Good morning dualenrollers!
Today you will be getting your first assignment, and it is an essay written by Henry Ford (as in, the inventor of automobiles). The essay is called "The Fear of Change" and I chose it because I thought it was appropriate for this particular day and age. EVERYTHING in the world is changing. Should we fear it? Do you like change?
I would like you to get me this assignment by tomorrow (Friday) by 2pm (or earlier)
Even if there were NO QUARANTINE and everything was going as normal as could be, right now many of you would (and probably are) struggling with the notion of the CHANGE coming up when you graduate and move on to new things in your life. We live in a world of CONSTANT CHANGE. And, personally, I don't know if that is a good thing.
The essay is from commonlit.org, and I will post a link at the bottom of this assignment. I would like you to read the essay (it isn't LONG, but it is very thought provoking and it uses some heavy phrases). Commonlit is great at giving you meanings of difficult words, etc. I encourage you to browse around the site. There's a LOT of REALLY COOL stuff there: essays, short stories, news articles, opinion pieces. and the best chicken tenders around (I just wanted to see if you are actually reading this.....haha)
I have some questions for you about the essay, but I am also interested in YOUR THOUGHTS, OPINIONS, FEEDBACK, PERSPECTIVE, etc. What I would like you to do is this: LISTEN UP HANNAH STEVENS!!!! STOP TALKING!!! (lollllllllll ....jk) Please answer the questions I have asked you in a separate google doc/email to me, and I will give you a grade for that. This is very EFFORT BASED, since we are not PHYSICALLY together. THEN, I would love if you would post your thoughts, opinions, perspective, etc as a COMMENT TO THIS BLOG. It is very easy. It would be great to hear from you. It would be great to get "talking." Aaaaaaand.....for every comment you make on the blog, I will factor it into your "participation grade" for the college portion of the class. Does that make sense? PLEASE ASK ANYTHING YOU FEEL DOESN'T MAKE SENSE!
1.What do you make of the paragraph that starts on line 20? Do you agree with this? Where do we see this in The United States today (since Ford is talking about the USA)
2. How does he emphasize how different EUROPE is from the UNITED STATES in 1922 when he wrote this? If he wrote this is 2020, would he write the same thing?
3. According to Ford, what kind of person WILL NEVER fear "Progressive Change," and why?
4. (optional) Post your own feedback (even if it goes off on a tangent!) on this blog as a comment. Be respectful!!
Let's see how this goes! Here is the link, and it you have any problems with the technology, let me know! Be sure you have registered for commonlit.org (per the entry to this site I posted on March 30). Be well folks!!!
https://www.commonlit.org/en/texts/fear-of-change
What I got out of the essay was he was trying to explain why change is necessary in life and at some points it was a little confusing but he talked about how like certain people responses are affected. I thought it was good and I liked how it really relates to what everyone is going through now because everything kind of flipped upside down out of nowhere and I really liked it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Gabby, the essay wasn't always easy to read at times and we are going through much of the same things at this stage in our lives. Right now, some of the changes going on in our lives are things that we may not be looking forward to, but they are going to happen and it's important to be positive and embrace the changes. I also liked that he talked about the importance of giving back to others and being positive. I believe it is super important to spread kindness and be optimistic.
DeleteWhat I learned about this essay is that he's trying to tell us change is important, but some people of the higher class choose to push it away. I liked how he compared the United States to Europe and how Europe would rather not change at all. For example, "The danger of Europe today is not that Progress is knocking at her door, but that she will dear to open the door, and will come to her senses only when the door is broken down." He gave that example showing that some people would not come to their senses unless they really have to. I really enjoyed how it related to the times we're in now and how change in the world could come out of nowhere and some peoples reactions are different than others. Overall I thought it was pretty cool to hear his perspective about the world changing even if it was back in 1922 I don't think we could relate anymore than we can now.
ReplyDeleteLooking at the article and talking about all the change and how it is important made me start to think about what is happening in the world right now. Things are most definitely changing and we are having to get used to what is going to be the new normal for some bit of time. I think that some people everywhere are having a hard time with the change, and I don’t mean kids. I mean the adults who are buying out grocery stores and getting stocked for no reason. I know we have to adapt to this but it is going to be hard to adapt to things when most of our resources are beginning to be hard to get. I think that gradual change is a good thing, I think changes are something that we have to take with an open mind. It’s important to have a positive outlook on change and how it will benefit in the future.
ReplyDeleteThis article was very interesting to read, but I really enjoyed it. The whole gist of it was that change is needed in life in order for us to be successful. You can try to avoid change, but no matter what it will always happen. The changes that come may be difficult to handle or you may not like them, but we just need to know that they are necessary and will lead to greater things.
ReplyDeleteVery long article, but good to learn about past feeling on Europe vs the United States and I liked the quote about someone who has strong work ethics will always be needed in the world no matter what.
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ReplyDeleteI go to the link and it brings me to a blank page.
ReplyDeleteWhat I got out of this article was that we as a society can't fear change. I think right now that's really important because the world is going through something it's never been through before. Nothing is the way it used to be 1 month ago, and everything happened so quickly. When the pandemic first began I'm sure we all remember how crazy social media was. Everything was blowing up, it made it sound like we were going to war with ourselves. When the article began discussing how some people are afraid of change it made me think of how right now in the moment people are still afraid of change and they're the ones struggling the most. For the people that are accepting the change in this world, they're the ones that are able to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
ReplyDeleteWhat I got out of this article was that we as a society can't fear change. I think right now that's really important because the world is going through something it's never been through before. Nothing is the way it used to be 1 month ago, and everything happened so quickly. When the pandemic first began I'm sure we all remember how crazy social media was. Everything was blowing up, it made it sound like we were going to war with ourselves. When the article began discussing how some people are afraid of change it made me think of how right now in the moment people are still afraid of change and they're the ones struggling the most. For the people that are accepting the change in this world, they're the ones that are able to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
ReplyDeleteI think this essay is very interesting because of how similar it is to today. We do not want things to change, even if it is essential to move forward. Progress can be made so much quicker if we all agree that it needs to be done. I think that the Europe and US comparison was interesting because I think it would be described the exact opposite today because the US is quite problematic
ReplyDeleteWhat I took away from this article was that most people are scared of change, especially when things happen so fast. Like Mariah said, everything happened so quickly with the coronavirus. People have reached a point where they don’t know what to do to create change. I also agree with Riley when she said that people don’t want change, even if it is essential for us to move forward and prosper. Change is scary. The article makes me think about how we aren’t promised anything, especially as the class of 2020. The changes that we are going through are unlike any others. It’s scary for me to go to college with only half of my senior year completed.
ReplyDeleteI AM VERY IMPRESSED at the quality of comments you folks are making! THANK YOU. I thought you all had great points in your responses, and many of you made GREAT comparisons to how the article is relevant TODAY with the ideas of "privilege" and work and change!!
ReplyDeleteI think that reading this, makes me understand those who are more fearful to change and what makes them that way. -Mal
ReplyDeleteThis article has opened my eyes a ton especially with what is going on today. No one ever thought this would happen with the corona virus. It was completely out of our hands and will be for a while. People don't like change that they can't control. Us seniors hate what is happening right now and I think a huge reason why we are so upset is because we can't do anything about it. Change is really scary and a lot of people fear it because they do not know if it is in their best interest. I agree with Riley regarding how America is quite problematic today compared to Europe. This article was very interesting and opened up my eyes quite a bit!!
ReplyDeleteI thought this article was very interesting and also very relevant to today. A lot of people are scared of change and moving on. Especially right now with all the virus stuff, many people are having trouble comprehending it and taking a step back and just letting life happen. People need to be following all the rules and procedures in order for this change to happen. I don't want to be stuck like this. Change needs to happen again soon. -Ellie
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge fan of Henry Ford, so I thought this article was pretty neat. Something he said stuck out to me: "... no nation or system is stronger than strength and privilege of its humblest member." This is especially important to our country, where every voice matters and we depend upon one another to hold the nation together economically, politically, and socially. We can see in these times right now that everyone is reaching out to one another for help. Neighbors. Friends. Coworkers. Despite the quarantine, everyone is coming closer together to help each other and I think this quote stands as a reminder that we as a nation depend upon everyone doing their part to ensure we can continue to be the great country we are.
ReplyDeleteAs I read this piece of writing by Henry Ford, I noticed many things that he said stood out to me. Of those things that stood out, I would say the following piece of writing stood out the most: "If he is a worker now, he will be needed in the world whatever happens." Aside from the fact that the way he worded that was very cloudy, I think I understand the point he was trying to make... No matter where the world stands, if you are an honest being and are willing to work for what is right then society will reward you by needing your presence. With how our world stands today, I think that is a very powerful message. Notice how at this moment in time, the individuals who are still working are in fields of work that promote positive change for the greater good. In times like this, they are powerful. Other than the quote mentioned above, there were also many good messages that will stick with me. Another one being, "a good change works good all around."
ReplyDelete^ from Colby.
DeleteIt was a very interesting read, in all times, but especially in the massive period of change we are going through now. Change need not be feared by those who really have nothing of value to lose. This change will likely not affect the things that are truly important to me in the long term. At the end of this I will still have my family and friends and an education to continue. It might be on hold for now, but it won’t be forever. You take what you can get and make the most of it.
ReplyDeleteThe elite have much to fear in progressive change because it might diminish their lavish way of life. They want to keep their worldly possessions, but the common people know what is truly important and have nothing to fear. We may be uncertain of the future, but we are not afraid.
I found this an interesting read because I am from a family of workers with strong work ethics. We do not fear change, but welcome it. My father's family has always worked his land, and my father has always said to take care of the land because that is one thing they are not making more of. This article was hard to read at first, but I do think the overall message was if you work hard, with a clear conscience you will never fear change.
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