Last night we had some great discussions on a number of topics. In our lecture we talked about how we develop professionally through change -- being open to new experiences and suggestions, being highly motivated and able to examine critically our steps along the way. All of this leads to adaptive learning. We started to look at a concept central to personal and professional development -- moral development. It is important to understand moral principles in order to judge how to apply them in particular situations.
In groups we discussed "ethics and the workplace", and wrote some narratives on this topic. Later we shared our thoughts on Faulkner's story, "Barn Burning", where we saw how as a young person begins to develop moral awareness, he can experience conflicts between his family's values and those of society. Even under normal circumstances, a generation gap will create some conflict, but each person will still have to decide what to do about it.
Have a great weekend.
Discussing moral instruction in last week’s class was a topic I found very interesting. It is an issue that keeps popping up in schools- is it the teacher’s responsibility to teach morality to children? And such a hard question this is to answer, from no matter what viewpoint you look at it from. In my opinion, there should be some moral instruction in the classroom, although this could vary from school to school. Perhaps teachers and parents could have a meeting to discuss what “morals” they all agree should be taught in the classroom? Although I feel that it is unlikely that this would happen, peacefully at that, at every school, I do think it could be a good idea. To decide something like this in each individual school rather than by the larger entity of the school board would be beneficial because each school varies by class, race, and religion, and with that the possibility of different ideals. With many parents both working busy jobs, many children are not spending sufficient amounts of time with their children, and perhaps moral instruction is lacking in the home. Is it really the job of the teacher to teach strictly the abc’s and the 123’s? I do think so instruction on the moral basics of day to day life should be taught by a teacher. This does not have to include anything religious, as many people might jump to the conclusion of. Basic morals are virtually agreed upon by everyone, no matter their race or religion. Don’t kill, steal, lie or cheat. Obey your parents and respect your elders and neighbours. Share with your friends, give to charity. To me, these are all life lessons that any parent would be happy to have their child learn in school. Children practically spend more time in the classroom than they do with their parents and some extra encouragement and guidance from the teacher towards living life as a good, law abiding citizen wouldn’t hurt anyone.
ReplyDeleteThere are many factors that could figure out one’s path depending on how the individual perceives and handles situations. Some may treat unfortunate events as moral lessons to strengthen one’s EQ and self power to strive forward. Others may be more pessimistic and would feel trapped into the darkness of hopelessness, in which they may be vulnerable to believe that their destiny is strictly set to be like those who they think are responsible for ruining their lives. Regardless of whom they meet, their abilities they gain, and the experiences they encounter, the choices they make are critical in whether or not they will be improving their path of life. They can be successful or be at the other end of the spectrum; but wherever and however way they end up is based solely on their choices made which basically depends on the way they think and look at things. Some people learn from their mistakes, while others learn their mistakes. Likewise, some observe moral lessons and conflicts as reminders of what is good or evil; while others just let them pass by without giving any thoughts about them, that is, if they have even noticed the existence of moral issues in the first place. Thus, it is very hard to predict what and how a child would be like in the future as they are growing up or as they become adults, because it varies from individual to individual.
ReplyDeleteThis last week’s discussion regarding whether or not morality should be taught within the classroom was thought provoking. My first reaction was no, as I feel teachers are already expected to take on much more than the academic curriculum (i.e. abuse prevention, sex education, nutrition lessons, ensuring enough physical education etc.). Many of these subjects used to be regarded as the parents’ responsibility to model and discuss with their children and are now being downloaded to the classroom. If morality is discussed in the classroom is there a “moral curriculum” that is established or is it just the teacher’s morals being passed on? I think then we have to look at what we consider morality. Is it just the basic things such as “don’t lie”, “don’t cheat” etc .or are we considering issues that are more contentious? There are many agreed upon morals within a society such as “be kind to others”, “don’t kill” etc. Most, if not all, parents would agree upon these morals and be comfortable having them taught within the classroom. However, there are a lot of moral issues related to religion, cultural beliefs, sexual orientation etc. that parents would not want the school dealing with or passing on to their children. If as a society we decide that these tougher moral issues are to be discussed in the classroom, whose moral code are we following?
ReplyDeleteIn thinking about the story “Barn Burning”, which we read this week , I started to wonder about what it would be like for children whose moral values did not match those of their parents. I really think it would depend on whether or not families could agree to disagree on their differences in moral values or if they just refused to accept the differences and not talk about them like Sarty and his father in the story. It is interesting to see how Sarty’s moral values developed. I think society is a mirror reflecting back on a person to show them what other people think of them. In watching society’s reaction and impression of his father, Sarty seems to have readjusted his moral values, more in line with those in society than his father. Once children begin to develop moral awareness and their cognitive ability develops I think they begin to question what they have been taught and eventually decide their own moral values.
Talking about self development is class was really interesting. When Sue was talking about becoming a teacher and the development that you go through to become a teacher it made me think of myself. I have been working towards the PDP and have one year left before I finish my degree, so I thought I should take on the challenge and start volunteering. I had my first day at an elementary school in a grade one class this morning. It was so nice to finally put all of this information that I have learned in school over the past few years to use. My job today was to observe the students and get to know them, their behaviors and the class’s daily routine. I was also put into a group to lead a reading assignment which was so much fun; it was really fascinating to see what level each child was at. For myself even just having been there for one day I can see that I have developed so much over the past few years because of my education. I have heightened awareness of what is going on in my life and I understand what it means. I can defiantly see that my skills will develop even more as time goes on and I looking forward to all of the new things I am going to learn. I am also interested to see the development of the kids as well, in a way I wish I would have been able to start at the beginning of the school year to see how far they have come already. As things evolve and as I become more comfortable with what I am doing I will be take the opportunity to take on more tasks as they arise. I think that is what self development is all about taking on a challenge and becoming aware of your abilities when they are put to use.
ReplyDelete“Father is a naturalist= he is just doing what he needs to survive. Can we excuse his behavior based on having a rough life, little opportunity and education?” When this question was asked about moral ethics in the reading the “Barn Burning”, I have to say that I definitely don’t agree with his actions. I just feel when it comes to ethics it always am brought back to this story talked about in a philosophy of ethics course that I took. The wife is dying of the terrible disease and they can’t afford the drugs that will help her survive, so the husband breaks into the pharmacy and steels the drug for his wife. Is this right? I don’t think steeling is right at all, but you can’t blame the guy for trying to help out his wife. I think that it just depends what kind of situation you in, if I was in this man’s shoes I would try everything in my power to help out a loved one.
William Faulkner’s “Barn Burning” was an interesting story that used symbolism to bring about Sarty’s moral awareness. The scene that stuck out the most for me was when Sarty and his father went to Major de Spain’s house. Sarty’s reaction to his house was particularly powerful. By comparing it to a courthouse he viewed it as a symbol of justice, a safe haven where his father’s revengeful authority couldn’t pierce through. I think that this house has such an enormous influence on Sarty that at the end, he warns Major de Spain about his father’s intentions so that he may prevent Abner from destroying the peacefulness and joy he felt when he was there, and in doing so comes to terms with his own moral beliefs. At the end of the scene, Sarty also feels the house will transform his father, but instead this house marks the turning point in Sarty’s individual principles and he arises as a separate entity from his father and family.
ReplyDeleteI believe that there are two different types of morals. There are those that have been socially constructed for you, and the morals you craft for yourself through experiences and personal examination. I think the idea of morality becomes problematic when we compromise our belief system just to please others, which I think is something that Sarty does in “Barn Burning” earlier on. The Snopes family never objects to anything Abner says, and in doing so never develop a solid sense of morality. Sarty is the only one to break free and take a stand. Oppositions and disagreements are everyday occurrences. Sometimes what we believe we should do is blinded by the way we think others will react. It’s our individual morals that set us apart and create the notion of self-identity, and we should never put them on hold to satisfy others. Sometimes certain individuals will influence our identities or we may not discover our view on something unless we experience it. “Barn Burning” was a great illustration of how the dilemma of loyalty can influence decisions, and that ultimately we must examine our personal beliefs to make tough choices.
What are ethics? What is morality? How can a person behave within the ethics and morals that guide their family and the outside world? These are some of the most difficult and most interesting questions which, face people of any age. After our discussion in class I began to think about how parents morals affect their children. In thinking about this I realized that parents morals affect children intensely, regardless if these morals are consciously or unconsciously taught by the parents. Some people have a very clear standpoint on morals, and this makes communicating them easier and a priority. This in turn can employ to the child that these morals are the absolute truth. Providing clear morals and communication of them set up a sort of stability in knowing what is right and wrong and understanding the difference between the two, however if these morals are hard set they can play a controversial role to the child, which can lead to risks. When does this belief become an extreme devotion and an intolerance of opposing views? This can become a black and white problem leaving out the middle ground, but then this also depends on what types of morals are being taught. Morals will only hold value to children if their parents are seen practicing them. If this is not the case it is likely to lead to confusion and disrespect of the rules, morals and the parents themselves. For example, a parent whom smokes and tells his child that it is not good for him, but continues to smoke, and not attempt to stop or quit can raise this feeling of confusion and disrespect. It is also important that both parents carry the same set of morals, where as if they do not it is more then likely to lead to dysfunction, as seen in the story we read for class “Barn Burning”. All parents are role models and children will copy their parent’s behavior whether or not if they are told it is good or bad, but they will also react against it at the same time. Parents have their own set or moral codes, and throughout their daily life become a model of interpretation about the world and how to behave in it. The more you think about it, the more clear it is how significant the impact of parents morals are on their children, it will determine the way the approach their life, shape their morals and untimely affect the parents themselves in one way or another.
ReplyDeleteSarty had a chance to be different from his father, siblings and family. Had the rest of the family just been worn down through their father’s actions, or were they made of weak moral character? In a different environment they may have all been saints, or maybe they would have all turned out just the same. I think it is interesting that Sarty was only ten. His innocence was still partially in tact. He may have followed along with his father’s demands his whole life, but may not have been aware that there was a problem with his behavior. Sarty’s awakening to his father’s bad moral behavior, conscious or not, was shocking and confusing for him. Had the father not been killed, would Sarty have ended up like the rest of his family, or did he possess character which had strength to stand up to his father over time? What does it take to be resilient and rise above the odds?
ReplyDeleteThinking back on my own life, I don’t remember a time when I was not learning about morality. I didn’t need to go looking for it. Life is full of lessons all the time. The thing with morality is that it is imagined and intangible. How is it that there can be so many different realizations of it? My mom and dad lead by example more than instruction, but they did take the time to explain their own behavior, or mine, at great lengths sometimes. I think my actions/reactions and surroundings both led to moral learning. I know I was susceptible to my families and friends ideas. I don’t know if I feel it is the schools’ place to teach morality – how brainwashed/homogenized could that make us as a culture? How much prescribed moral glue do we need, or want, to hold society together? I think most of the morality I learnt in school was through peers and faculty’s behavior, as well as through literature and social codes or rules my schools formally demanded. I think it is inevitable that a teacher will be teaching morality every day just by living for some time with the children they teach. The more diverse and numerous the teachers a student can come in contact with, the richer they will be. Conflict and confusion about morality is bound to arise, but that may be an inevitable and desirable part of learning about it.
Hi all, I had fun this week disgussing and learning about self development and moral development. I personally think that ethics should be taught in school but should not be in conflict with different cultures and backgrounds. I believe teachers have a very big impact on young people's decision making and even their future. I think teachers Henry Adams once said that a teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops. Eventhough age gap creates conflict and confusion, it may still be a desirable part of learning and education. Afterall, the people who influence you are the people who believe in you. I think everyone can learn their own course throughout time and experience.
ReplyDeleteMany people in the class only see the negative side of Abner in the story Barn Burning since Abner Snopes cannot seem to control his pyromania and hatred for the society of his time. I would like to mention a few of his positive traits here since nobody has mention in class. Aside from his adestructive, abusive and violent behaviour, i still see the independence, courageous, and his struggle against impossible odds in him. Abner understands the full well of hardships and deprivation that the Southern social system has. The contract system between owner and tenant creates injustice within their community. I enjoy the article as it awaken my thoughts regarding race and economic turnmoil of that particular decade. The story also distinguish family value with world value and the influence of the father towards his son.
Hope everyone had a great weekend, I'm looking forward to our class again this week =)
I was reading some of the other comments and I realized that most talked about Sarty as a child whose moral beliefs were in direct opposition to those of his family. But I don't think this it true. Many of the characters seemed to understand that the father’s actions were wrong For example, the aunt seemed very angry about his actions. However, Sarty was the only character who was sufficiently convicted by his moral beliefs to break with his family and become an outcast. This child had examples of good morality in his life, people who understood right and wrong, he simply took this knowledge to the next level by breaking with his father. With this in mind, it doesn’t seem so much like Sarty learned moral behaviour by some kind of inner conscience or even simply by the reactions of those outside his family unit. He had moral examples. What was unique about Sarty was his willingness to become an outcast for his moral beliefs, a willingness that took an enormous amount of courage and probably a little bit of ignorance concerning how hard his life would really be away from his family.
ReplyDeleteWith this in mind, I started thinking a little more about the role of teachers in providing their students with a moral base. It is unrealistic to expect that teachers can provide a sufficiently compelling moral example to cause a child to have a defining moment and transform their life. Students receive moral instruction from so many sources. This is not to say that a teacher’s role in forming moral judgement is irrelevant, on the contrary. But I think that the most valuable thing a teacher can do for a child is provide a classroom environment that minimizes outside pressures, such as peer or family expectations, so that students have the opportunity, at least while in that classroom, to decide for themselves how they want to react to situations.
After last class’s discussion on self development through moral development, I began to look back on my own early childhood and what had the most influence over the growth of my moral judgement. As a young child I had a small group of friends who I was close to up until grade two, when I moved to a new house and new school. The adjustment to a new setting, with a new group of children to make friendships with, made me realize how different people interacted with each other. Because I had only closely interacted with a small group of individuals, I was not accustomed to others less familiar ways. One of the most striking differences I remember was the way some of the students treated one another at my new school; their less friendly behaviour was unusual. From the beginning, I started to learn how I wanted to be treated and tried as best as possible to treat the other students in that same way. I did not understand the reasoning behind the insensitive actions of some of my friends. After reflecting back on all my childhood experiences, I think that the change in school and adjustment to a new set of friends was one of the first times I was morally aware of someone else’s actions. The unmoral instruction I viewed in the other students became a lesson for how I did not want to behave. Although morality was not a subject or topic of discussion in the classroom at my elementary school, I still learned what was right and wrong from the other students around me.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, I felt that the group discussions on our workplace ethics narratives were a good way to share our experiences without feeling the pressure of speaking to a large group. It was interesting to hear other people’s experiences and relate them to similar issues I have had at work. Furthermore, in our group we talked about possible solutions for some of the narratives, which allowed us to reflect on each other’s ethical problems from a more objective view point. I found it to be easier to think about a possible solution for other people’s work related problems, than to consider how I might have acted differently in my own situation. Often I think that looking at other’s problematic situations can help increase our level of awareness about our own problems, and the group discussions were a vital part to allowing this growth to occur.
This week we discussed moral values and decisions. This can be difficult when you disagree with your friends or parents’ morals. In the story, “Barn Burning”, Sarty gradually sees that his father’s actions are unacceptable and considered wrong by many people of the town and even his mother. When the mother finally stands up to the father and tells him not to burn down another barn, Sarty realizes his father’s choices are immoral, but he is not able to articulate his feelings. He is not able to articulate his feelings due to his lack of education and a different, more positive environment. I am kind of torn between feeling some sympathy for the father and not feeling any sympathy for him. He most likely had a rough childhood and young adulthood when he was in the war. It seems like the father has grown up trying to survive, and doing anything and everything so that he was able to survive. For instance, when he was in the war he would rob soldiers who were dead and steal horses. Since he has this survival mortality engraved into his mind and does not know anything different, it contributes to his justification of his wicked actions. It seems like he does not realize or maybe does not care what he does and how it affects other people. He may think his actions of burning barns and disrespect is justifiable because he is just trying to survive and provide for his family, just as his father had done when he was young. However, on the other hand, his son was able to pick up on clues given by other people to determine that his father’s actions were unethical and that he disagreed with his behaviour. So that idea causes me to feel no compassion for the father. Furthermore, the father seems to have simply given up on improving his lifestyle and himself, which strengthens my notion to feel no compassion for him. I believe the father’s moral direction is damaged and lost, which causes him to believe that this is his life now and he cannot change it, so he might as well just live through it and realize success is inaccessible now. If this is truly how the father feels then I do not feel any sympathy for him. I know this story was written in a different time than the present, where education, employment and life itself was very different, but I believe everyone can improve their lives if they truly want to and give themselves completely to transforming their lives. Sarty is proof of my belief; he disagreed with his father’s morals and recognized that he needed to get away to obtain a better life and that is exactly what he did.
ReplyDeleteWe spoke about ethics, morals and values last week in class. The discussion of whether teachers should be teaching certain ethics was very fascinating because this discussion came up many times in my undergraduate years in Sociology classes. Teaching ethics is not part of the actual school curriculum but it is a fact that certain values are taught in the educational system thus shaping children development. Through teaching certain values whether informally or informally, the teaching of ethics will arise. It a sense, the teaching of values come hand in hand with the teaching of ethics. An example would be the teaching of gender and what is expected of a female and a male. An specific example I have witnessed is when I took home economics in grade 12. The teacher was especially lenient on the male students of that home economics class and expected less from them opposed to the females in that class. The teacher is indirectly and unconsciously teaching the traditional roles of gender expectations. In a sense, all teachers will be teaching ethics regardless if they want to or not. Teachers need to be cognitively aware of their actions as well as their words because children will try to understand and piece together their identity in relation to values taught.
ReplyDeleteThe story “Barn Burning” is an excellent example indirect teaching of morals, values and ethics. Sarty was taught one set of values and ethics by his family but apparently he developed a different set of values by observing behaviours of others around him. I do not think that it is because of the generation gap between the father and Sarty that made Sarty change. I think that Sarty's change in beliefs and values came from the curiosity of learning. The development of a new identity occurred for Sarty because he felt indifferent and was able to question the way he was living. I believe age does not matter when it comes to understanding values and ethics. The thing that can cause someone to change is the willingness one feels to change. A question I always wonder is...how does one feel the need to change? Some people are very stubborn, how do you open up their minds? Facts and examples could be present but some people still stick to their ignorant views.
There was lots of discussion in last week’s class about whether or no tit is appropriate to teach morals in schools. There are many concerns as to whether or not it would put increased pressure on the teachers or create conflicts because of different cultural beliefs. However, I think that during these discussions many people underestimated the effect that learning from example can have. I don’t think that teaching morals relies on having to sit down and discuss what they are and how you can tell good morals from bad. I believe that people learn what is right and wrong in this world mostly from the examples that other people set for them. They observe how their peers and those adults they respect behave towards others and then take in the reactions of those who are observing these interactions, and interpret these into their own sense of morality. That is not to say that there would not be any influence from discussion or “teaching” of morals as well. However, it does mean that to a certain degree the question of whether or not morals should be taught in schools is moot, since they are going to be taught with or without active instruction. This viewpoint also limits the concern that it would put undue pressure on the teacher as this model only requires them to show good morals themselves. It also negates the concern for students of different cultural backgrounds because they would be shown only the most basic of moral standards such as how you should treat others, and the behaviour that is expected within the grounds of the classroom and school. How a person should treat others is, or should be, in my opinion, a universal moral regardless of culture. Another point to be made is that so long as the morals taught are kept in the context of the school there is the argument that the school itself can be considered as merely another culture. The morals of both must be respected as differing but valid and as such need to be followed appropriately when in the corresponding context. It would be hypocritical of parents to expect the school to respect the cultural morals of their culture and then not respect the moral culture of the school in turn.
ReplyDeleteAfter the discussion last class I realized that many people I know within the education system often preach to their students how they should behave, however they do not behave in this way themselves. I find this disturbing because they are frequently sending mixed messages to their students. However, in the same breath who am I to judge. I have tried numerous times to bring it to their attention but often they do not see the disconnection. I am not sure why but it bothers me, almost on a daily basis, I guess it may be because my moral values differ from them.
ReplyDeleteI felt that this week’s class lecture is very interesting. In other education classes we have always relate to the topic of moral development; however, this was the first time where I am able to apply my own experience into this topic. When we talked about where children can learn moral instruction in the beginning of class, this made me realize family background ,like friends and cousins, are also very important element in children’s process of self development. Therefore, in the list of “where in our young lives do we receive moral instructions” I think we should include the category of friends and family members too. For me, I have many close cousins due to the reason that all of our parents are busy with their works; therefore we were always taken to our grandmother’s house during weekends. This was one of the places where I learn my moral aspect of lives. Since I was one of the younger cousins amount all of them, I would take my cousin as my role models. At that time, I did not understand or know which actions are considered non acceptable or acceptable until our parents get mad at us and punish us. I would do whatever they do and play whatever they liked because I thought their actions are correct. And when my older cousins got punished I would know that those types of actions that can lead to punishment; therefore those actions are considered as wrong actions and I should never do it.
ReplyDeleteFor the story we read this week,” Barn Burning”, I felt very sorry for Sarty, because he has a family that has very different moral values than him. I’m sure he had a very difficult time deciding rather to follow his father’s moral values or not. This can be due to the reason that many of us, when we were young, we would see our parents are role models and learn from them. We would feel that every action that they take is considered to be correct. However, in his situation, he would have to question the moral values of the person that he learns from or admires ever since he was little. Also I felt that Sarty’s dad might have an experienced a horrible childhood. He gave me an impression that he felt that everyone in the world had done something bad to him and everyone owes him. And that is the reason why he would not listen to his family’s opinion of his actions, nor care about why the county asked him to leave the country at all. If he is not as stubborn, I am sure his life with his family would be better.
In last weeks class our focus for the night was ethics, and a question we were asked to think about was whether we thought ethics should be taught in schools. I think ultimately that morals and ethics should be the responsibility of the parents to teach because some parents may not agree with what the teacher or schools teach. However teachers will always be faced with teaching or enforcing some form of ethics with their students regardless of whether or not they are supposed to be teaching them. The key is that teachers don’t over step their boundaries. Since I plan on one day becoming a teacher I think questions like these are important to start thinking about now and how one might deal with these sorts of problems in the future. It also may help to reflect back on how teachers you had in the past dealt with similar situations.
ReplyDeleteIn the story “Barn Burning” we observe how even in a family setting parents can have very different morals, and how difficult it is for children to decipher which if any of those values they will choose for themselves to practice. Children are taught the morals of their parents when growing up and usually believe that these are the ultimate rules until they are young teens and begin to see that their peers and other members of society may have values that differ from those their parents practice. This was the case with Sarty when they were at the first town meeting and he realizes that his fathers’ actions are not condoned by the rest of society. Sarty’s mother also disapproves of the fathers actions, but is unable to persuade him otherwise and so she sits by helplessly. Sarty is the only one in the family who is able to break free and stand up for what he believes is right, even though this means breaking free from his family. I find that I don’t practice all of the morals my parents taught me when I was young, but at least in today’s society I think it’s a little easier to do your own thing and not have to leave the family in order to do so. Part of growing up and becoming your own person is about finding out what ethics you want to live by and what you think is morally right and wrong.
Throughout the story “Burning Barn” Sarty observes his father’s actions and personally decides that his father’s choices are wrong and immoral. Even though Sarty was punished for any moral actions he displayed he still believed in doing the right thing. That memorable visit to Major de Spain’s house was nothing less of an inspiration for Sarty to do the “right thing” regardless of consequential beating that awaited him.
ReplyDeleteEven after being raised by an immoral father, Sarty still had a strong belief in his own morals. These morals motivated him to do the right thing. I think this demonstrates how strong willed this boy was. Sarty demonstrates his moral development by taking action and doing the “right” thing.
Sarty’s self-oriented morals surprised me. Especially since he comes from a family who does not take responsibility for their own actions. Often we are taught morals at a young age. As a toddler I was rewarded for my “good” actions but punished for my “bad” actions. My parents led by example. The guidance that my parents provided me with was a stepping stone to realizing my own moral beliefs of what is “good” and bad”. This aided me in deciding my moral principals.
Consequences always prevented me from taking action whether that action was moral or immoral. At the end of the story Sarty takes control of his own life regardless of the consequences. He takes charge and does what he find to be moral even though it means he may never see his family again. In my opinion, making these life-changing decisions based on self-morals is all a part of growing up. Finding out who YOU really are, where you stand, and what your personal morals, which Sarty did, shows a great deal of self-development.
Barn burning was a very complex story for me. I felt I had to read it over several times before I really caught the whole grasp of the story. I deeply felt for the boy due to the intricacy and magnitude of his moral dilemma. Traditionally morals and family are very much one in the same, we learn many of our morals from our parents. It is a part of being a parent to offer moral guidance. The secondary place where we traditionally learn these morals is in a school setting. Considering the boy did not attend school, or at least schooling is not mentioned, it is difficult to imagine where he developed such strong beliefs. He intends to go along with his family and reaffirms to himself throughout the story that he is a part of the family and believes the things they do, recognizing a common enemy for example. However he doesn’t really seem to believe it. It is amazing that he could develop such a moral consciousness with role models like his father and his older brother.
ReplyDeleteWe discussed the idea in class that if an individual has at least one person in their life to keep them “on the road to morality” if you’ll excuse the cliché, then they are able to succeed. I think we may have overlooked the role of the aunt within the class. She doesn’t come about much, but she does say that they should let the boy go rather than holding him back after the father leaves to burn the barn. This tiny glimpse at the character of the aunt may just be enough to assume that she is the one piece of
moral guidance the poor boy has.
I tried to find some way to be sympathetic or to understand the father in some way, but I just can’t do it. I tried to think of all the suffering he has done in his life and how that would cause him to be jaded. I tried to use that idea to excuse his behaviors, but I just couldn’t do it. His younger son has suffered many a hardship in his young life at the hands of his father, but he still finds a way to be morally sound. If he can do it at a young age then his father throughout his life should have been able to as well.
The issue of morality and what exactly it means and how it looks is a difficult concept to understand. I would have to say that moral teachings at the most basic level belong in a classroom. Examples of this would be: be nice, don’t hurt other people, and don’t cheat. Basically morals that cannot be argued as wrong or at least the vast majority wouldn’t argue against them in our society. I do believe that morals are more the work of the parents and community that are raising the child. Morals do change between cultures, religions, and even regions, and so it doesn’t seem right to me that a teacher should have the responsibility of teaching what is right and what is wrong. In today’s classroom we have to present an education that is free of religious influence. Many schools students are not allowed to have a Christmas celebration, but a holiday celebration instead. If we are not even allowed to use the name of a Christian holiday then the idea of teaching a certain set of moral beliefs and values seems absolutely out of the question.
During the group discussions last class it was very interesting to hear everyone’s ideas about teaching morals in the classroom. Personally I think that we shouldn’t tackle morals directly in schools, but they do need to be a part of what children learn there. I don’t think that morality should be necessarily be involved in the curriculum, but I don’t see how it would be possible to get through a school day without encountering some moral issue and I think these moments should be taken advantage of as learning opportunities. Of course we shouldn’t be teaching children anything that might directly conflict with what they believe at home, for example that a certain religion or views within that religion are right over another, but it is very important that as teachers we model things such as how to treat other people. We also need to create classroom environments that help foster moral development. Children need to learn about things like violence and lying beyond just being told that “we don’t do this because it’s bad”. I believe it would be a great idea to start looking at these things at a more philosophical level during elementary school and asking children things like “what does truth mean?” and “What is lying and why don’t we lie?”. From personal experience I have found that some children don’t really know the answer to “why don’t we lie” and will give you answers like “because it’s bad” or “because we should tell the truth” and yet they don’t have reasons why other than someone told them so. If we help children develop their own concepts of morality with their own reasoning instead of just telling them that something is right or wrong, I think it would go a long way and help children feel confident about these concepts and to help them analyze situations that they haven’t yet been given someone else’s opinions on. In this way they will be more likely to think for themselves and to feel more comfortable doing so.
ReplyDeleteI think that Sarty manages to break through the position he is in with his father and not only think for himself, but have the courage to follow his beliefs in what he thinks is right. We see earlier in the story that Sarty tries to do what his father tells him in terms of morality. His father thinks that it is wrong for Sarty to do anything but support him because of their blood relation. After his father makes this clear, we see Sarty trying to stick up for him more than once, but as the story goes on Sarty begins to have doubts and at the end he decides for himself what is right and what he is willing to do to support his belief. Like many children in schools today, Sarty’s sense of morality begins by just adopting the moral beliefs of people who influence him and not with his own though. Later Sarty somehow manages to develop within himself even though he is not in an environment that fosters thinking for oneself.
I was in Manitoba with family members following my grandfathers death at the time of our last class. I will therefore comment on William Faulkner’s “Barn Burning” as well as making a connection between Sarty’s moral dilemma and experiences in my own life.
ReplyDeleteWhile one observes Abner Snopes’ ignorance and cruelty in dealing with black servants, the white landowner and the Justice of the Peace, it is important to attempt to understand how the difference in morality between him and his son developed. There was a large generation gap between them. As a sharecropper, Abner undoubtedly traded his hard labor to rich landowners for little gain, while the rich landowner benefited greatly. Faulkner also makes reference to the fact that Abner survived the bloody American Civil War during the second half of the 19th century, hiding from both sides. The conditions of poverty, abuse, distrust and neglect in a practical sense did not facilitate development of a code of conduct or a set of beliefs which distinguish between right and wrong behavior. Abner, in his mind, was entirely justified in burning down Major De Spain’s barn given the vengeance of the landowner when Abner had soiled a carpet. Sarty’s ethics developed from observing his father’s ignorance and lack of conception of what is moral, to develop his on sense of right and wrong. He therefore warns Major De Spain that Abner is heading off to burn down the barn. In consequence, his father is killed and Sarty is set free.
For myself, moral awareness commenced as a child. My instructed my sister and me in distinguishing between right and wrong in our treatment of others. Her display of family values stood out against the norms of society which seem to place more value on commodities than on familial relationships. Demonstration of my moral awareness differed from that of my peers. While they began post-secondary education, I opted to work in a group home. My ethical development proceeded as I assisted those less able and my views of right from wrong also transformed as I saw that, in some cases, society needed to be protected from the very people I supported. I hope to be able to transmit moral discernment to the students I work with in the future.
Who is responsible for teaching us morality? Is it our parent, our friends, our school teachers? Last week we posed this question in class and questioned whether morality should be taught in a classroom setting. In my opinion, this wouldn’t be the most effective way of teaching us values and morals as I believe it is rather a learning process. The principles and morals we acquire should be from our own experiences and backgrounds. I feel that if this is ‘taught’, we cannot appreciate its significance whereas, if we acquire them on our own from different situations, these values will be more meaningful to us. Different teachers can have different biases on what should be taught and they may argue that they have a better understanding of morality. Who should decide this? Clearly, there is no right answer. Morality is something that we can learn through experience and develop base on our own beliefs. It is what creates our individuality and personality. Thus as we experience life, we also build a foundation of values and morals.
ReplyDeleteAnother topic that intrigued me was ethics. Last week we discussed the issue of ethics and some dilemmas that are faced within the context of our workplace. It appears that most of these problem center on the misuse of the internet and taking advantage the computers at work. I speak of my own experiences when I say this, and it is quite evident that individuals are starting to exploit their ability to use computers. When I spoke with a few students last week, I learnt that I wasn’t the only one that had experienced this type of ethical issue at work and that many people are victimized by this particular problem. The last job I had was a call center in which we were required to make calls to our clients to remind them of their upcoming payments as it was a payday loans company. The employee who sat beside me was using his computer to surf the internet and visit sites such as facebook. Of course I was caught in a situation in which I didn’t know what to do: do I tell the manager or continue allowing him to take advantage of his position? There are many other individuals who face this type of unethical situation and as we experience more in life, I think we will learn on our own what to do when this problem arises.
Our class discussion about morals and whether it is appropriate for teachers to provide their moral input within classes. This discussion is very conflicting because we tend to turn to our morals in every situation which we are faced with but we don’t want to step on anyone toes since they may disagree. When is it ok to provide your opinions and when is it best to ignore when others have different opinions than you. I think there are some basic values that teachers can place within classroom that the majority of people within society. Values such as be kind to everyone, doing the best that you can, and not hitting other children are alright to teach to students because they are basic human values. Values involving religion should be kept out of the classroom since they maybe conflicting to the childs beliefs or what their family believe.
ReplyDeleteThe worst case scenario that I have witnessed that violated my moral values was when a manager was prejudice towards our customers. She would inform the sale associates to keep an eye on particular customers or to follow them around to make sure that they don’t steal anything. At first, I thought that she may have had a reason to follow around certain customers such as maybe they were acting extremely suspicious but it turned out that their outward appearance was the reason they were being followed around. Customers that had tattoos or had a shaved head were followed by associates. Eventually, associates figured out that the manager was stereotyping customers so that they just stopped following customers around.
I thought the story “Barn Burning”, was a great example of doing what’s right. In Sarty’s case, he was fed up with everything his father was doing, and did the right act by informing the owner of the property, de Spain, about what his father was going to do. At the end of the story, Sarty did what he felt was morally right, and followed his heart. However, in reality, most children may not have the same conscience as Sarty. In most cases, many children at a very young age are influenced by their parents. I believe that if a parent sets a bad example of morals and ethics to a child early on, basically, “what’s good and wrong”, they may have a higher chance of following in their parents footsteps. Usually, most children look up to their parents, and if a parent sets a bad example for their kids, kids may not know their wrongs from rights. Therefore, I think it is important if parents should try to help kids develop good social skills and moral values, at a young age
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, I thought it was very interesting listening to some of the stories regarding “work and ethics” in our group discussions. Like the others, I have also had an experience where morality and ethics played a part. My experience was when one my manager told me to lie to another worker from a different store who wanted a computer monitor transferred to them. My manager told me, to tell them we did not have any, even though there were three of them in our store. However, I decided to bend the rules a bit because the associate from the other store was a friend of mine. I felt that it was morally wrong to lie to him about not having the product in stock. In the past, my friend working at the other store had transferred many products to me, so I felt it was morally wrong to lie to him about something this small. Therefore, I decided to go ahead with the transfer. Afterwards, I told my manager what did, and he had an angry/funny look on his face. However, nothing happened afterwards and the day went on as usual. In the end, I knew what I did was right, and honestly this proved to me that honestly always wins, and I really felt good inside.
In today’s class we discussed the idea of self-development and I have to say that I found this topic to be very interesting. Self-development is key to our success both professionally and personally. It is something that we must be aware of on a daily basis, and we must actively work to better ourselves and our understanding. In life we are always presented with opportunities to better ourselves and increase our knowledge and understanding.
ReplyDeleteWe also discussed the idea of Moral development. There are many things in our lives and society that help aid our moral development. Our parents, teachers and friends play a very important part in our moral development, but we also must remember that society also plays a large role through things such as television, radio, and the internet. In class we were asked the question “Should morals be taught in School?” When I first read this question I was torn between saying yes and no, so after giving this question some serious thought I believe that schools do teach morals to children, and I also believe that it is an important lesson too. However, being that this can be a sensitive subject, I believe that a distinction needs to be made between certain morals. I think that it is important to teach children, respect and manners, as well as some of the fundamental values that society holds. I think that when religion and more complex personal morals become involved that it is important for the school system to take a step back and allow parents and their children the opportunity to deal with these issues. The school system is not in place to determine which religion or set of beliefs is more important than the next.
Ethics in the workplace is something that most of have to think about and deal with when we go to our jobs. Conflicts with coworkers, managers, and customers are something that many of us deal with in our daily jobs, as well as thinks such as theft, lying and cheating. I think that this topic is something that many people struggle with at work. If you witness something wrong are you willing to put yourself out there enough to call somebody on it or to cause trouble. I think that as teenagers we would tend to avoid these situations and remain quiet; however, I believe that as we age we begin to develop a greater understanding of what is right and wrong and we are more willing to take a risk to stand up for what is right.
The first time I read the story the “Barn Burning” by William Faulkner I had a difficult time grasping the message of the story. However, after giving the story a second read and by discussing it with my fellow class mates I began to get a clearer picture of the story and the ideas that it was presenting. I feel that Sarty was struggling with the idea of family loyalty and societies morals. I think that at the beginning of the story he stuck by his father even though he knew what he was doing was wrong, but by the end of the story he could no longer push aside what he knew to be wrong in order to stay loyal to his father. I don’t think that the argument that his father was a naturalist is a good enough reason to excuse all of the wrong things that he did. I believe that over time Sarty realized this and this is why he turned his back on his father in the end.
In response to the question, “Should ethics be taught in the classroom?”, I feel that it should. While there will always be a difference of opinion about what constitutes appropriate ethics, I think that there are some fundamental attributes that, if applied to and by everyone, the world would be a happier place. I find that western society at large has turned into individualistic bubbles that people don’t look out for each other anymore. Not all, but some people, don’t seem to realize that their actions have effects on others, but think they inside some insular shield. As mentioned in class, a lot of people don’t want to get involved, that it’s not their problem. I believe that we are all connected and need to look out for each other. Somebody falls, you help them up, not laugh as you step over them. In the classroom, I think respecting people’s opinions, understanding diversity, and having compassion for others are things that need to be both modeled and specifically talked about.
ReplyDeleteIn “Barn Burning”, I felt a lot of empathy for Sarty and very little for his father. Here’s a kid who has to do what he’s told, even though he knows it’s wrong. He has to try and internally justify his father’s actions in order to continue supporting his father and the family. That conflict is a lot to take for a child who might not have the capacity to fully understand his father’s actions and intentions. Watching someone do something that in your gut you know is wrong, but feel powerless to stop, is a very heavy load, especially for a child. Sarty had to watch his father do the same thing (burn the barn) over and over, without any regard for what it meant for anyone else. This alone justifies my position that ethics need to be taught in the classroom. Otherwise, Sarty and children in his situation may grow up to repeat what has been modeled in their family.