Practical Philosophy, Friday

[endsthegame]

It was still nice weather out, and so Ender had decided to hold class in the exact same spot that he'd done last week. He came a little later this time, though, giving the students time to situate themselves and maybe get some talking started before he had to start talking.

"I'd like to start by talking about something Britta raised the other week," he said conversationally as he sat down. "School is just a machine that operates by indoctrinating its students. Everything worth learning is outside our walls, while everything inside is simply a standardized means to keep us docile, to sort us into our future roles. It's a terribly Marxist way of looking at it." He paused. "Marx being a man at the turn of the last century of this planet, who was mostly concerned with workers' rights."

He pushed another bag of sandwiches into the center of the circle.

"From a certain point of view, that's true," he said. "The primary role of school is to bestow whatever knowledge the elders of our society feel is important for anyone to start functioning within that society. Not only that, but school is intended to give us a uniform moral framework between ourselves, to define the way we act, the way we talk, the way we interact with one another. It defines the roles we'll play later on in life, prepares us for the labours we will be asked to do. School supports the established hierarchy and searches to reproduce it, time and time again."

He took out a sandwich himself. "Of course, the problem with this is that 'outside the school' is, in its own way, the exact same thing. In fact, by this logic, your parents have indoctrinated you - or whatever caretakers you had. People on the street are trying to indoctrinate you every day - your friends are, too. After all, they all have moral codes and frames of knowledge they feel are necessary to interact in society. A stranger might tell you off for spitting. A friend might praise you for walking past a beggar in 'the wrong part of town'."

He quirked a little smile. "Of course, you could look at it from another perspective," he said. "We're all interacting. Trying to figure out the rules that will keep our society standing upright, whether it be the community between us here now or the community of the island, or the community of this country. Teachers are human beings, they have reasons for why they teach the way they teach. Perhaps they've gotten a curriculum enforced on them from above, but maybe they still choose in what way to emphasize it, in what way to leave an impression on you."

"But going back to the indoctrination idea," he continued, "Suppose the school is just a factory, and we're the would-be automatons shoved into it. Is this intrinsically a bad idea? Or does it help us find common ground with the rest of our generation, whether it be through shared experiences or shared hatred?"

He leaned back. "That's not to say school can't teach us deeply stupid things," he said. "Some frames of indoctrination equip us better for the rest of the world than others do. I like to think the brightest of us find ways to transcend that, though; terribly stupid, restrictive teachings can't last forever in a bright mind, unless they let denial overtake their thinking."

He took a bite of his sandwich. "Or I'm wrong, and we should all run out into town and break the bonds school is trying to put on the proletariat," he said. "That's the lower class, for those of you who've probably never heard of Marx. I'm sure Britta can supply us with torches and pitchforks."

Then, with a smile, Ender finished up with a bright, "Also, I hear it was Mother's Day last week. I hope yours wasn't too traumatic."

Comments

Before Class

[endsthegame]

Hang out on the grass, talk.

Re: Before Class

[shestheworst.livejournal.com]

Oh, Britta was so ready for this. She had her incident at the radio station that morning to boost her up, and so she happily sat, reclined slightly in the grass, nibbling on her sandwich with a triumphant grin on her face.

...and to think, this was before class even started. Plus, she was a little drunk, so that helped, too.

Sign In!

[endsthegame]

Like a Marxist!

Re: Sign In!

[shestheworst.livejournal.com]

Britta Perry

Re: Sign In!

[walkswithcoyote]

Mercy Thompson

Re: Sign In!

[nothornlessrose.livejournal.com]

Cassidy

Listen to the Lecture

[endsthegame]

Interrupt, if you feel like it, or take notes, or just have a sandwich.

Re: Listen to the Lecture

[shestheworst.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Britta was just going to sit here and be smug and amused for a while as she listened. With the combination of radio and this class and being acknowledged for making her teacher think about stuff, you could almost see the swell of her ego and feel the aura of satisfaction around her. She felt like her own gold star hero now.

Re: Listen to the Lecture

[nothornlessrose.livejournal.com]

Cassidy was taking notes on this.

Talk.

[endsthegame]

Second verse, same as last week's. Talk: either about the current subject, or about something else that might have happened to you this week that you'd like to talk about, or just something that's on your mind.

Make things as messy as you like - jump into discussions, jump out, ping each other, whichever tickles your fancy.

Re: Talk.

[shestheworst.livejournal.com]

"Is it necessarily a good thing," Britta proposed, "that we're learning the supposed moralistic code of a society like this? Is this the sort of system that we really want to sit here and complain is so good that we should continue propagating it by sticking with the same things that produces war and famine and poverty? Looking at the broad scope of things, wouldn't you say that this society produces far more bad than it does good? So why do we keep trying to keep it going? Basically, it sounds like it's being said that it's okay if we're all factory produced clones because we're all factory induced clones, and we're fitting what the status quo says is appropriate for our society. That continues to be the same bullshit it was last week.

"And parents are even worse than teachers. At least teachers get some sort of qualification. The most qualification you get to become a parent is being able to have sex with someone and then sticking through it in the long haul until a baby pops out of one of them. And this ability to have sex somehow immediately qualifies them to be capable of teaching a budding mind about the world? I guess some people are lucky and have parents who actually give a rat's ass and have more than two brain cells between the two of them, but I'm pretty sure that classification is the minority. Your ability to procreate should not determine your ability to be a suitable role model and teacher."

Re: Talk.

[endsthegame]

"Miss Perry," Ender said, once she was finished, "Do you believe babies should be taught to speak?"

Re: Talk.

[shestheworst.livejournal.com]

Britta lifted her chin in immediate defiance. "Do babies need to be taught to speak?" she countered. "My brother had a kid recently, and I bet you anything, they could sit there and try to teach him how to say 'mama' or 'dada' all they want, but that kid is probably not going to say anything until he's good and ready. I think. Just because I've got a uterus doesn't make me an immediate baby expert, you know."

Re: Talk.

[randomspanish.livejournal.com]

"Well you're not supposed to like school," Freddie said, even though he kind of did. "I think a lot of people just use school as an excuse to make new friends and hang out with the ones you already have. It's a social thing. Which is good. And I don't think I've ever really felt indoctrinated at a school, ever. I think that might be an overreaction."

Re: Talk.

[endsthegame]

"Social is definitely good," Ender agreed. "It helps you learn how to interact with other human beings. That's never a terrible thing."

He looked briefly amused.

"I didn't realize 'not liking school' was a requirement, though."

Re: Talk.

[randomspanish.livejournal.com]

"Well, like," Freddie said, trying to look casual and failing, "Most people say that it's not cool to like school. And you're a total nub if you do. At least at my old school."

Talk to the TA

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Once she's pinged in.

[life_inshadow]

Tara agreed with Brittany to a point: She thought school existed in part to get everybody to march in line. But marching in that line had always been an escape for her, so she had a hard time being too opposed to it.

She looked thoughtful, either way.

Talk to Ender

[endsthegame]

If you have anything to discuss with him after class.

[life_inshadow]

"So I had a present for you," Tara told him after class, holding a small gift bag containing the same teddy bear-and-mug teacher's gift she'd given Kennedy earlier that week. "But after class I kind of wonder if I should smash it instead."

[endsthegame]

Ender chuckled. "Leave 'fighting the power' to Britta, I beg you," he said, taking the bag. "Thank you." He peered inside.

OOC

[endsthegame]

I've just read more Althusser than anyone should ever want to. Thanks, Britta.

Also, stop making me go ;.; with your Mass Effect music, Miracle of Sound.

[life_inshadow]

I just wish to note phone pinging sucks, and I can spell Britta's name.

[endsthegame]

Eugh, phone-pinging. *sends condolence cookies*

[shestheworst.livejournal.com]

JUST like Brittany Spears!


Hit me with your genie bottle....