One of the major themes that have developed from this class this semester for me is the idea that many of the events that occurred are just a part of a cycle that occurs every few decades in societies. As changes occur, there are reactions to the changes, and that oftentimes can lead to conflict. This happens again and again and again, the question that begs to be asked is, how do we change that? The answer, I think, is that we can’t but more importantly, we shouldn’t. Activists such as Tom Hayden and others are so important to the process of society. The work they do, fighting for what they believe in, no matter what that is, is what makes human interaction so great. We can all believe differently, discuss them, and oftentimes disagree, but hopefully, bring about progress.
The texts that were discussed this year all show that belief. Every text highlighted characters or real people being passionate about what they believe in and allowing their life to go with how their passion guides them. This is especially important today when social media and the interconnectedness of society makes it so that someone with a passion really can make a change with that.
However, it is clear from the texts and society today there is another aspect to the societal cycle that is a lack of civil discourse that comes too few and far between in arguments online or in-person. There is so much anger, so much division today, but that was evident in Trial of the Chicago Eight and Martin Luther King’s works. Some things, it seems, have not changed, and as I said, I don’t think they will. In some ways that is good, in other ways, that is bad, but it is just the world we live in.