Wednesday, April 20, 2011

The Past and The Present

Please respond to the follwoing questions-make sure to give a thorough response and respond to at least one other person's comment.
Idealism has always been a way for people to escape reality. If you are a dreamer, do you have to be more careful? Nick says to Gatsby, "You can't repeat the past." What do you think? Are there repercussions?

19 comments:

  1. I think in some cases dreamers do need to be more careful. I am a strong believer in dreaming big but I also am a strong believer in not getting your hopes up in case life throws a curveball at you. It is important to be prepared for anything. Sometimes it isn't wise to get your hopes up in case something doesn't go as you plan. This way you are saving yourself from being upset. Repeating the past and your past mistakes is a frightening thing to most people. But I do think it is 100% possible to make the same mistakes and choices over and over again. There are definatly reprecussions that come along with this. For one, I think disapointment from the people around you can be a consequence. As well as losing your self-worth and confidence that you can change and be different. Repeating the past is definatly possible but changing the future isn't impossible.

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  2. I am like Sydney, I am a huge dreamer and I agree dreams do need to be careful. Sometimes I know I dream to big and then I expect it to happen and when it doesn’t I know I get upset and wish it happened and keep trying to make it happen. Or sometimes I will just give up on that dream and create a bigger one. Dreaming isn’t a bad thing it just needs to be controlled and there needs to be a line set by yourself that you won’t ever cross. I am a huge believer in not living in the past and learning from the past. I know I sometimes have thoughts from the past and keep dwelling in those thoughts but I try to not live it the past. I don’t even like looking always to the future. I want to live my life here and now in this moment. But this world has become a huge bear I have to struggle with. The world keeps telling me and showing me that I need to do this and that for the future. I once heard it said, “I kept dying for something in the future and for the next thing, but now that I’m dying I wish I would have lived in the present.” –Anonymous. I take these words to heart and try to live my life like it.

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  3. I agree with Belyn. People sometimes dream too big and are let down when their dreams don’t come true. This is why people have to be careful if they dream big. I think dreaming is something everyone should do. It helps motivate people to do great things. But if these great things arent accomplished then a person can get really down on themselves. I believe there should be a limit to dreaming. Create dreams that you can strive for, but if your dreams don’t come true, always have a back up plan. I believe the past can be repeated. It can’t be exactly how it was before because people change and their feelings change. Nothing can ever be the same, but similar things can happen. I also agree with Belyn on this. People often dwell on the past and don’t move forward. People make mistakes, they do stupid things and say things they don’t mean. This is how we learn. If it weren’t for the past we wouldn’t be the people we are today. The past makes us stronger and wiser so we can make smarter decisions in the future. Live and learn.

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  4. I agree with Sydney about her idea of hopes and dreams. I believe that you shouldn't get your hope ups in case you do fail. You are able to dream, but you have to be smart about what you do dream. I really like what she said at the end, "Repeating the past is defiantly possible, but changing the future isn't impossible." It was a very interesting perspective of the past and the future. I believe that you can repeat the past, but you have to make sure that you are doing it in the right way. If you are just repeating all of the same mistakes that you are supposed to learn from, then it is pointless. I think that being a dreamer is part of everyone's nature. Everyone is a dreamer in some way or another and it does go back to being careful. You can dream whatever you want, but you have to make sure that those dreams are achievable. I think that the repercussions of repeating the past include not having the chance to really grow. If you just repeat the past over and over again, you never truly change or find out who you really are. Dreamers may have to be careful about what they dream because of the repercussions of the past, but I believe that everyone should have the chance to dream.

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  5. There is absolutely nothing wrong with dreaming and wanting more. If someone does not want something really bad, they won’t appreciate it as much when they have it. It is easier, of course, to dream in a realistic way in order to avoid the heartbreak and disappointment when something does not become, but dreaming should be an end goal that seems unrealistic yet possible. I think that it is easy to repeat the past. It is probably easier to unintentionally repeat the past, rather than try to deliberately repeat the past. "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." -George Santayana. Different emotions come along with repeating a negative or positive past. If someone repeats a negative past, they will probably feel unaccomplished or angry, but if a positive past is repeated, they may feel joy and happiness. The emotional aspect may be a repercussion, but ultimately, the past is what we learn from and what guides our future.

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  6. I agree with Sydney and her feelings about dreaming. I believe that dreams are necessary, but a dreamer should be careful not to dream about things that are unobtainable. Dreaming is what allows us to progress and improve our lives. We dream for things to be better and we work to achieve it, but, if we dream a dream that is too big to be achieved, then we set ourselves up for disappointment .Therefore, I do think that dreamers need to learn how to limit the types of dreams they have in order to be successful. When Gatsby tells Nick that the past can be repeated, I agree with him. Although you can never be in the exact same situation, you can be in similar ones, and make the same decision. I agree with Alli when she says that these repeated mistakes are what we learn from. If someone makes a decision once, it may not impact the person enough to have them realize that they made a mistake, but if they repeat this act, and negative things come from it again, then they person will know that they are wrong. A big part of growing up is learning from mistakes, and learning not to make the same mistakes over and over again, but until we accomplish this the past can be repeated time and time again. We learn and grow through our mistakes.

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  7. I think that dreaming big is sometimes a wonderful thing. However, I think that when you dream you have to be careful of being hurt or let down. Sometimes we work things up in our minds that we think will happen or turn out perfectly. Often times,when it doesn't happen to our exact way we planned it we end up being disappointed. Along with that, I think that we dream up a circumstance and can't let go of it which also causes major heartbreak and letdown. I believe it is important to dream but along with that keeping the idea in mind that it won't always turn out how we want it to. If we keep that cautious perspective then we are not as vulnerable to being completely devastated in the end. As far as repeating the past is concerned, I believe that you can repeat the past. I agree with what Sydney said in that you can make the same mistakes and choices over again. I think repeating the exact same situation from a past won't necessarily happen but, I certainly believe that the same mistakes can be made again in a different place or time.With that being said, I think you repeat the past when you ignore the lessons from a previous experience. The repercussions that can follow are sometimes devastating because the decision was made to ignore the past. Repeating the past comes down to a personal choice and whether or not you choose to learn from your past mistakes. I think at some level, everyone has learned from a past mistake and has chosen to listen to it but not act on it. Not only do you have to learn from something but you have to carry out those actions in order to not repeat the same mistakes. Sitting around and just pondering the thought of something will never get you anywhere unless you do something with it. Life is all about learning from the past and taking that knowledge with us to the future.

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  8. I'll be devil's advocate here and disagree with everyone so far. I think what makes people dreamers is that they arent super careful or focused on what could go wrong. Accepting that there's a chance of failure, though, is an important part of dreaming; and if you do fail, go ahead and be upset and learn from it. Dreaming has it's ups and downs along with so many other things in life, but being so aware of the "down's" shouldn't restrict the possibilities of the "ups".
    Time is a weird little thing (maybe a big thing?). Once something has happened, its gone. With the past, I think things happen and we can't go back to them. Isn't that why pictures or written moments in time are so nice to look back on? It's cause we can't have them back.

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  9. Belyn, I'm the same boat with you girl, maybe an even bigger one. I get my hopes up to be let down all too often. I believe that dreamers most definitely need to be careful. For the exact reason of getting your dreams crushed. I've gone through periods of depression because every time I would strive for something or someone it would just fall to pieces. I got tired of getting let down so I stopped hoping. Once I started reading this book, I began to dream harder. Dream Bigger. Gatsby is an inspiring character. He knows what he wants and he doesn't let ANYTHING get in his way. Although, this sort of mind set isn't always the best because you get caught up and confused. Confused between what is reality and what is fantasy. In chapter six, Gatsby is so determined to make Daisy his. He is stuck on this fantasized image of her that she will not be able to fulfill. As we see, Nick tries to point it out to him but it doesn't work. In my opinion, I would go more with Gatsby. Yes you can repeat the past! Past decisions, past mistakes, past learning. On the other hand, until you learn from the past and know what was helpful or not, you won't be happy. The repetition of the past will drive you insane.
    I guess what I'm trying to say is if you repeat the past things that didn't work, there will always be repercussions.

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  10. Having the mindset of being an idealist can be a scary thing. It sets you up for a long life of disappointment because you are never fully satisfied with the circumstances you are put in. An idealist would be one to believe that the past can be repeated exactly as it occurred. Gatsby seems to think and act carelessly with his emotions and plans. Dreaming big is not necessarily an awful thing, but it must be kept within the boundaries of reality. It is simply not realistic to believe that anything is possible and there is no such thing as something out of reach. Although having this mindset will allow you to have perseverence and ambition, but when will it finally wear out? How much disappointment can a human handle until they give up?

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  11. I agree with what Anne said that there is nothing wrong with dreaming. I think that having dreams and believing you can do anything in life is one of the most important things we can do. I think that everyone should have that outlook, to dream even the craziest dreams and hope you will reach them. Even if you don't always get what you want, you will get closer if you dream big. Being realistic is great and all but what is the fun in that? Where would the world be if everyone thought within realistic boundaries? I do think that dreamers need to be more careful though because they will get hurt a lot easier.

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  12. I agree with Aizlinne on how people need to have dreams but they can't have too big of dreams that are way out there. They have to be at least somewhat realistic. Sometimes when dreamers dream the impossible it, like Amelia said, "sets you up for a long life of disappointment..." You do need to contain your dreams, otherwise you will be deeply disappointed if you do not reach your dream. I think you can repeat you past but not excatly as you did before. The people who learn from their mistakes and learn from their past are more likely not to repeat the past. There are people though who do not learn from past mistakes and they continue to make the same ones over and over again thus repeating their past over and over again. I am going to end wih the same thing Audrey ended with, "Dreamers may have to be careful about what they dream because of the repercussions of the past, but I believe that everyone should have the chance to dream."

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  13. I agree with Anne that there is nothing wrong with dreaming and wanting more. For me dreaming is a way to escape the stresses of life and imagine myself as something else, it keeps me sane. Dreaming is important in life. If you have a dream and don't reach it, it only teaches you to work harder and to keep working for it. If you are the type of person that is a dreamer I would say that it is important to be careful, keep your dreams realistic, that way if you reach them you can keep dreaming bigger and bigger. I think you can repeat the past. If something happened in the past that you greatly enjoyed, why not try to repeat it if it will make you happy? The past moments we have enjoyed in life should be relived. I don't think that there would be repercussions if you repeated the past, but if you tried to do more than you did in the past it would not work out as well.

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  14. "Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe.”

    I agree with Jill, Dreamers don’t care about the downside of their dream only the possibilities. When one dream doesn't come true they find something else to dream about and all the negatives are eliminated. I believe that dreaming makes you more innovative and creative in real life because it gives you ideas that no one else possesses. Like the quote above says all dreams requires vision, determination, and hard work. I believe many people lack these things and that is why it is so hard to let go of a dream and find another.


    I believe that you can't repeat the past. Things happen once and only once, then there over. Sure people try to repeat the past all the time but have any of them really succeeded? Time goes by, people change this is why the past is unrepeatable.

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  15. If you are a dreamer, then you shouldn't be careful. If you're careful, then you're not really going for your dream. If someone wants something bad enough, and if someone dreams a dream beautiful enough, then screw being cautious. I'm a huge hypocrite in saying that, but over the years I have gradually been trying to break the trend of wanting to play things safe, and actually go for my dream. I believe the best attitude to live with is a "go big or go home" attitude. As for making mistakes, they are what teach us how to reach our dream. When we make mistakes, we learn. And if you don't learn the first time, hopefully you learn the next time. Mistakes are what separate the people who achieve their dreams and the ones who don't. The people that aren't scared to put themselves out on a limb and make a mistake are the ones who reach their dream. If the idea of messing up is too scary, then the dream will never be reached. Being a dreamer is hard, but I also believe being a dreamer is the best way to living life to the full and making this world a better place. The people that make the world a better place are the ones that put themselves out there and do what they do best. I hope I can live up to what I have supported in this comment.

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  16. I have always been a strong believer in the fact that it is necessary to learn about the history of the world, or man is doomed to repeat it. If you can learn from your mistakes, then you are more likely to avoid trouble. If you do still come across trouble, you can still learn from that too. People need to learn to pay attention to what is going on in the world around you. If people could just apply what they have learned before, then so much time could be saved because less explanation and less trial and error would come to be. Dreaming is a powerful thing though. Just because someone tried to create something and failed, doesn't mean it cannot be re-attempted. As long as you can avoid making the same mistakes, then the adventure is worth it. Dreams are what keep people motivated. Without a goal, then there would be no reason to accomplish anything at all. Dreams are a wish your heart makes.

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  17. People always need to dream in order to live. With dreams people get goals accomplished. The only problem is that some people get to caught up in them doing whatever it takes to accomplish there dreams. Segragation was ended by one man's dream to have every soal live equal. I also do agree with the idea that you can't repeat the past. Although people can learn from the past you can never actually go back and change the mistakes that you made. Without us learning from our mistakes I agree with Nate that the world would be doomed.

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  18. I don’t necessarily think that being a dreamer is a bad thing. I mean unless you lose your sense of reality, and are up in the clouds, then that’s when I think that being a dreamer might get in the way. Gatsby is a dreamer. He has one dream and that’s Daisy. He has money, a huge house, nice cars etc. Gatsby wants Daisy and she’s one thing his money can’t necessarily buy. Although she is shallow, I think she’s hurt by their (Daisy and Gatsby) past. Next, literally, Nick is right; but I disagree in a way; I think that you can try to make things how they used to be. After listening through discussions in class, I heard a lot of people saying that Gatsby’s a “hopeless dreamer” and all this stuff, but I feel like he has a chance. I also was reading through the blogs and found that a lot of people said that once something happens, it’s gone. It’s over. It’s done with. I agree with that, but I also believe in second chances. I believe in opportunities for redemption and I disagree with the over and done part, in that sort of way.

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  19. I believe dreamers do have to be more careful throughout life. They can sometimes be so much in their own fantasies rather than reality, and that’s how they end up getting hurt. Dreamers don’t have walls built up protecting their own hearts. I agree with what Eric said about how you do need to dream sometimes because that’s what keeps us motivated. Motivation is wanting more. Not being motivated means you’re settling for less. If you are motivated, I feel you will be more productive in your search for what you want out of life. You can indeed repeat the past. If you regret a decision you’ve made, you can choose to avoid repeating that again. But also, you can be so blinded by life, that you make the same mistake again. I really like what Sydney said, “Repeating the past is defiantly possible but changing the future isn't impossible.”

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