Introduction

I created this blog, because I wanted to share my personal definition of learning.  In casual conversation, learning is applied to nearly everything and usually implies the acquisition of knowledge.  However, I disagree with the colloquial definition of learning.  If I read a text book, walk into class, and repeat that knowledge back on a test, have I learned?  I would argue that I probably have not.  I believe that, in its best form, learning is a three step process.  Learning is to question the status quo, actively seek for greater understanding, and apply that knowledge.

Step 1: Question the status quo

     Too often, life is lived with the words, "that's just the way it is."  The people that ask why are generally the people who show the most learning.  They recognize that something should be changed, or they come to a greater understanding of why the status quo is in fact the best way to go.

Step 2: Actively seek for understanding through one of four facets:

• Empiricism - gaining knowledge and understanding through our own experiences
• Authority - trusting in someone else's understanding because of their experience
• Reason - determining what conclusion is most appropriate to be drawn from observations
• Intuition - gaining knowledge by the influence of the Spirit and also by Faith

The highest of these four, in my opinion is intuition.  The other methods, when combined with intuition, will lead to a greater understanding, and they are probably far closer to the truth.

Step 3: The final display of learning is through application.  When we obtain knowledge in answer to a question and then wait, we haven't really learned.  We must apply the knowledge we have gained to try and improve, or reinforce, the status quo.  Part of that application is sharing it with others. Learning experienced by one can become learning experienced by many.

In the following posts, I will attempt to support my definition of learning with various artifacts throughout the past that have led to the life my family and I have today as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the United States of America.  They are meant to represent those things that would help a new civilization form and understand that it should be based on the highest levels of learning.  You may notice that almost all of the artifacts are English and American.  I intended to focus on the English and American cultures as much as I could, because they have had the greatest impact on my personal experience.

1. The Globe Theatre

Date: 1599

Nationality: English
Owner: William Shakespeare (Co-owner)
Medium: Architecture

William Shakespeare is one of the most revered playwrights from all of history.  He isn't known as much for his plots, as he is for his incredible use of language.  He wrote most of his plays in iambic pentameter, meaning each line consisted of five sets of stressed and unstressed syllables.  He created thousands of words that were incorporated into the English language that are still used today.  Most of his works were performed in the Globe Theatre (pictured at the left).  The theater is meant to represent his vast number of plays that were performed on stage for the wealthy and the common alike.

Shakespeare showed learning through his desire to change the English language.  When he sought to express emotions in his powerful rhyme and meter, the English language couldn't cover it all.  He wanted to express more than the language could.  Having been educated, he understood the English language well, and so he reasoned and created.  Many of his words have a basis in other words but became either verbs or adjectives through his modifications.  These words have had a lasting effect on the English language and on the English culture to this day.  His application of learning led to 37 plays and 154 sonnets that are consistently read today.  The reminder of the Globe Theatre would help our new civilization to recognize the value of creativity in expression.  That sometimes the things we need to express can't be expressed through the conventional means and that learning is required to make it possible.

2. The Blue Boy

Date: 1770
Nationality: English
Painter: Thomas Gainsborough
Medium: Painting

Thomas Gainsborough was an English Rococo painter.  The English Rococo movement was very flattering to the aristocratic subjects.  They also featured pleasant natural settings to make the viewer feel content.  With Blue Boy, Gainsborough broke away from tradition.  Artists at the time had great difficulty creating intense blues, because the usual pigments are not very strong. Gainsborough saw this as a problem, and wanted to do something different.  He ground lapis lazuli, a "semi-precious stone," to make the intense blue pigment you see at the right.  Presumably, he got this knowledge from the authority of others.  He had to find these blue stones in the first place, before he could even determine that they would create such an impressive display with his artwork.  With the intense blue, the Blue Boy stands out and catches your attention more than most any other painting I've seen.  I would bring this so that our civilization could recognize the need for problem solving in order to create art.  The need to express requires creativity and learning, often against the traditions of the time.

3. Beethoven's Fifth Symphony

Date: 1804-1808
Nationality: German
Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven
Medium: Music

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German born composer who began his career in the Classical period of music.  He was a powerful performer and composer then, but soon his hearing began to fade.  As he became increasingly deaf, his music contained more passion and emotion, something not seen before.  He deviated from some of the forms involved in classical music and ushered in the new era of Romantic music.  These new types of music and art were highly emotional and told a story that drew in the audience.  Beethoven's Fifth symphony represents the height of his composing in the Romantic era. (the first movement of his fifth symphony is included)  I would bring this with our civilization to show that he faced great inner turmoil as he lost his hearing, something considered crucial to a performer.  However, because of his experiences, he could still compose and he wrote music to express his powerful emotions at the time.  He went against tradition and created something new and unexpected that became an era that is loved by so many today.  His empirical understanding led him to relate to the music and communicate the story of his pain as he lost his hearing. I believe that this could teach our civilization that learning requires a personal commitment and emotional involvement.  You can't have passive learning.

4. The Steam Engine

Date: 1712
Nationality: English
Inventor: Thomas Newcomen
Medium: Invention

England was perfectly prepared for the industrial revolution.  They had the natural resources, the capital, and the creativity for it.  One of the most creative inventions of the industrial revolution was the steam engine.  First created in 1712 by Thomas Newcomen, it was later improved upon by James Watt.  These men were faced with problems in their society, as they faced a need for more power.  Animal power, which had been used for several millennium, wasn't enough.  England had a ravishing hunger for coal, so they had to dig deeper and deeper.  As the mines filled with water, they needed some way to pump it all out.  Thomas Newcomen saw the need and found a solution.  Through empiricism and reasoning, he was able to develop the steam engine.  Although it was inefficient, it did the job. The concept behind the steam engine is till utilized today, over three hundred years later.  Though we have had many improvements, the basic concepts of a steam powered turbine are at the basis of our power production.  This is perhaps one of the most tangible displays of learning yet.  In our civilization, the steam engine will show the need for innovation and creativity in the application of our knowledge.  Merely discovering that steam has energy to be harnessed wouldn't have been enough, but Newcomen found a need for such technology and put it to use.  Every good civilization should be founded on principles of problem solving, intelligent application, and the acquisition of knowledge.

5. Tyndale's English Bible

Date: Sixteenth Century
Nationality: English
Author: William Tyndale
Medium: Text

William Tyndale brought an English translation of the Wycliffe Bible to England.  According to Strong and Davis, there is a story that an English Catholic Bishop went to the Netherlands to destroy all the English translations of the Bible.  The current law forbade publishing any edition of the Bible that wasn't approved by the church.  Apparently this Catholic Bishop went to the printer in the Netherlands and asked to buy all of the Bibles that had been printed.  The printer agreed but explained that he had to get them from another location and that it would take a few days. After the Bishop left, he spoke to Tyndale and decided to sell the Bibles and use the money to print more!  For his work contrary to the laws of the church, William Tyndale was executed.

William Tyndale questioned the authority of the church to keep the Bible from the general public.  He felt, intuitively, that such censorship was unfair.  He reasoned that all men should be allowed to know God's word, so he went to work.  He sought to change the status quo by distributing his translated Bible to the English commoners.  He stood by his beliefs to the end, and showed powerful learning throughout.  I would bring Tyndale's Bible to my new civilization, so that the people could learn that sometimes the status quo of 1500 years is wrong.  His story shows that when we feel so strongly about something, we should stand by our beliefs firmly, even through great adversity.

6. Two Treatises of Government

Date:1690
Nationality: English
Author: John Locke
Medium: Text

John Locke was an English philosopher who, again according to Strong and Davis, is known as the "'forefather of our forefathers,'" because his ideas were so central to the Declaration of Independence (to be discussed).  He was known for his intellectual questioning and writing, and he was even considered the leader of the Age of Enlightenment in England.  His work, Two Treatises of Government, laid the basis for a constitutional or limited monarchy.  His ideas were first well implemented with the rule of William and Mary following the Glorious revolution. In summary, he felt that governments were under a "social contract" with the people, to only protect their life, liberty, and property.  If a government did more or less than this, they violated their contract and deserved to be overthrown.  This was in great contrast to the law of absolute monarchs previous to this.  So, when faced with such concepts of absolute monarchy, Locke questioned the legitimacy and fairness of such leadership, and he decided he did not like it.  He was forced to flee England for a time, because his ideas were so controversial.  However, upon William and Mary's ascension to the throne, he returned with honor.  I would bring his Two Treatises of Government, because he showed such courage in the face of opposition.  Additionally, I think he showed some intuition as well as reason in determining these aspects.  His experience taught him empirically that absolute monarchies were inherently unfair and unjust.  He applied this knowledge and understanding to write this highly influential masterpiece.  His ideas were so influential that they are intended to guide our government in the United States today.  Hopefully our civilization could learn from this, that when we see injustice, we are not to just accept our fate.  We should look for another solution, we should change the status quo.

7. The Declaration of Independence

Date: July 4, 1776
Nationality: American
Author: Thomas Jefferson et al.
Medium: Text

The Declaration of Independence is generally recognized as one of the most important documents in history.  It was crafted by some of the greatest minds of the time, and it led to the creation of a world superpower.  It was based upon the writings of John Locke in it's complaints against the British government.  They had faced taxation when they had no representation in the British parliament.  When denied representation, they recognized the injustice of the British control over the Americas.  Although they were greatly outnumbered, the Americans declared their independence from Britain and continued to fight in the Revolutionary war, proving to the world that America was its own country. I would bring this to our civilization for two major reasons.  First, It shows the ability of a people to learn together.  They all had their own knowledge and experience that they brought together, shared, and then applied to their separation from Britain.  A group learning together can prove to be stronger than an individual.  Second, the Declaration shows the importance of freedom to learning.  The United States was created upon inalienable rights that allowed the country to flourish for centuries.  Because of the freedom in America, learning and creativity has been displayed throughout the two hundred years that have brought the United States to a leading position in the world.

8. The Book of Mormon

Date: 1830
Nationality: American
Translator: Joseph Smith Jr.
Medium: Inspired Text

The Book of Mormon was translated through divine inspiration by the prophet Joseph Smith.  He was born during a time of great religious turmoil.  He studied the Bible and reasoned that if he wanted to know the truth, then he should ask for it, as James 1:5 states.  He asked for direction as to which church was true, and through his questioning, he was led to The Book of Mormon and translated it by the power of God.  He then spent the remainder of his life establishing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints under Heavenly Father's direction.  The  Church has grown to membership of over 14 million people worldwide, and it is the fastest growing religion in the world.  I believe this is the ultimate expression of learning, because I believe The Book of Mormon to be the word of God.  It has had an incredible impact in millions of lives, and the application of the inspiration that Joseph Smith received has had and will have effects of infinite importance.  I feel that our civilization would benefit from having this divine work for study and understanding, and application in our own lives.  It can be a source of learning, and an example of the importance of intuition, as defined in the introduction.

9. Man's Search for Meaning

Date: 1946

Nationality: Austrian
Owner: Viktor Frankl
Medium: Text

Viktor Frankl spent years in a concentration camp during the holocaust.  He was a psychologist and neurologist.  During his time in camp, facing some of the most horrible and terrifying circumstances, he sought for meaning.  He watched as some turned to despair, while there were others who acted with kindness and generosity even when they had lost everything.  He is a powerful example of someone who learns even in the most desperate circumstances.  His writing states, "The way in which a man accepts his fate and all the suffering it entails, the way in which he takes up his cross, gives him ample opportunity--even under the most difficult circumstances--to add a deeper meaning to his life.  It may remain brave, dignified and unselfish.  Or in the bitter fight for self-preservation he may forget his human dignity and become no more than an animal.  Here lies the chance for a man either to make use of or to forgo the opportunities of attaining the moral values that a difficult situation may afford him.  And this decides whether he is worthy of his sufferings or not." (Strong and Davis 752)  His bravery is unparalleled.  He faced such great terrors, and yet he is taking it as a learning experience, a time to make him stronger.  If I and my civilization can look at suffering and pain as opportunities to grow, we will continue to progress until the end of our civilization itself.  He questioned the power of his oppressors, by claiming that they couldn't take away everything, he still had choices.  He recognized the power in kindness, no matter the circumstance, and he shared what he had learned with the world, urging others to learn from their sufferings in their own way.

Personal Application

Part of Brigham Young University's mission statement is to develop "lifelong learning."  Since my senior year in high school, I have developed a thirst for knowledge and experience.  I want so much to grow, learn, and try to become the best I can.  Coming to college has only enhanced my desire to learn.  There is so much knowledge available, and as I experience new things, I am faced with many questions.  In the past I may have written them off and ignored them.  Now, I want to find the answers, and I want to remember them.  I don't want to sit idly, I want to apply that knowledge.  I think that my definition of learning has caused me to set many goals.  As I ask questions and find the answers, I learn things that I could do better.  I set goals to make those changes.  If, after some time, I still haven't made it to my goal, I may need to reevaluate and ask a new question about why the method isn't working.  The cycle continues until I feel I have truly accomplished something, and then I set a new goal.  My goals are guiding me to a career in academia.  I want to be a professor so that I may continue to research and learn as well as share my experience with others.

I think this class has helped me to focus on what learning means to me.  It has helped to give me some direction as I apply my knowledge, and I have seen what great things people can do if they do it right.  Hopefully I can pass on this thirst for knowledge to others, because there is true joy in learning.

Works Cited

Buttal, Jonathan.  "The Blue Boy." The Blue Boy. The Huntington Library, Art Collections,
     and Botanical Gardens, 2013. Web. 11 Apr. 2013.

Gibbs, Christopher H. "Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67." NPR. NPR, 09
     June 2006. Web. 11 Apr. 2013.
      <http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5473894>.
Locke, John. Internet History Sourcebooks. Thesis. Fordham University, 1690.
     N.p.:n.p.,n.d. Internet Histroy Sourcebooks. Fordham University, July 1998. Web. 11
     Apr. 2013. <http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1690locke-sel.asp>.
Noble, Holcomb B. "Dr. Viktor E. Frankl of Vienna, Psychiatrist of the Search for Meaning,
     Dies at 92." The New York Times. The New York Times, 04 Sept. 1997. Web. 15 Apr.
     2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/04/world/dr-viktor-e-frankl-of-vienna-
     psychiatrist-of-the-search-for-meaning-dies-at-92.html>.
Strong, Brent, and Mark Davis. History of Creativity in the Arts, Science, & Technology:
     1500 - Present. [S.l.]: Kendall Hunt, 2011. Print.

Images and Videos:

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