Midterm Exam

Global History 1
Christina LeBlanc
December 5th 2016
Question 1:
The ideas found in Buddhism and Confucianism could very much help Mr. Salutari when
dealing with the upperclassmen whose behavior he found unbecoming. While either could give
him sound advice, they are rather different, even if the effect is similar.
Eliminating unnecessary suffering is the main point of Buddhism. According the the Four
Noble Truths, all life is pain and suffering, however many times people suffer unnecessarily. The
second noble truth in Buddhism says that suffering is caused by human desire, therefore Mr.
Salutaris desire to be angry or displeased with the behavior of the teens would cause him to
suffer unnecessarily, and giving into his desire would cause him to upset the balance in his life.
The idea of balance is important to Buddhists, some going as far as to cease eating spicy or sour
foods so that they would no longer be sour in their words and deeds. By being strict in his work
life, he would begin to become strict and less than pleasant in other areas of his life,
consequently suffering even more.
To remedy this, a Buddhist would say that he needs to overcome his desire by living the 8
fold path, and learning to stay in the moment. Dwelling on thoughts that dont bring good
feelings is another source of unnecessary suffering. Meditation is the practice of focusing on
what is happening right then, putting away your other worries for a time, then moving on when
the moment is over. It is meant to bring peace. This would be a good approach for Mr. Salutari,
dealing with it and letting it go, finding calm and peace before going before facing his problem,
though Buddhism would also suggest he set about with the 8 fold path in mind as well. The basic
concept of the 8 fold path is balancing a life of depriving yourself with one of indulging yourself,
and to live acting with 8 right principles. Those principles are having the right views, intentions,
actions, livelihood, effort, concentration, mindfulness, and speech. Mr. Salutari would be invited
to try acting the same. By calming himself and overcoming the desire to be harsh or displeased is
the Buddhist way to approach this issue.

Going even further than that, the Buddhist might say that his desire for their behavior to
be a certain way would cause him suffering as well, and is actually the root of the problem. The
upperclassmen are still young, and they are going to be rambunctious to some degree, ergo he
will constantly be experiencing negative emotions when confronted with it.
Another approach that Mr. Salutari might use would be a Confucianism based one. All
relationships matter is the main point of Confucianism. Their one simple rule is all people will
ever need. The Golden Rule: Treat others the way you want to be treated. Doing so will lend
peace of mind. If you are good to everyone around you, being the way you want others to be
with you, then you wont have any conflict within yourself, no guilt or anger. This applies to
everyone you interact with, every relationship you have, even the most temporary ones. For
example, a customer at the grocery store has a relationship with the cashier. Neither would want
the other to be rude due to frustration from an event earlier in the day, and both should act
accordingly.
Applying this to Mr. Salutaris issue is simple and easy. As long as he treats the
upperclassmen how he would have liked to be treated when he in their position and age, he will
have peace. Confucianism was meant to be this simple, and doesnt take much explaining. It
gives you an easy action plan, and understanding if you did what was right or not in that scenario
is a cinch.
Whether he approaches them thinking as a Buddhist or a Confucianist would, both ways
of thinking are meant to bring peace into your life, just as most philosophies and religions are
intended to do. They bring assurance to your life, and keep order from within which is exactly
what Mr. Salutari needs when facing rowdy teenagers.

Question 2
Learning from other cultures is key to fighting ethnocentrism. Gaining different ideas
from other people can improve our lives and help us grow, even from ancient cultures such as the
Indian and Chinese. This trimester we learned how diverse thinking is throughout the world, how
western views differed from that of Hindus and Buddhists, or those Confucianism and Daoism.
Simple lessons are exactly what Daoism is about. Why complicate things when we dont
have to? Go with the flow, and dont ruffle feathers. These are all ideas that Daoists embrace. In
context, if you had a too difficult math class, then switch out, know your limits and capabilities.
If you cant handle it without significant struggle, its not worth it, let it go to give yourself some
peace. Confucianists also like to keep it simple with one rule, the golden rule. Treat others the
way you want to be treated because all relationships matter. This can be difficult, but we teach it
to little kids all the time. Growing up in a western culture, one can very well learn from the
second part of the statement. All relationships matter. Western culture can learn from this, even if
it starts small. You dont have to be peachy to everyone, just dont be overly rude. Be empathic
within important or more permanent relationships like father to son, or friend to friend. Ancient
Chinese culture prioritized father to son relationships above all else. Often times they would
keep their elderly, incapable parents at home, dropping everything to take care of them. While
this is not easily conceivable to more western individuals, they can take from this the importance
of parent-child relationships and take action to improve their parental relationships in their own
lives. Ancient Chinese culture has many different ideas to learn from that are still applicable to
our lives today.
Ancient Indian culture also can teach modern day people important lessons, though they
can be a little harder to see, such as in samsara. Hindus believe in the idea that everything is
connected and has a remembrance of owing something to someone else. Samsara is the idea that
the soul is in a constant cycle of reincarnation, life and death. They desire to break that cycle by
working as hard as they can, following the rules of dharma, so that they can eventually reach
Brahman. This may seem a bit weird to others, but so much can be learned from it. Take from
samsara that we should give back to our parents, appreciate those who helped us growing up. See
from dharma that you should complain about where you are in life, instead work hard to change

it, whether that be in one lifetime or many. Looking beyond the terms and conditions of someone
elses life, and really evaluating what that can mean for us is exactly what it means to battle
ethnocentrism
Being ethnocentric, being centered on one's own ideas stunts personal growth and
achievement. As we so often say to young kids, How can you know you dont like it if you
dont even try it. Its the same with other cultures. You cant win if you take yourself out of the
game. Blending other cultures together and with our own to try and find the right mix, to make
your life the best it can be is hard and uncomfortable. But there is no growing in a comfort zone
and no comfort in a growing zone, and you have to keep going. Shutting off after learning new
cultures, ceasing to continue with learning can also be ethnocentric. Take what is useful, use it,
and keep looking for more. These ideas are just some of the few that we can learn, we just have
to keep learning.