How Life Would Change if We All Had a Better Memory - Essay Example

How life would change if we all had a better memory There are all kinds of sayings that relate to the way we remember, or don’t remember, the events of our lives. “He has a mind like a sieve” to indicate someone who can’t remember anything or “He has a mind like a steel trap” to indicate someone who never forgets anything. Have you ever considered what life would be like if we actually had a mind that never forgets? The idea of ‘forgive and forget’ would need to be reworked since forgetting would be out of the question, which might make it very difficult for us to get along with other people all that well. Perhaps we have a tendency to forget things as a way of working with people around us without going totally postal on them. At the same time, we wouldn’t need to sit up all night cramming for tests since a simple read-through the notes would give us the information we need to pass the test. Of course, then tests might be restructured to test whether we can actually think or just regurgitate information we’ve been fed. But maybe that would be a good thing, too. Memory actually turns out to be a fascinating subject when one stops to consider the possibilities. If everyone had a better memory, the entire structure of school would need to be changed. We wouldn’t need to take US history in middle school, then high school and then college, we could spend that extra time working on other subjects or investigating different things to a greater degree. As I’ve mentioned, the structure of tests would necessarily be different, not focusing so much on whether we can remember the right dates for a particular important battle, since that would be too easy, but instead testing whether or not we can analyze the significance of that battle, why it was decisive (not what we read about why it was important but actually coming up with our own ideas about it) and then relating the lessons learned through that battle to events occurring in the present. If Americans actually began thinking instead of just trying to repeat what they’ve heard, we might have an entirely better country. For example, if Americans thought about what they heard instead of just repeating it like they were reciting a mantra, they might remember important facts such as the Bill of Rights and why they were important to the creation of a free country and a free people. With this important information remembered, the laws passed as a part of the Patriot Act would cause instant and massive protests because everyone would realize that our most important basic rights were being stripped away from us right under our own noses. We would fight to make sure our newspapers and tv news could continue to tell us the truth about what they know even if it isn’t what the President or his administration want us to know, but then again, if we had perfect memories, we would already remember the false pretenses we were given for going to war in Iraq and how those excuses continued to change as each one was proven false. After a while, we’d have to conclude, because we’ve been trained to be thinking people and have good memories that can trace back through the many excuses that had been offered, that the real reason we went to war in Iraq was probably to help the economic situation of those who were in power at the time and their friends. With good memories we would also have a hard time getting along with our friends and loved ones, though. The little pains and hurts that are unintentionally inflicted by family members would keep building up on our nerves until we just couldn’t deal with that person anymore. We’d be too obsessed with how they didn’t vacuum the house when they said they would so you didn’t have to do it or with how they said they’d start the laundry before school and left with it scattered all over their room instead. Of course, if they had perfect memories, too, the only possible motivation for these things would be because they were intentionally trying to make you angry instead of that they simply forgot. These resentments would build up and we would always be angry with someone because of something they’d done or not done that ended up making us have to work harder or made us embarrassed when friends came over. Having a perfect memory might be good for some things, but maybe it would create new problems that we’re just not ready to deal with yet. Outline Introduction If everyone had perfect memories, the way we went through school and the way we dealt with daily life would change drastically, but so would the way we relate with important people in our lives. Changes in the school system Studying Testing Thinking Changes in daily lifestyle Political awareness Resulting laws as a result of increased involvement Changes in personal relationships Can’t just forgive and forget Remember promises made and broken to you Remember promises made and made decisions about breaking them to others Conclusion How life would change if we all had a better memory Have you ever considered what life would be like if we actually had a mind that never forgets? We would need to completely restructure the way we live our lives as things such as the American school system and the political machine would have to readjust for a public capable of putting thoughts together and coming up with original ideas. One of the problems of not forgetting things, though, is that you lose a significant tool in close social relationships as you attempt to get along with others. Thus, while having a better memory would be good for some things, such as forcing people to think for themselves and potentially affect change within the laws that govern our lives, it may also bring changes that are not as beneficial such as making it difficult for us to get along with friends and loved ones. One of the major features of the American school system is the concept of testing. For most schools, this concept involves asking students questions regarding what they remember about the course materials. Tests or school programs would need to actually ask students to think about the materials they’ve learned or to connect this information with their daily life or current events, making it real. This would change the entire structure of school since testing would need to take a new form, perhaps in the form of Socratic discussion or written work. With a newly formed structure given to the school system, students would be graduating from school as thinking individuals who might then take a greater interest in world events thanks to their ability to connect what they know to the real events that are happening around them. With this being the case, the entire political system would need to clean up its act. When politicians try to convince the public that they said don’t go to war, people would not need the intervention of the media outlets to remind them that they said go to war last week or that the situation remains the same this week as it was last week. One of the problems with not being able to forget things, though, is that it would be difficult to get along with other people who are close to you. You would remember every little hurt they ever inflicted on you, every lie they ever said and every time they did something you didn’t like. At the same time, they would be able to remember every time you ever hurt them. While you might make up your mind to forgive them, and vice versa, these memories would be much harder to push to the back of your mind if you had a tendency to remember everything. It would be better if schools taught students how to think and make connections with their real world and if politicians were forced to tell the truth or stay true to their word, but having a perfect memory would also make it hard for us to get along with others. Read More