One Stubborn Lady.

Critical Thinking is probably one of the scariest concepts in English writing. Some may disagree with this but I make this statement confidently, as, in my experience with it, I have found that I am a stubborn girl who likes her comfort box. This is not only true in writing essays or analyzing a book for some class, but in other aspects of my life as well. I have found that, in order to think critically, one must let go of any preconceived notions, biases, opinions, and basically innate instincts in order to get started. This might seem extreme, but my fear of it is extreme. To be successful it seems one must be open-minded, rational, and disciplined. I do not only lack these things in writing, but also in everyday-life decisions and actions. Don't get me wrong, I am not an evil person that passes judgment or makes irrational decisions, I am just human, and with that comes the ability to look at a book, passage, or piece of literature without much thought. It is difficult for me to set aside any opinion or even my first thoughts that a specific passage says no more than what I got form it the first time through, and once I do make an effort to analyze it critically, I find myself influenced greatly by the biases that influence my thought process.
On the other hand, it seems what makes one unique in analyzing a piece of literature is the fact that every person comes from a different background that has shaped their thought process to produce ideas that are not like any other. For this reason, thinking critically feels like a balancing act between personal analysis and open-mindedness. I am not good at this balancing act. With previous work I find that I do not thoroughly remove my biases and opinions in order to analyze a piece and end up making my analysis too personal. I am very nationalistic and I am influenced by this in every aspect of my life. A few examples of this include the following: I feel that the education system in America lacks many things compared to the education system in the country I am from, the media is like poison to a society and I pay little attention to it, although America is a nation influenced mostly by the media and its portrayal of beauty and happiness, and finally I am reluctant to spend any time on politics because my own country as many political issues. These are examples of my nationalism that influences my ability to go from surface analysis of the things I have listed to critical analysis.
Taking a Critical Thinking and Research course is like signing my death certificate...at least that is what it feels like! I am however ready to be challenged and by taking this course I am convinced that the skills I will learn here will help me to balance the act of critical analysis and I will end the semester with the ability to critically analyze a piece of work without biases and opinions tainting my thought process, yet still use a writing style that reflects my individuality.
Stay tuned!