Thursday, May 2, 2013

Wooden-Headedness

                   In The March of Folly, historian Barbara Tuchman writes:

“Wooden-headedness, the source of self-deception, is a factor that plays a remarkably large role in government. It consists of assessing a situation in terms of preconceived fixed notions while ignoring or rejecting any contrary signs. It is acting according to wish while not allowing oneself to be deflected by the facts”

                Wooden-headedness, or stubbornness, is most definitely a strong contributing factor in the daily lives of all humans. It plays an enormous role in the daily affairs of all people, and is many times the only reason for some individuals to make certain decisions. Firstly, the most successful people in life are stubborn and resilient. They choose to never give up and strive to accomplish what they desire. Without these traits they would have long since given up their hopes and ambitions, and would never have reached the peak of their lives.
               A great example would be presidential campaigns- without perseverance and a stubbornness to win, none of our former presidents could have won their titles. Not many of the celebrities we idoloze would have been remotely as successful as they are. It is pure obstinacy and a refusal to lose that motivates people to pursue their dreams and stand up for the morals they believe in.
                In addition, wooden-headedness helps humans to decide their course of life or what they want to achieve. For example, a friend of mine who was on the pre-med track at our local university and wanted to be a doctor wasn't doing very well in her biology class. However, she was stubborn in pursuing her dreams and fufilling the class requirements, so she got some extra tutoring, went in to her professor's office for extra help, and ended up not only passing the class but also getting a summer biology internship. None of this would have been remotely possible without my friend's wooden-headedness and aspirations to push through classes now for the greater reward of a medical profession later on.       
                However, there are times when there is more than just a factor of stubbornness which motivates us as humans. Sometimes the things that inspire us to do good deeds or strive for something higher are not our personal ambitions but a materialistic desire for money and a greed for posessions. In these cases wooden-headedness plays little to no role in human affairs, and may not even be present.
               Overall however, wooden-headedness and stubborness so indeed affect the daily lives of human beings. They can help people learn to strive for what they want and accomplish the things they set out to do. In addition, it can help them to preservere when they might start to lose hope. 

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