I think Knowledge and the Arts was a very interesting piece. I really enjoyed the writing and the examples given, and i think it also helped me put a lot of my own thoughts into clearer words. Before reading this, I already thought that art had depth and meaning beyond just looking nice, but I think this piece gave me a lot of tools to understand and connect with it better. For example, when it talked about shifting away from always asking “What does this mean?” I really liked this idea because it made me realize how this question can limit how i understand something. I sometimes find myself getting stuck when I try too hard to find one clear meaning, but this piece showed me that understanding can come from connecting and reflecting instead of just forcing an answer, It also helped me understand why whenever someone asks the meaning of something in a poem, Mr. MacKnight rephrases it to ask how it makes you feel. Before, I didn’t really understand why he did that, but now I see that it gives a deeper and more personal response and that It kind of also shifts the focus from trying to be “right” to actually thinking and connecting with the what you are looking at.
I also really liked the idea that art is an interaction between the piece and the person experiencing it. I am someone who naturally tries to connect with things, whether it’s a painting, music, or a story, and I often try to analyze my thoughts and opinions and think about why I like something or why I don’t and This piece helped me see that this habit is actually meaningful and also gave me tools to take that thinking even further and deeper! One of the parts I really enjoyed was the part about the distinction between taste and quality, i think The ice cream example made this idea very clear in a simple but effective way, and I really enjoyed reading it. It reminded me that just because I enjoy something does not automatically make it high quality, and just because I do not enjoy something does not mean it lacks value. whenever I dislike something, I still try to acknowledge its strengths, and when I do like something, I also try to recognize its flaws so This part helped me see that this way of thinking is worth continuing
Overall, I really enjoyed this piece because it didn’t just give me answers, but it also gave me a better way of thinking and helped me refine how I ask questions. I feel like i sometimes get frustrated with myself when I don’t understand something immediately, but this writing made me realize that meaning is not always something you find right away and that it is something you build over time, and also that understanding art is not about finding one correct answer, but more about being open to multiple interpretations and also how you personally connect to it.