I felt this would be an appropriate venue for me to express my thoughts and impressions I received from each presentation. Sometimes it may just be random questions I was thinking of during the projects or even random phrases that stood out to me but here it is:
Jonah's presentation on freedom and how we define it looked into the statement: "The better you understand freedom the less you possess it".
I particularly enjoyed the part where he brought up the experiment of Schrodinger's cat as a means to describe a possible translation of freedom. The way we want to so badly to be free and to know what freedom means hit home with me and my thoughts on the matter. I felt it was very appropriate how he brought up contradictions and categories we are all taught as children as they are the main vehicles we use in our definitions of reality. After the presentation, my concepts of freedom had to accommodate a vastly different field of vision, one that looked more inwardly than out. Thank you Jonah for pointing out how incredibly secluded and boxed in our perceptions of society and freedom are. I now know that freedom is not a category but a question and a mystery, as it should be.
Katie Chamber's presentation on the power of dreams and interpretation made me rather wish I was better at the art of dreaming. I rarely remember any big dreams I have while I sleep and the one that do stick with me in the morning are the boring ones about being late for class or failing tests. Her paper "The Fiends of Dreamland" gave me a terrific insight into the true essence of dreams as canvases for truth and the impossible. I found it to be a wonderfully written piece which I was immediately drawn into. Her perceptions of the dreams explored the themes underlying what it means to be human, especially at our baser foundations. Everyone must find their own truth in their realities, as both waking and sleeping dreams are realities. Thank you Katie.
Yasmin's presentation on the smile of truth did actually bring a smile to my face. I love to learn new things about history and Yasmin certainly gave me that opportunity. The Mona Lisa also happens to be one of the most interesting paintings to me, not because of the artwork itself but rather the reactions and readings people attribute to it. My personal theory of why that particular painting has achieved such fame all comes down to the smile on her face: the smile of truth as Yasmin suggested. The question has to go through every viewer's mind as they wonder what made her smile such a knowing smile. What does she know that we do not? Is it a joke? A riddle? A wise piece of advice? The human conscience goes into overdrive trying to solve this puzzle yet it will never be satisfied with the answer. That is the real Smile of Truth: asking questions that there are no answers to. Well done Yasmin, I could not agree more with your presentation.
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