about, or people I admired. Some friends that I had, who would seem plain looking from a neutral perspective, I really thought looked beautiful because they had such confidence or a kind way of carrying themselves. It became a lot different as I grew older although not quite. But now I also take into account the looks of a person when I describe them as beautiful. Simply because the people and society that I have surrounded myself with all believe that beauty is more physical than mental. I may not fully agree but it is true that some of my naivity on the subject has gone and I have been forced to face reality in the fact that beauty is about the look of a person as well as personality. But especially on first empressions, the look of a person is by far the most important, despite how much I disagree with that outlook.
Has your concept of beauty changed as you have grown?
When I was younger, beauty was not quite a physical factor, I believed that those who were beautiful were people that I really cared about, or people I admired. Some friends that I had, who would seem plain looking from a neutral perspective, I really thought looked beautiful because they had such confidence or a kind way of carrying themselves. It became a lot different as I grew older although not quite. But now I also take into account the looks of a person when I describe them as beautiful. Simply because the people and society that I have surrounded myself with all believe that beauty is more physical than mental. I may not fully agree but it is true that some of my naivity on the subject has gone and I have been forced to face reality in the fact that beauty is about the look of a person as well as personality. But especially on first empressions, the look of a person is by far the most important, despite how much I disagree with that outlook.
Beautiful Person Q2
The second task is:
Does the concept of beauty change over time? Space? Culture?
Beauty has always seemed to change as time passes, in fact, long ago, certain fashionable looks would seem completely ridiculous now as some of our ideal 'beautiful' looks would seem truly ugly to those people. Up till about a century ago, a woman was supposed to have a solid figure, some meat on the bones was considered a sign of being healthy and wealthy enough to recieve a lot of food, therefore it was one of the most desirable looks (for men to be chubby was also desirable although the contrast to now is not nearly as strong). Nowadays, a person slightly overweight is considered uglier than a skinny person with the same facial features or look. In fact, supermodels, people who are well reknown for being 'beautiful' are so skinny that it becomes seriously dangerous and unhealthy. Women never become truly happy with their body type or look because the look is so focused on a virtually impossible body shape which only a few can naturally obtain. It almost becomes ridiculous!
It also depends on where you are in the world, for what is the ideal, as mentioned in my previous post, societies in a country will appreciate rare looks for their particular race rather than the more common looks simply because they are different and less reoccuring. In a lot of cultures, where the hair is dark, lighter hair is a sign of beauty, while in some cultures where the hair is lighter, sometimes a darker hair tone is better appreciated and more sought after. Once again, humans always seem to want what they cant have and appreciate looks that they would not be able to suit on themselves.
Cultures also play a large part in this as well, for some cultures believe that certain looks are 'healthier' or 'better looking' like fairer skin for some while other prefer tans and bronze coloured skins. It all depend on the cultural preferences as well as the previously mentioned factors.
Does the concept of beauty change over time? Space? Culture?
Beauty has always seemed to change as time passes, in fact, long ago, certain fashionable looks would seem completely ridiculous now as some of our ideal 'beautiful' looks would seem truly ugly to those people. Up till about a century ago, a woman was supposed to have a solid figure, some meat on the bones was considered a sign of being healthy and wealthy enough to recieve a lot of food, therefore it was one of the most desirable looks (for men to be chubby was also desirable although the contrast to now is not nearly as strong). Nowadays, a person slightly overweight is considered uglier than a skinny person with the same facial features or look. In fact, supermodels, people who are well reknown for being 'beautiful' are so skinny that it becomes seriously dangerous and unhealthy. Women never become truly happy with their body type or look because the look is so focused on a virtually impossible body shape which only a few can naturally obtain. It almost becomes ridiculous!
It also depends on where you are in the world, for what is the ideal, as mentioned in my previous post, societies in a country will appreciate rare looks for their particular race rather than the more common looks simply because they are different and less reoccuring. In a lot of cultures, where the hair is dark, lighter hair is a sign of beauty, while in some cultures where the hair is lighter, sometimes a darker hair tone is better appreciated and more sought after. Once again, humans always seem to want what they cant have and appreciate looks that they would not be able to suit on themselves.
Cultures also play a large part in this as well, for some cultures believe that certain looks are 'healthier' or 'better looking' like fairer skin for some while other prefer tans and bronze coloured skins. It all depend on the cultural preferences as well as the previously mentioned factors.
Beautiful Person Q1
The first task is :
Describe the characteristics of a beautiful person.
Wow. That really is a hard question to ask. There are so many different levels of beauty. I could think of three different main levels that I take into account to describe a beautiful person just when i first meet someone. First, I take a look at how they look physically, I try to see whether that person has a pretty face, nice eyes, etc. The second thing I look at is how that person comes across in their actions and way of speaking, are they charismatic, do they have something unique about them that interests me personally? The third thing that I look at is their personality. I truly cannot like someone or think of them as beautiful unless they really have a good personality, or at least, are not cruel or mean. That to me, distorts the person's looks to the point that it really doesn't matter how physically pretty they are or charismatic, and just makes them seem disgusting and hard to be around. But even so, how do you really decide whether some one's personality is good or bad, or looks are pretty or not.
Part of the problem is that everyone has their own idea of beauty, physical and emotional, and it depends partially on the culture and that own person's preferences. I really like people with a nice bone structure in their face, soft hair (black is personally my favourite, although it does depend on the skin tone) and lovely eyes (i am a sucker for dark blue eyes ;) ) and that partially has to do with how i was brought up, surprisingly, in Canada, those looks are hard to find. But most of it has to do with the fact that those looks would never suit me, so i appreciate it more on someone who it does, because that would not look good on me. That is another factor that is important. People always seem to want what they cannot have, therefore, they rarely choose looks or appearances similar to their own. My brunette friends are always saying that they wish they were blond. My blond friends always complain that black hair looks nicest. People with brown eyes always want blue or green, people with green eyes, say that brown or blue looks better. The cycle goes on. Straight-haired people always seem to like curly hair and vice-versa. Really, it is interesting whenever I have a variety of people surrounding me and the topic goes to looks, everyone seems to be jealous of each other, and not appreciate their own looks.
Which is why, it is really hard for a large group of very different people to decide out of another group of varying people, which is really "beautiful". In fact, there is a reality show based on that purpose where a group of people in a house try to fill challenges to last the longest, and all the tasks are to fit features of being an overally beautiful person. These qualities that they test range from personality, to looks, to perspectives. Overall, the show seems pretty stupid, the original message is meaningful. It really all depends on what you are looking for in a person.
Describe the characteristics of a beautiful person.
Wow. That really is a hard question to ask. There are so many different levels of beauty. I could think of three different main levels that I take into account to describe a beautiful person just when i first meet someone. First, I take a look at how they look physically, I try to see whether that person has a pretty face, nice eyes, etc. The second thing I look at is how that person comes across in their actions and way of speaking, are they charismatic, do they have something unique about them that interests me personally? The third thing that I look at is their personality. I truly cannot like someone or think of them as beautiful unless they really have a good personality, or at least, are not cruel or mean. That to me, distorts the person's looks to the point that it really doesn't matter how physically pretty they are or charismatic, and just makes them seem disgusting and hard to be around. But even so, how do you really decide whether some one's personality is good or bad, or looks are pretty or not.
Part of the problem is that everyone has their own idea of beauty, physical and emotional, and it depends partially on the culture and that own person's preferences. I really like people with a nice bone structure in their face, soft hair (black is personally my favourite, although it does depend on the skin tone) and lovely eyes (i am a sucker for dark blue eyes ;) ) and that partially has to do with how i was brought up, surprisingly, in Canada, those looks are hard to find. But most of it has to do with the fact that those looks would never suit me, so i appreciate it more on someone who it does, because that would not look good on me. That is another factor that is important. People always seem to want what they cannot have, therefore, they rarely choose looks or appearances similar to their own. My brunette friends are always saying that they wish they were blond. My blond friends always complain that black hair looks nicest. People with brown eyes always want blue or green, people with green eyes, say that brown or blue looks better. The cycle goes on. Straight-haired people always seem to like curly hair and vice-versa. Really, it is interesting whenever I have a variety of people surrounding me and the topic goes to looks, everyone seems to be jealous of each other, and not appreciate their own looks.
Which is why, it is really hard for a large group of very different people to decide out of another group of varying people, which is really "beautiful". In fact, there is a reality show based on that purpose where a group of people in a house try to fill challenges to last the longest, and all the tasks are to fit features of being an overally beautiful person. These qualities that they test range from personality, to looks, to perspectives. Overall, the show seems pretty stupid, the original message is meaningful. It really all depends on what you are looking for in a person.
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