Essay 1

1225 Words3 Pages

As John Hume, recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize, said ¨Difference is of the essence of humanity. Difference is an accident of birth and it should therefore never be the source of hatred or conflict. The answer to difference is to respect it. Therein lies a most fundamental principle of peace: respect for diversity.” Although difference is the essence of humanity and we all possess a picturesque quality that cannot be replicated to perfection in any other human being, why does it seem that diversity is the source of all barriers created by the human race? Why do humans thrive from diversity, yet diversity frightens us to the extent where we alienate the mentally disabled from “normal” people for being “too different.” Our society works best when we can gain knowledge from others. No one man can solve every problem. It takes different intellectual perspectives to culminate knowledge. Although the initial reaction to diversity is to avoid it, we must accept and recognize it, and only then can we thrive off the difference of others.
Avoidance or rejection of diversity can be seen in everyday life. In the Saint John’s dining halls it can be seen that white people sit with white people while the Asian students sit on the outskirts of the tables with each other. Racial or sexist slurs have been called towards those who differ from the “norm” of white heterosexuals. It can be differences in opinion that attract violence. No two people get in a fight because they believe the same thing. Diversity is all around us and it can be a dangerous marvel.
In A Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat, the first part of William Sloan Coffin’s quote “Diversity may be the hardest thing for a society to live with,” can be seen throughout the book and can b...

... middle of paper ...

...duced to working at the garden. It connected with him as it did when he was a kid. Because of Dr. Sacks acceptance of those were” different,” he also discovered how to make Rebecca comfortable by giving her rhythm in her life and how give to Martin his life back by giving him a chance to sing in a choir where his musical abilities could shine.
Not many people can do what Dr. P does because they are too afraid of those who differ from themselves or because they don’t have the patience, but because of his relentless work, he not only comforted and brought life his patients, he learned knew things from his patients every day. Without this knowledge we would not have the tools to help those are different or struggle under certain circumstances. The mentally handicapped would be put in homes where there hidden talents and passions would never be truly capitalized.

More about Essay 1

Open Document