Lots of Reflection
Connecting with the team: As a team we approached the idea of perfection from a mental point of view. As is evident from the homepage emotion is what connected each topic to the next. Self-mutilation ties closely with anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa because both are destructive behaviors to the body that stem from the person' s thoughts. Because these two topics were so closely related they were presented together. One quote from a site entitled Cutters, "A disproportionate number of the queer people I know have been/are cutters"(http://vinland.org/scamp/institute/dsh.html). This cite is very informal and uses some language that I do not appreciate; however, this would be a connection with the topic of sexuality and again with emotion. Not being accepted in society can cause a strong emotional reaction and may then lead to harmful behavior. This harmful behavior and emotion is what one might call suffering. Ben Sauer discussed suffering and it's different philosophies.
Connecting with The Ideal: The honors course this semester at Monmouth College was focusing on the ideal and what that means. What is ideal? What is perfect? Does it exist? Each person chose a topic and presented to the class his or her information. As is evident my topic was self-mutilation. The course in this problem tie together like peanut butter goes with jelly because self-mutilation can be punishment for not being perfect. The person is not the perfect child, the perfect friend, nor do they have the perfect body. Perfection plays a huge role in self-injury. There was, in fact, one girl who got a D on a math test and carved the letter into her foot as a reminder of her imperfection. These sufferers feel like they are always at the bottom of the mountain and they can never get anywhere.
Connecting with the Perfect Drug (Mike Olson): Mike Olson, another student in the class, talked about being healthy. He explained to the class, as I did, the results of having low serotonin levels. Mike, however, included in his presentation what foods can bring your serotonin levels up. In certain foods there is a chemical called Tryptophan. By improving one's diet, to the ideal diet of course, he or she will feel better, be less irritable and moody. Both of these topics deal with the body, what affects the body, and how the body feels because of certain factors.
"This site was created for an honors course at Monmouth College by students."