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Okay so in my last blog, Professor Michaud asked if I would post my paper, so here it is :)


In the novel, “The Sane Society”, Erich Fromm writes of his study of contemporary capitalist societies, primarily the United States. Unlike Freud, Fromm believed that social factors were important in the development and sanity of a person. Fromm believed that humans have the ability to think rationally and therefore make decisions based on their thought, unlike Freud who believed that they merely followed sex drive. After researching the way people interact and the influences on their behavior, Fromm came to the conclusion that most societies cause problems for the members living in them. The author states that a country becomes insane when its inhabitants fail to meet their human needs productively. Fromm outlines these basic human needs as relatedness vs. narcissism, transcendence, rootedness, sense of identity, and the need for a frame of orientation and devotion. For the remainder of the novel, Fromm provides the reader with problems that need to be corrected to enhance the productive satisfaction of human needs, for example, the education system. One productive way to change the system to enhance the productive satisfaction of human needs would be to eliminate the banking concept of education.
The classroom environment has remained the same for many years. In most cases, there is one dominant individual, being the teacher, who lectures the students. Paulo Freire, an education reformer, describes this experience as the “Banking Concept of Education.” In his perspective, he states that the students act as empty jars with open lids, ready for knowledge to be poured into them. The teachers on the other hand, act as full jars which then pour their acquired knowledge into the student. Freire further describes this as “banking” because the teacher uses knowledge as if it was a bank deposit. When exam time comes, the student then makes “withdrawals” which prove to the teacher that he or she has learned the information. Although this concept has lead to many achievements and advances in society, it has not necessarily made the United States a sane place to live.
The Banking Concept of Education finds its first flaw in the way that the information is taught. The task of the teacher is to fill the students with information. This process usually involves memorization and repetition. Because of this, students are too busy worrying about memorizing the definition of words that they forget to apply the material to their lives. Although the students have the capacity to retain some information, there comes a point where the jar is “too full” to retain anything else. Subsequently, the student is at a loss of valuable information. When being dictated by a teacher, the student feels inferior. His or her subordination does not allow critical thinking or creativity. Additionally, when a teacher presents a lecture on a subject, the teacher usually will present a bias on the given topic. Again, this action limits the student’s independent thinking and therefore does not challenge the individual to be creative.
On the contrary, class discussions fulfill many of the basic human needs outlined by Fromm. The idea of communication is the key to sanity in the education system. First off, discussions allow for relatedness. Fromm states that with everything that goes on, man is torn away from nature. To achieve a union with the world once again, man must transcend separation by becoming part of something bigger than himself. Discussions allow for transcendence through brotherly love, which is defined as productive love towards equals. Transcendence is also evident in discussion because it involves the action of sharing. Sharing expresses integrity, but at the same time shows separation and independence. By working together with the teacher, the students can create their own identity and beliefs by not being persuaded in any other way. The Banking Concept of Education involves transcendence only in a destructive way, domination. The teacher dominates over the students which causes both participants to lose their freedom and integrity. The students are then divided amongst themselves by Grade Point Average and academic standing to further dominate over one-another. This leads to a lack of inner strength and lack of self-reliance. This idea also promotes competition between one another, which leaves no room for positive transcendence in love. Eventually, the Banking Concept of Education will lead to defeat because of the inherent dependence on others.
Communication within the classroom also fulfills the need to transcend. Fromm states that humans have a dire need to become more. The most appropriate way to do this is through creativeness. Although this is mostly accomplished through marriage and birth, it is also possible in the classroom. Creativeness in society also fulfills the need to become more. Through discussions, students are more apt to create an idea on a particular topic. These ideas will eventually lead to values and beliefs. It is the values and beliefs of a person that make each person an individual. A person shows creativity through individuality, therefore fulfilling the need to transcend.
By eliminating the Banking Concept of Education, students will have a greater chance at developing their own identity. According to Fromm, individuality is important because it satisfies his or her need to transcend. Through conversation and working together with the teacher, the class experiences a greater sense of confidence. With confidence, the students are able to clearly express their personal values and beliefs. This can lead to arguments and discussions that further challenge the student to find out who they are, what they know, and how they know it. Through this, the students are able to voice their beliefs and values, giving them a sense of identity.
Therefore, eliminating the Banking Concept of Education would enhance the productive satisfaction of human needs, leading to a saner society in the United States. By targeting the youth, there is a greater chance that they will develop bringing about saner ideals and values for their offspring. Most valuable education is taught by example. With setting the example of equality, the teachers will be teaching the students a valuable lesson that will lead to creativity and self-confidence.
I believe that this change will truly help society as a whole. One way that I could bring about this change is to suggest it to the school board. I know that many teachers are adamant about their way of teaching, but I believe that if they saw the alternatives to the lecture they would be more accepting of different ideals. I believe that even if teachers participated in discussions once in a while, not necessarily every class, the students would more likely be saner and lead saner lives. Eventually, this will lead to a saner society. One rational way that I can bring about this change would be to involve the class in discussions during presentations. This way, students are more engaged in the information I am presenting along with the other benefits that follow with it. Overall, I can help to make my life saner by using communication to challenge my beliefs, allowing me to transcend, relate, and develop my identity. By eliminating the Banking Concept of Education, all students and teachers can lead saner lives by productively meeting their needs as human beings.


One thing that I wish that I did more was incorporate Freire's points and perspective. Because this paper was based around my thoughts and MY ideas, it was hard to put too much emphasis on him. Although I stated that my concepts came directly from Freire's argument, a lot of them actually came from personal experience. In Literature class the other day, we had a completely open discussion about what we want changed, what we liked about the class, what wasn't beneficial, and who should have what role. This shocked me. I have never been put into a class environment which allowed so much freedom and yet so much responsibility. I loved it. Through this discussion, the class came together to eliminate the banking concept. By working together, we established rules, expectations and an entirely different form of sctructure. It was awesome to be able to do this. This is a prime example of students exercising their right to become leaders to further better themselves and others. The need of strong leaders is prevalent in everyday society. Being able to take initiative to help change the class exercised important values that all students should have. I was amazed that this professor gave us so much freedom. Immediately after class I called my boyfriend saying: You'll never guess what our last professor just let us do. Whoever I told, the general consensus was "I wish my teachers did that! I would get so much more out of the class!" Although this has many positives, our professor was afraid that without this structure, the students would fall behind. I don't believe that this is true. Because of the new community, I don't look at my unfinished schoolwork as "oh well, I let myself down." That has now formed into the fact that I'm letting down my teacher, myself, AND my peers. This new community is kind of like working on a group project. If you don't do the work, you feel so guilty for letting down the people who actually did. With the community, I feel like the students have a bond with the teacher that actually makes them MORE likely to do the work.