Quality and the School System

                As Talia said, it has become more evident that Phaedrus is not a ghost, but a character from Plato’s work. However, my theory that Phaedrus is the narrator himself does not seem to leave my mind. For some reason, when Pirsig speaks of and about Phaedrus, it seems as if he is talking about himself. This is probably of the obsession he has with Phaedrus, also as Talia mentioned, but it is just a feeling I have.

                Nevertheless, my mind was pretty much blown when Pirsig began to discuss what quality was. At first I did not understand the question that was being asked or why, I mean it seemed simple enough. Yet, when he pointed out that the term quality, in itself is contradictory, I was amazed. Materialistic things are in fact some better than others, and sometimes you can say what it is that makes them better, but where the actual quality comes from is unexplainable. You cannot discuss the quality of an object if you have no idea what it is. The question that bothered me the most though, was does quality exist. If you cannot determine what it is or completely define it, then what is it? For me, this question is parallel to “of a tree falls when no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?”. There is an answer, but what is it?

                When Pirsig began to speak about school and how Phaedrus looked at the grading system, I found it weird. Most of the things that he spoke about, came to my mind right before I read them. For example, all the consequences that would come from eliminating grades and how students would react were ideas in my head before I even read. After I read, the ideas or thoughts just became larger and more vivid. I have agreed that students nowadays are more focused on the grade they receive in their report card, rather than what they actually learn and that is what Phaedrus was trying to change. Chase the knowledge behind the grade instead of the grade itself. Even though I acknowledge this truth and admit that the best type of motivation is one that comes from within, as an effort to really learn, and no matter how much I want to have this sort of motivation, I do not. Most of the work I do for school, I do not mind doing because it is interesting, although I probably would not do it if I did not have to. I guarantee you that most students think this, and would change their ways if they could, it just seems very difficult to do so.