Since starting my freshman year of college this past fall, I found that classes that I assumed were going to be tedious or of no interest to me, taught me the most. Classes like political science and American history, which I never took an interest towards in the past became classes that helped me realize my surroundings and the current state of the government. As I continue my college career, once again I notice that lessons taught in the classroom follow me into the outside world.
Discussing New York City in class helped me further understand my hobbies and interests. Recently, after browsing a bookstore I found a memoir documenting the authors life on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. As I read, parts of the novel reminded me of the conversations we were having in class and how they overlapped with some aspects of the theme of this novel. The Scientist by Marco Roth is set in 1980’s Manhattan and explains in detail the authors struggles. Raised by a scientist and a classical musician who were passionate about the arts and literature, Roth realized the decline in the importance of reading and appreciating culture in general.
Our discussion in class about the importance of writing and expressing oneself through artistic mediums reminded me of the authors disappointment in the under-appreciation of the novels and music his parents loved so dearly. Roth’s description of the novels his father passed down to him and lessons he got out of them made me want to continue to take the time to explore the city along with all the great novels written by authors I have yet to discover.
Does anyone else find that lessons from the classroom find their way into your daily lives?
