Eras - Reflection

1. Define perception in your own words.

          Perception, in my own words, is the way that a person sees and interprets something. Perception is affected by the way a person is in a situation, the emotions that are passing through a person's mind, and the physical things that are happening to a person at that moment. For example, there are different ways that a person percepts a bullying situation. When someone is being bullied, there are three main types of people involved: the bully, the victim, and the bystander. Through a bully's mind, that person is probably thinking that the victim deserves the way that he/she is treating them. The victim is probably very confused. He/she probably doesn't understand why this is happening to them; are they more stupid, weaker, etc. than the bully? The bully sees their bullying as a deserving way to show power, while the victim sees it as a harsh punishment. The bystander is a complicated role, you could say. They are probably looking at the bullying situation in either the eyes of the bully or as the victim. Perception is a biased point of view, but it is neither right nor wrong because it is the way a person sees things. Every one's mind is different, so their perception of something would be slightly different to everyone else.

2. How does perception impact your understanding of history?

Hitler's Youth

         Perception impacts my understanding of history because it is the way that I interpret a situation or event that happens in history. In every country, there is a different history book than another country. This is because the people in a certain country, for example, would see the dictatorships of another country trying to take over their country differently than the people of that dictator. During WWII, and about ten years before that, Hitler started to "brainwash" the youth of Germany to try to build an army to create the "perfect," or Aryan race. While Hitler was coming into power, Hitler's Youth was starting to grow. They were learning that tall and strong people with pale skin, blond hair, and blue eyes were meant to rule and become the race of the world. Not everyone in Germany probably believed that the way Hitler was beginning to rule was the right way, but the majority of the growing army did. Though most, if not all, nations believe that Hitler was a cruel, evil dictator, Germany's history books may be slightly different than Poland's history books, since Hitler murdered most of their people, depending on the author of the book. Through other peoples' beliefs and perception of that era, the history books are going to tell a slightly different tale. A better analogy would probably be of China. China's past dictator, Mao Zedong. Many Chinese children are taught how he made their country great and never mention him being a cruel, communist dictator. Our, the United States', history books would tell something different. In conclusion, perception completely changes and impacts the understanding of history for every single person in our world.
 Image: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIiyNeVSGI3rZaNC1rRAU2gK2BGeRhkvLrraYCiX6YXWIJOpcSvlpHTr2WjAAkSxK6mdkEcvdYm0DekSOc8fg1TOKUSztdvQ3lHyczp9sc8REqi_t3nxd81bKkwZ-TVDLvZSX1zxAvy6M/s1600/hitler-youth-parade-nazi-germany-19.jpg


3. How does the perspective used in the videos sway your understanding of history?

          Perspective used in the videos sways my understanding of history by knowing more how people were affected during points in history by having the episodes told in the perspective of the people. For example, even though it was at the beginning of the first episode, I really enjoyed watching the trial and errors and finally success of the Hamilton Brothers. It seemed as though the audience is watching from the perspective of the men. Throughout their story, I was wondering to myself, is this information from a journal of one of theirs? It sounded as though one of the Hamilton Brothers was telling his story directly to the viewers. Once they finally hit the oil, I actually had goosebumps and was genuinely excited. They way the actors and voice actor performed their parts seemed so genuine that I felt like I was there in the moment of achievement.
          Other perspectives from outside of the people's perspectives in history also made me think deeper about the thoughts of others. To go into detail, I am talking about how the narrators are mainly successful people like celebrities, show hosts, and professors at universities. These people could have pretty much anything they want, but by the way they are telling the events in history, it seems as though they are in awe of the way on how people have pushed through struggles and hardships. I find this satisfying on how everyone can find something wonderful and intriguing in the littlest or even biggest, most negative events. I also found it a let down and a little teasing on how having people that may have too much money telling the audience of viewers about the past struggles of our nation... Do they really understand "struggling?" I'm sure that is going a little too far, and I'm sure that they have pushed through many hard times in their lives, but it was just a thought.

4. Can we ever tell the story of history without any perspective?

          Let me restate the question in my own mind: Can we ever tell the story of history without any perspective? It's hard to imagine learning about history without perspective. Is it actually possible? Everyone has their own perspective, and perception, of everything. What if everything we have been learning about our history has been twisted by bias and perspective of several people? That is probably the case. It may be possible to tell history without perspective, but it would be just pure facts. For example, you could state that the 18th Amendment, which establishes the prohibition of alcohol, was enacted on January 16, 1919. That would be the end of learning about that. There wouldn't be any perspective on why this amendment was put into place and explaining how women strongly proposed this to stop their husbands from coming home drunk and beating them. That wouldn't be included in the story of history because that would be behind the eyes of women in the early 1900s. So in all, I believe that the story of history cannot be told without perspective because that is how we understand the how's and why's of history.

5. Can perspectives ever be right or wrong?

         Perspective, in my own words, is a person's point of view. It is their opinion. Opinions can never be right nor wrong because that is a person's biased thought based on situations and beliefs that they hold on to. Do you remember in elementary school when there would be questions on deciding what was fact or opinion? I do. It would go a little something like this...

1. Fact or opinion: Our school starts at 9:05 a.m. at Westridge Elementary School. 
         My Answer: Fact
         Correct Answer: Fact
2. Fact or opinion: School is boring.
         Answer from the classmate across from me: FACT
         My Answer: Opinion, and I don't believe that school is boring :).
         Correct Answer: Opinion

         Everyone is entitled to their own opinions. Many people sitting in this room probably think that school is the most boring thing to do on the planet. I have to disagree with that. I actually enjoy school. I enjoy learning. Now nobody in this room will tell me that my answer is wrong because that is just what I think. My perspective of school may be different as well. I see it as a learning opportunity while another classmate may see it as a waste of time or just as a social hour. Perspectives are different, but none are right nor wrong because it is the way that a person sees things through their own eyes. Nobody can say that their eyes, mind, or opinions are wrong, right?