The Imperfect Education Essay Research Paper The

The Imperfect Education Essay, Research Paper The Imperfect Education Throughout the ages mankind has sought out enlightenment through education. Each individual has a different view on what the ideal education is. Much of the world?s history has fallen through the cracks due to the sexual and racial biases of past historians. Obtaining a good education is possible through language knowledge, dedication, and an equally balanced diet of historical information. Malcolm X spent some time in prison and became a very learned person because of it. Adrienne Rich believes that people should claim an education rather than receive one. Edith Hamilton believes that people seeking an education should look towards the past as a basis for learning. Is it possible to obtain a perfect

education? Anyone is capable of obtaining a good education, however it does not come easy, you must be willing to work for it. Malcolm X spent a good deal of time incarcerated, which gave him an opportunity to better himself through learning. Malcolm spent a good deal of time reading but he often found himself being unable to comprehend the text. After much frustration he checked out a dictionary from the prison library. He beleived that the best thing he did was get a dictionary and learn some words. Malcolm began copying the dictionary page by page and studying what he had written until he had unlocked a New World of knowledge. With a newly broadened vocabulary Malcolm went in search of knowledge. He would read anything he could get his hands on. He was continuously reading,

from the moment he woke up, to past the prison?s ?lights out? call at night. His dedication to books proved to be a most valuable tool. Malcolm was an avid student of Mr. Muhammad?s (founder of the Black Muslims) teachings. Mr. Muhammad told Malcolm of how history had been ?whitened? due to the excess of white historians. Malcolm saw that his knowledge of history was incomplete due to the lack of recorded black history. He decided to seek out a more defined history of his people. After a bit of a search he unearthed some books that provided a more detailed history of non-whites. Through extensive searching Malcolm was able to learn about all of the worlds people, not just the Whites. If there was ever a dedicated man Malcolm X was that man. In a speech given to the graduating

class of 1977 at Douglas (Women?s) College, Adrienne Rich stated some of her views on education. She strongly believed that a student must claim an education rather than simply just receiving one. In her speech she spoke of a responsibility to oneself to refuse to let other people think for them; meaning ?learning to respect and use your own brains and instincts; hence, grappling with hard work?(58). Language and personal thought were crucial. Rich suggested that there was a more indispensable experience that women owed themselves; An experience that finally depended on the individual?s interactions with the world. A person must be dedicated and must take responsibility toward their own self. Rich believes that education was not complete due to the majority of the histories were

written by, typically white, men. Rich had often found herself ??pouring eagerly over books with titles like: The Decent of Man; Man and His Symbols; Irrational Man; The Phenomenon of Man; The Future of Man?-books pretending to describe a ?human? reality that does not include over one-half the human species?(57). She stressed personal betterment for all people, women in particular. According to Rich education was not complete due to several factors, however a person could get a better handle on education with a dedication to personal thought. Edith Hamilton believes that the true key to a more complete education lies in the past. She states that we should model our education after that of the Greeks. True freedom only comes through education. The Athenians ?were free because of a