Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Book 2, CH 10 --> Ever gotten bit?
“The great business of the senses being to make us take notice of what hurts or advantages the body, it is widely ordered by nature that pain should accompany the reception of several ideas; which supplying the place of consideration and reasoning in children, and acting quicker than consideration in grown men, makes both the young and the old avoid painful objects with that haste which is necessary for their preservation, and in both settle in the memory a caution for the future (Book2, chapter 10 page 97-98)”. This connection is amazing. The mind knows that certain actions with the body will result in pain or harm, so therefore it does not complete this action and is even cautious not to get stuck in a situation that could perhaps lead to this action. One time, one of my nieces bit me. I got over it, she was little and perhaps didn’t know better…then my sister (her mom) found out her daughter bit me and told me to bite her back. I said what?!?!? I am not going to bite a child. She convinced me that it would help her learn how it feels and that once she understood the pain that resulted from a bite she would never do it again. Well it worked shockingly. I felt terrible about it, but she could now make that connection that hey- if I bite someone they feel that same pain I felt when I was bit, which is uncomfortable and unpleasant. Her mind will not stop her anytime she wants to bite someone, and now she knows better than to attempt it. This was necessary for her preservation as Locke has said. The mind and body work together in ways that astonish me. ..
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3 comments:
Gabrielle, i really love your blog and how you related your biting incident to Locke's quotes and reasoning. I absolutely agree that "The mind knows that certain actions with the body will result in pain or harm, so therefore it does not complete this action and is even cautious not to get stuck in a situation that could perhaps lead to this action". Actually, I work at a daycare and I got bit one time as well, (really hard!) and the kids in my class get bit alll the time and of course we cant tell the other kids to bite them back, haha, although that would probably solve the problem. But I just wanted to tell you, that was a great similiarity and i know how you feel, haha! I like when Locke says "...and in both settle, settle the memory a caution for the future" because like they say, do unto to others as you would like done to you...(I think thats how it goes) :)
girl, i cannot stop laughing..i can totally picture it. But you did make an excellent point. The mind is such an amazing thing. The quote that marina left last on her comment was actually what i was going to write about. That is a perfect quote about what you are talking about. Its amazing how the mind tells the body not to do certain things because it knows what the result would end up being.. oh yea.. and im STILL LAUGHING :-)
haha i liked your example. It's like your mind can be taught that something you did to someone can hurt and you find out by having what you did done to you. But there are people out there who don't ever get it done to them. Like the killers and rapers in the world. What is going on in their minds that don't go on in normal minds?
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