Emily Neuhauser

HONR 203
Dr. Berg
12/5/16
Values Manifesto
The dictionary definition of a value is a persons principles or
standards of behavior; ones judgment of what is important in life or,
the regard that something is important, holds worth, or the usefulness
of something. In this essay, I will be creating a Manifesto using six of
my core values or beliefs in conversation with texts used during the
Honors 203 course.
One of the most important values, to me personally, is love. In
The Symposium and Phaedo, Socrates talks about significant ideas
that could help philosophers and people achieve the ultimate good
life. The main idea he explained to achieve the good life is very
simple: love. On page 146, he states specifically that love is the
source of the greatest benefits to us, proving that it betters our lives.
Love also betters the lives of others, as it is commonly known as the
universal language. Love inspires us and is the key to happiness. I
believe this is important because if you love other and are loved in
return, your life will be bettered and prospered, even Socrates agrees.
Using self-love, it is an important value to stay true to yourself. In
Walt Whitmans Song of Myself from Leaves of Grass, one of the
major themes is staying ones self, starting right at the beginning in
section 1 with the author explain the intention to celebrate itself until
death. In section 5, the souls is ecstatic about a union with itself,
representing a self-discovery. This manifesto is an example of staying
true to myself, as Im discussing values that I believe and live by in
order to stay true to myself. I believe you should stay true to yourself
because this is a key part of your identity and overall existence. If you
arent staying true to yourself, you are being true to someone else
instead, by adapting to that persons self. This point is also seen in T.S.
Eliots The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock. Prufrock is evidently
struggling with self-image and confidence issues, thus not showing
himself some self-love. He seems to adapt his appearance and
demeanor to fit the social standards and avoid any negative images
people may have of him (page 2788).
One of the best ways to stay true to yourself is to follow your
passions and do good work with your life. Passions and happiness run
hand-in-hand, one comes with the other. When you follow your
passions, you are happier because you are doing something that you

not only enjoy, but also care about and feel called to do. Aristotle, in
our reading from the previous year, agrees. On page 15, Aristotle
states that happiness comes as a result of virtue and some process of
learning or training. He explains that happiness is not God-sent, but
rather a result of actions you and others enjoy. This puts yourself in
charge of your happiness, as no one can create it but you. This is
important because doing fulfilling work will create happiness. As
Socrates said, you will receive virtue from your passions, making you
feel happier overall.
Following one of my own passions, I am a huge advocate of
womens issues. One of the big values is that women should not be
considered an inferior gender. Simone de Beauvoir discusses this issue
in The Second Sex. This reading, taking place in the 1940s, is one of
the earliest attempts to bring the issue of gender equality to the table.
De Beauvoir is arguing that men oppress women by characterizing
them as the other gender. I think that men, even and especially now,
can do more to not only support gender issues, but also work against
their fellow males to stop it when they see it happening. De Beauvoir
shows a struggle between men and women for primacy in society. She
brings forward many examples of inequality that are present, as on
page 175 a wife is considered the mans most precious treasure,
hence the term trophy wife that is still used today. Women today still
takes a mans name when she is wed, and people often question her if
she chooses not to do so. Many weddings today also include a
tradition, one that I experienced first-hand recently, that exemplifies
this: the father gives his daughter to her husband. If youll notice,
there is not a time where the bride is freed from either man. The
husband grabs her arm before the father lets go. These are just a few
examples of ever-present sexism in todays society.
Being that there are so many examples of women being
considered an inferior gender, it is evident that feminism is needed and
essential in society to put an end to these issues of inequality.
Feminism is defined as the advocacy of womens rights on the
grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. Many of
todays feminists deal with issues seeking to establish equal
opportunities for women in education and employment, since that still
does not exist. Feminists are advocating for women to be treated fairly
and equally. They are working to erase the points brought up in the
previous paragraph. I value feminism because women should not be
treated unfairly, and they are. These feminist views are seen in Virginia
Woolfs To the Lighthouse. The two main characters in the novel,
Charles Tansely and Mr. Ramsey, seem to target and put down the
female characters for the entirety of the novel. Lily Briscoe and Mrs.
Ramsey lack confidence, freedom, and often times an independent

identity (page 118). Mrs. Ramsey never tends to her own needs, only
the mens. Lily feels plagued by her singleness (at age 33) and feels
that the lack of a man in her life makes her less of a person (page 26).
My beliefs on how important love is have changed due to the
Socrates texts. I knew it was fundamental to life, but I did not originally
think it was the most important. Now, that has changed. He makes a
point that all happiness does not stem from God which is a contrast
to my personal beliefs. He states that love is what creates this
happiness (page 146). I have always thought that staying true to
yourself was important. Whitman explained it in a way that was
different from how I approached staying true to myself. Whitman took
this point as a celebration of ones self (page 2307). I have never
thought of self-love as a celebration until I read the text. It shows that
you should not only appreciate yourself and do what you love, but
even celebrate and rejoice in your identity because there is only one
you. This passage really brought warmth to my heart, hearing Whitman
describe how we as humans should delight in the people we are rather
than copy who someone else is. As for the womans equality value,
that has always been something that I held dear. I was very
unpleasantly surprised, however, in how little we have come since
The Second Sex was written in the 1940s. I thought that women
have been making great strides and that we have come a long way
since the first wave of feminism, but that is not the case. Many of the
examples in De Beauvoirs text are still evident today; such as men
feeling like the women they are with is a sort of possession of theirs
(page 192). This goes with the feminist passage in To the Lighthouse
as well. Feminist movements have come a long way, but still have
much further to go.
Word Count: 1283
Link to Visual Representation:
http://emilyneuhauser.weebly.com/previous-work.html