Claiming an Education The idea of claiming an education can mean different things to many different people. As for myself, I believe I share many of the same ideas on education that Adrienne Rich professes in her essay "Claiming an Education". The idea is that taking responsibility for oneself and developing your sense of self plays an important role in claiming an education. Rich highlights this idea in her speech by stating "Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and naming for you; it means learning to respect and use your own brains and instinct; hence grappling with hard work" (Rich 610). This responsibility to yourself means you must know who you are in this world, and you must know where you stand. You must identify yourself as a student and a thinker. You must crave the desire to learn and push your own abilities.
Self-awareness plays an essential part in claiming an education. It helps you to put things into your own perspective and helps you form your own opinion. An important part of developing your sense of self involves establishing your ability in becoming a critical thinker and taking charge of your own actions or what you choose to act upon, rather than someone doing your thinking and acting for you. Rich makes a very clear point about this in her speech stating "The first thing I want to say to you who are students, is that you cannot afford to think of being here to receive an education; you will do much better to think of yourselves as being here to claim one. One of the dictionary definitions of the verb 'to claim' is: to take as the rightful owner; to assert in the face of possible contradiction. 'To receive' is to come into possession of; to act as receptacle or container for; to accept as authoritative or true. The difference is that between acting and being acted-upon" (Rich 608). This quote reflects my thoughts on how one must "claim" and dissect information in order to develop your own fundamental understanding of the world around you. This will help you to not only cultivate your ability in becoming an active participant but it also helps you to become a productive member of a civilized society.
In today's internet driven society, information is rapidly flowing. Making it easy to accept predigested information the media puts out. It is our job as conscious human beings to monitor how we process this information. During this processing, one must critically think and evaluate the information that is presented to them. They need to ask themselves: how does this make me feel? They need to ask themselves if the idea is reasonable if it makes sense. It is this that will help you to begin taking responsibility for yourself and your thoughts. Rich makes a valid point stating "Responsibility to yourself means that you don't fall for shallow and easy solutions, predigested books and ideas, weekend encount...
