Self Centered?
This was a response to Sarah’s blog
The idea of being a self centered race totally makes me think of ghosts and the SciFi channel. The Ghost Hunters (whom I love to watch- and who have nothing to do with the class, but that’s okay) always debunk ghost sightings in mirrors and the like by saying people often want to see ghosts in dust smudges, cracks, etc. I totally agree that we want to see something that is familiar to us, or something that we understand. I also don’t think that it is merely because we are so self centered, but that it is a way to help us to understand and view the world.
I really like the idea of human-centered that Sarah mentioned. It seems like such an obvious term, but I haven’t really thought about it as much, nor do I think that it is understood as much as the term self-centered (and doesn’t have such a negative connotation).
Sarah Antinora said,
May 12, 2008 at 3:16 am
I was so thrilled to see your comment and to know that someone actually reads my blog. I read each of our class’s blogs, every week, but I still feel timid in commenting. So this leads me to think about the permanency of blogging and online conversation. If you and I were having a face-to-face chat, I would obviously respond and not feel too pressured to sound amazingly intelligent. However, as soon as I know my comment will (or at least could be) read by others, then each word counts all that much more. All of a sudden, my words matter. Now, how is that for self-centered?!
Katie said,
June 10, 2008 at 6:20 am
You’re right – changing the term “self-centered” to “human-centered” certainly sounds less negative. It is funny how we are afraid to sound “selfish,” when all selfish really means of or for the self. Since when did doing something for the self become a bad thing in all cases? =) The way McCloud makes his statement about humans being a self-centered race, it certainly sounds negative, and I think Sarah responded to that by taking herself out of that act by using the universal “human” vs. the particular “self” by which she either includes us all in the “self-centered” act or removes herself from its “negative” connotation. Indeed an interesting response on both of your parts.
It is amazing how words have such emotive power!