Personal Philosophy Paper

There's many ways to explain philosophies. One's philosophy is not best expressed in words. It's expressed in the choices we make. Ones doings can start a conception then spread worldwide. It takes one person to compose a group. Like the quote written by Martin Luther King Jr. he explains how a philosophy may start. "Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective." Each philosophy is conceived a different way. There are several philosophies our class has studied; each philosophy includes different beliefs and incommensurable values. The philosophies are Puritanism, Rationalism, Romanticism and Transcendentalism.

The first philosophy we learned was over Puritanism. The Puritans lived in a spiritual world of graciousness. They were to behave well at all times. Also the bible to them was a huge deal as well as their belief in God. The Puritans thought Jesus was sent down to earth to save certain people. This philosophy on Puritanism is more understandable than the other philosophies I learned, because to me it's more reasonable. These people kept diaries and histories because they believed it was their highest form of expression. They would use their writings to seek signs of God.

An example of Puritanism is Arthur Miller's movie The Crucible. In The Crucible the government in Salem was under the authority of the church. By how religious they were, anyone who was not a member of the church was not allowed to live in the community. For example they were so religious; adultery was considered one of the biggest sins. In the movie, Abigail had an affair with John Proctor and this was intolerable. This event is similar to Hawthorne's movie on The Scarlet Letter. This is an example of Puritanism, because adultery or any sin is considered a big problem in the philosophy of Puritanism. The Puritans had a very small amount of followers; therefore there are only a few living today.

The second philosophy I learned began in Europe and they were the Rationalist. The Rationalists were more logical than the other philosophies. They were wise because they believed God gave them brains for a reason, and of course they took advantage of the thought. The Rationalist were so clever; they were known as very knowledgeable tinkers. They solved problems easily and lived life like the Deists. Deism was brought into the world by the 18th century thinkers, and even though Deists had different religious backgrounds they were still intertwined with the Rationalist. Two different names don't change one belief. The Rationalist also believed the earth was noble and orderly. Unlike many philosophies God is there for us and he's helpful; his power of reason is essential. As for Sir Isaac Newton, he viewed God as a "clockmaker". As by this, he means "life goes on and works". Also the Rationalist thought the best way to serve God and make him happy is to make peace to others.

Two famous Rationalists were Benjamin Franklin and Tomas Jefferson. These two people made a difference in our world with their logic interventions. In the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, I read some inspirational sayings that had caught my eye. Ben Franklin was a man of words. He had thirteen virtues and his intention was to achieve the rules of them. I agree that most of his virtues are rather helpful and true. For example his second virtue "Silence: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation." In other words, listening rather than talking will help you gain more knowledge. Another individual who was a Rationalist was our third versatile president of the United States, Tomas Jefferson. While he was president, Jefferson "believed in the rights of individuals and state to govern them as much as possible." As in relation to rationalism, he expected people to do their own thing and let life go on and work. These are a few motivating examples of Rationalism.

Next the third philosophy I learned was Romanticism. This philosophy was more gothic and had a high inspiration in folk culture and myths. Romanticism valued poetry as the highest form of expression. Then following poetry was music, literature, and art. To understand their truths the Romantics had always took two roads. The roads they had were a supernatural path, and another path that leads to the real world such as nature. Instead of the natural world defining divinity, the exotic supernatural realms would be more realistic and awakening for them. Another thing the Romantics believed in was, the city is awful and it led to venality. It was considered a place of sin unlike the country.

The Romantics relied mostly on gut feelings, so if they assured something they would go on forth and do it even if they weren't positive. For example in The Birthmark adapted by Nathaniel Hawthorne; Aylmer, the antagonist was a discontented husband wanting perfection for his wife Georgiana. Georgiana, the protagonist was a young, beautiful,