I agree, overall, with what Wallace is saying in his speech. Although, I feel it is a little drawn out? I feel that we are constantly learning, in school, and out. Wallace mentioned this in his speech, but also talks about “learning how to think”. Wallace says that our school systems are teaching us how to think, and he goes on to say that we are really learning what to think about, and that life is all about perspective. I understand what he is saying, but this makes “higher education”, in my opinion, seem worthless. I am not going to school to learn how to think, an how to cope with the everyday monotony that is life. I can learn this anywhere.
Going through life, depending on how we choose to live it can easily learn this basic skill. I like to call it being “open minded”. It is easy to see that he has a struggle with depression (although a lot of what he says is true for most people (i.e. being annoyed in the grocery store, and not wanting to drive there in the first place after a long day of work)). I get that. That can all be annoying, but we need to accept life, and the responsibilities that come along with it.
How I feel personally about a higher education varies. It varies with what one is looking to do. If you want to become a computer programmer, you may need to learn how to do so. If you want to become a police officer, knowing the laws will be beneficial to you. What these have in common, are that they are skills, they are skills that we need to learn to do what we want to do. Now, If one is going to college without a major, and are only going to get a degree so they can qualify for the job requirements at the office building down the street, where they will ultimately be bushing papers, and sharpening pencils all day, the idea of a “higher education” loses its value, and begins to feel like a waste of time and money. The student in my last example is not going to school to necessarily learn anything. They are just going...