Pay It Forward Reflection
Humans are more connected than they have ever been. Under these circumstances, people can impact those around them more easily and more profoundly than they might imagine. This impact is prominently displayed in children, who typically adopt the mannerisms of their parents, for better or for worse. However, humans impact those they do not closely interact with as well, and it is because of this that one must carefully consider each decision. When society discusses the impact that people have on one another, they generally speak about the conscious decisions that people make to change another's life. These, like all things, can be good or bad. In the movie Pay it Forward, Trevor made a choice to positively impact the lives of three people. He chose to let a homeless man stay in his house, help two people find love, and stop the abuse of a friend. In all of these actions, Trevor succeeded in making the lives of others better, even when it was to his detriment. This movie has inspired many people to make a difference in the lives of others. Similarly, there has been a story circulating the Internet recently that features a kindergartener who realized that her classmates did not have money to buy milk. She decided that she would use her own allowance to help these kids. She inspired so many that she was able to raise over $9,000 for her cause on GoFundMe. Perhaps her classmates will remember this good deed and will feel motivated to do the same when they are older. As
Pay It Forward Essay
After watching Pay It Forward, it was easy to parallel elements from the movie to communication in general. Similarities between the cycle of paying it forward and communication can be easily discussed through all of the definitions of communication. For the purpose of this paper, I will link one of the oldest definitions of communication and paying to forward, to show the parallelism. The ancient definition of communication defines communication as: the act of mutual giving and receiving. This act of mutual giving and receiving is very apparent in the story told in the movie.
In order to communicate it is necessary for both people to, be willing to receive information and furthermore then be willing and able to give information,...show more content...
This same idea goes with giving a gift, as a gift can be a very private thing or a group of people can contribute to giving the gift Lois Bujold a science fiction author said the following regarding gift giving: " Try to give away what you want yourself." This is easily compared to communicating because we should each try to communicate in the way we wish to be communicated with from other people.
The Pay It Forward idea demonstrates the Habermasian ethic in a plethora of ways. The Habermasian ethic refers the relationship between the ethical interaction between people promotes autonomy and social responsibility. This idea is apparent in all aspects of the movie, but can be easily seen in the particular part where the black gangster character gets help from the bum when trying to run from the police. The black guy is surprised that the woman helped him and this small act of kindness from the old woman resulted in the black guy helping a young girl having an asthma attack at the hospital. Gangster are not typically viewed as being socially responsible and ethical people, but the relationship between the bum and him caused him to do the socially responsible thing of helping the girl, who was obviously in more need that himself. In each case of doing good for another, in Pay It Forward, each person feels responsible to pay it forward and
Pay It Forward
REFLECTION: Pay It Forward
Maybe someday I'll have kids of my own. I hope so. If I do, they'll probably ask what part I played in the movement that changed the world. And because I'm not the person I once was, I'll tell them the truth. My part was nothing. I did nothing. I was just the guy in the corner doing my usual thing..
I found out that actions have consequences, and not everything is under my control. Until I found out that I couldn't change the world at all, but a seemingly extra–ordinary movie, and a twelve–year–old boy could change the world completely for the better, and foreverworking with nothing but his own altruism, one good idea, and a couple of years, and a big sacrifice.
It started with a teacher who moved to...show more content...
No, actually it's more. It's become even more. It's not just the kind of world in which a total stranger will give someone his car as a gift. It's the kind of world in which the day someone received that gift was not dramatically different from all other days. Such generosity has become the way of things. It's become commonplace.
So this much I understand well enough to relate: it started as an extra credit assignment for a social studies class and turned into a world where no one goes hungry, no one is cold, and no one is without a job or a ride or a loan.
And yet at first, people needed to know more. Somehow it was not enough that a boy barely in his teens was able to change the world. Somehow it had to be known why the world could change at just that moment, why it could not have changed a moment sooner, especially in the real world, what Trevor brought to that moment, and why it was the very thing that moment required.
And that, unfortunately, is the part I can't explain. I was there, focusing on every move, action, and words in the movie. Every cell of the movie, I pay attention to it. But I was a different person then. I was looking in all the wrong places. I thought it was just a story, and the story was all that mattered. I cared about someone like Trevor, but I hope by the time I cared about someone like him, it will not be too late. I thought I cared about my studies, my work, my responsibilities, my duties, but I didn't know what my work could really
Pay It Forward
REFLECTION: Pay It Forward
Maybe someday I'll have kids of my own. I hope so. If I do, they'll probably ask what part I played in the movement that changed the world. And because I'm not the person I once was, I'll tell them the truth. My part was nothing. I did nothing. I was just the guy in the corner doing my usual thing..
I found out that actions have consequences, and not everything is under my control. Until I found out that I couldn't change the world at all, but a seemingly extra–ordinary movie, and a twelve–year–old boy could change the world completely – for the better, and forever–working with nothing but his own altruism, one good idea, and a couple of years, and a big sacrifice.
It started with a teacher who moved...show more content...
We can start with the most ordinary ingredients. A small kindness can go a long way. We can start with the world you've got. Mine, I'll start with my parents, those people close to me, and randomly give acts of kindness to those who needed it