preview

Heart Of The World

Decent Essays

The Heart of the World by Ian Baker When I initially began reading The Heart of the World by Ian Baker, I had great difficulty seeing past all the history that Baker was providing. Typically, I love reading books about history, but I realized something about my love of history. I love reading books about historical events that are well known. I enjoy reading books about things that directly altered the course of my life. My favorite historical books to read are books about World War II because my grandfather is a World War II veteran. I struggled with this novel because I knew absolutely nothing about Tibet and I had no personal ties. As I continued reading The Heart of the World, I realized that I did not need personal ties to Tibet to …show more content…

The reason why Ehrlich went on a journey to Greenland was for self discovery after troubling times in her life. I find it interesting that the majority of the pieces we have read on self discovery were about going on a journey of self discovery. The times that I have traveled to new places have not been that case. I have traveled because I wanted to, but I did not have a real personal purpose. I love history, so my family went to Italy to explore the history and culture of the Italian people, but it wasn’t a time to find myself. A lot of my reflections this semester have been focused on my graduation in the May. Unfortunately, I am not sure what I want to do after I graduate and I do not want to commit myself to something that I may not love. Even though Ehrlich has completely different life experiences, I felt that I related to her. Ehrlich quotes, “What happens at the top of the world affects us all” (BATW 2016, 37). Ehrlich goes on to explain the scientific elements of what this is true, but I thought of this statement in a different way. I reflected on the idea that there are always people above you and places above you. It is very unlikely that you will see all that you want to see and meet all that you want to meet, but all the unseen things in your life will affect you. In my experience, I have strived for the top and it is the people who are above me who encourage …show more content…

Over the last sixty years, less than 2,500 Americans have traveled to North Korea. Neville and his travel companion, Dan were given the opportunity to travel into North Korea and experience what life is like for many North Korean individuals. During their stay, they experienced propaganda blasting over loudspeakers, signs on every street corner which read “DEFENDING THE LEADER AT THE COST OUR OUR LIFE IS OUR BEST LIFE”. This was very discomforting to read because the individuals of North Korea being told things without seeing another side of the story. During Neville and Dan’s time in North Korea, they came into a new place, having a completely different perspective of the world, and were ultimately forced to adhere to the customs and rules of the North Korean

Get Access