Thoughts Behind...

"Father Benedict usually referred to the Pope, Papa, and Jesus- in that order." *Doubletake* Is this some sore sort of variation of the Holy Trinity? As a Christian, reading Purple Hibiscus  makes me uneasy. Papa, a pious Christian, physically abuses his wife. Aren't Christians supposed to be moral? Yes, I'm not close to being perfect (in fact, why I believe Jesus to be my savior), but seeing the blatant hypocrisy of Papa and many other church leaders is questionable. He may donate and be mentioned in the priest's sermons, but don't be deluded, that's not what Christianity entails. I've seen it myself. In a Korean church full of tradition, there's a sort of order that must be kept. Bow to the pastors and highly esteemed elders. Invite church leaders for dinner. Give generously. Yet despite my performative respect I offer to such leaders, I've heard of the church politics, financial disputes, and personal stories behind facades. I hope I'm n...

Despite being in AP Lit and not AP Lang, I've written more in the past four months than I've ever written in my life. That comes to no one's surprise, though. It was college application season! Yes, I wouldn't call it exactly enjoyable , but, in retrospect, I look at this experience with excitement. Let me say, I used to fear  essays. I feared writing. I feared racking through my mind to describe thoughts with words that didn't quite suffice. Just the thought of a paper planted a pit of dread in my stomach. But thanks to this blog, I've found my voice and inevitably developed it as I shared about myself with colleges that don't even know my face. I've channeled my genuine sentiments and expressed them through the nuances of each word, something I couldn't do just five months ago.  With prompts dumbfounding me, I was forced to scrutinize my personality and conjure a character for myself. And to my surprise, I got creative. I stretched trivial traits i...

After months of cultivating the definitions of nihilism, existentialism, and absurdism into a single blur of pessimism, I’ve finally taken it upon myself to explore why so many people find meaning in philosophy. Although, I have to ask, is there really any meaning to philosophy? After all, epistemological nihilism asserts that nothing we know has meaning because we know nothing . But as I delve deeper into the nuances of these three viewpoints, I, too, agree that life itself lacks purpose. Does this make me a pessimist? Does this go against my Christian beliefs? Well, shown through the thematic distinctions between The Stranger and The Alchemist , the disorder of the universe inherently has no effect on a person’s life; but one’s philosophical response to it does. So, to answer these questions, no, not necessarily. To start, what is nihilism? Well, nihilism expresses that the key components of life have no intrinsic meaning. This philosophy can be refined into categories that address ...