Alexa Ferrer Final

Apart from Atlas Shrugged, NFTU is the most valuable book I have read yet. The discussions helped me understand the content and I really appreciate what Dostoyevsky tried to get across. I say tried because it is such a contradicting and complicated topic that I feel it’s impossible to get a solid conclusion because everything is refuted and taken back in the end. If I truly understood everything he is trying to see then everything I have written or am about to write is probably somewhat of a lie or somewhat contradictory (which is awesome)

Unlike some people in class, I find this reading to be the most valuable in terms of applying reading in real life. I think this is more relevant to apply to life than any narrative we’ve read. Everything about NFTU applies to every decision I’m ever going to make in my life. I already see a lot of what Dostoyevsky described in myself and in the decisions I make. If facts happen to offend me, I’ll fight the facts for no reason. I make decisions that don’t benefit me and that I can’t explain. I create walls to justify what I do and to feel safe. I also value the idea of suffering and think it is necessary to truly feel any sort of accomplishment or happiness. I want to learn to embrace to suffering and enjoy it because it’s all part of the “journey” which, when looking back, is always the best part.

I think the most important aspect of the book is the concept of “many sides.” I used to look up to people who believed in something passionately and were able to form a solid opinion about something and defend it. Now after reading this book, I think all those people are ignorant. Even the debate between Bill Nye and the other guy is a perfect example of two very educated people who will never make sense of what they are trying to defend because there are valid aspects in both arguments. If everyone had the ability to accept that most viewpoints have certain aspects of value, that would create an intellectual world. This book has now helped me define what I believe to be what intelligence is. I believe intelligence is being educated enough to see many sides of any argument or idea and accept the fact that there is never one side to anything. Intelligence is knowing as much as you can despite the fact that “the more you know the more you know you don’t know” and accepting it all because life is unexplainable and human behavior is unpredictable and it is what it is that’s it.