Memes and Nice Guys

Dawkins portrays several ideas in chapter ten and eleven. As we have heard all throughout the book, DNA are replicators  which create every living thing on earth, and that these sometimes make mistakes that then lead to evolution. Now, he comes up with this idea of memes. These are ideas or beliefs that remain with some people and to which some can relate. Like in 9gag, there are memes that everybody who visits 9gag can identify with. "Cultural transmission is analogous to genetic transmission in that, although basically conservative, it can give a rise to a form of evolution." (Pg. 189) I strongly disagree with he point that he makes that memes go from one brain to another replicating ideas. Ideas have nothing to do with genes, a person form itself through time, and changes through time. No one is born to do something specifically or to be the one destined to portray certain idea. It does not work like that. People base themselves on the environment that they are exposed to and by what they are taught (whatever method he or she was taught to) to create who they are. For example leadership. Leaders are not born, they are made. The same with ideas; as people grow and learn they conclude different things about different topics. Many have different opinions and think differently on many things. They were not born thinking like that, they based themselves on what they were taught and on whatever he or she is evaluating to create a solid and supported conclusion about it. Culture is transmitted from one person to another, but it has nothing to do with genes.

One thing that Dawkins talks about to which I agree is that he portrays God as a meme. Its just a common figure that many identify with and/or believe in. No one is certain that God exists, but many believe that he does. He is portrayed and seen in many different ways but in the end it is an idea that people have, or in Dawkins words a meme. The argument is perfectly valid, since many just use God as an excuse for many things, or just to have a place to go to in rough times. In tough times some people just pray, in a way just hiding from reality behind a meme. Well, that is each one of us' choice, as everyone is different and hence have different ideologies about life and God. "God exits, if only in the form of a meme with high survival value, or ineffective power, in the environment provided by human culture." (Pg. 193)

In the end Dawkins talks about the "nice guy" finishing first. Well some might think, what is that supposed to mean? To me, he is referring in a way to karma, and to values. Since we are very little we are taught values and morals so that we are correct and decent people. Just think about it with some logic, if you are nice and good at what you do you will be respected, you will be liked by many, and you will be successful in life. Nice people make friends. Mean people make enemies. Its that easy, no need to over think this statement, if you are good you will be rewarded and results from your good actions will eventually come. The key is to be good, work hard, be perseverant and (of course in different proportions due to the fact that unfortunately not everybody is born into the same circumstances) results will eventually come therefore the statement of finishing first. Finishing is success.   '





   

The Selfish Gene

After reading The Selfish Gene (actually just 2 chapters), I found out some interesting statements that are made throughout the book. According to Dawkins, the human is selfish. I wonder why the human is selfish, and where that argument comes from. He says that it is because of the genes, that make humans selfsh. He talks about DNA and how animals (ncluding humans) are conformed by genes that determine how they act and who they are.


I strongly disagree with that. I believe that the only thing that genes affect are the physical traits of one. Who someone becomes or who someone is depends on the environment that he or she is exposed to throughout their lives. That is why people change and take different decisions. You learn values throughout your life, that make you who you are. Your parents also affect a lot in how they raise you and what they teach you is wrong or right, since when you are very little you have not discovered many things yet. Genes only affect our body, and not our feelings.


A very impacting frase that he uses is: "They are in you and me; they created us... Now they go by the name of genes, and we are their survival machines". He is basically saying that genes control us, like if they weren't part of us, but as if we were their slaves. Like if they used us to survive but they are the ones that make you who you are and just use the body to represent themsleves. I still say that values are learned as time passes and that people change throughout their lives, depending on many factors like experiences, situations, people, environment exposement, etc. I believe that genes just make you physically, which of course affects in a way because that may decide if someone else likes your physical traits or not. BUt that is not the point right now, the point is that genes do not affect who you are and did not create us, I believe that God created us.


He of course, believes that the genes are our type of God, and that without them we would not exist. In a way it is true, but only to the extent that scientifically genes form our genetic material and define us. But genes are not the reason that we exist, I mean its not like they control us or that they can "think". They are just genetic traits that you inherit and that form your body up, but in the end it all depends on who you become depending on the environments you are exposed to and who you want to be. Also he talks about how humans are individualistic and don't think abut group benefit, only about individual benefit. And that genes are capable of using others to make one prosper, making us their survival machines as mentioned before. I just find that statement out of context, I think that it is a bit exagerated to think that all this has to do with one's genetic material. 


He says that everything about us have to do with genes, and I think that it is just crazy to think that. I mean, what about guilt, what about people going mentally crazy, what about something as "simple" as choosing religion and beliefs. That has nothing to do with genes. Has to do with character, personality, and morals. 

Interesting Bet

Martin and Candide, still arguing about life and how it works, observe a monk and a happy lady. Candide remarks that the lady is happy, and makes a bet with Martin. The bet consisted of discovering if the monk and the lady were actually happy or not. If they were happy, Candide would win. If they were not, then Martin would win (obviously). Candide invites them to dinner, to discover the lives that these two had. How small the world is, that Pacquette was the "happy" girl. Pacquette was the responsible for causing all the problems for Pangloss in Westphalia. By the end of the dinner, Martin had one the bet by a mile. Pacquette's life was horrible: she was beaten, robbed, and unhappy with her life. The monk... wanted to kill himself. Candide is once again proven wrong by reality. You can't guide yourself by how people look before actually talking to them. The world is a horrible place, according to Martin. Candide thinks he'll see her loved one again, and we all know that that is unlikely. He calls Martin a pessimist, but he is just being realistic. I think that all these stories are absurd, and that Voltaire is obviously exaggerating things.

I do not know if to take Voltaire/Pococurante seriously or ironically. He might be using irony, and criticizing all the rich that think that they are better because they posses valuable things. In this case, the Pococurante possesses great pieces of art (that is: Homer, Milton, paintings, etc.). The Pococurante hates all he possesses, even though he possesses a lot of precious stuff. Well, that is according to society, since he thinks it's all crap. He criticizes all the works and books, saying that their themes are boring. There he might be being sarcastic, because gods, wars and tragedies are not at all boring. The other option, is to take Voltaire literally in this case. If you take him literally, he might be criticizing the way that ignorants don't get true art, and don't appreciate what really takes work and dedication.  If they don't get it, then they won't find the interesting part. Even his own book is an example of this. If you take Voltaire literally, the book makes no sense at all. You have to see the satire to understand the book. You have to take it outside the bubble to be one of the few privileged to actually get art and literature. Maybe he is criticizing this, and the ignorance that people have when they talk about one of these works of art without even getting it right.

Voltaire may also be emphasizing in the point that money does not make you happy. The senator, which supposedly possesses great pieces of art and a great house, hates what he possesses. He may even be making all these three points. I think that the most likely is the one of the ignorance. If he was to be ironic and be saying the opposite of what he thinks, I believe that he would use more absurdity. It is likely because his own book is hard to get and that is why many people don't really read Candide because they take Voltaire seriously. If you take Voltaire seriously, you are reading another book. In this case though, I think he is not being sarcastic or ironic, since it would be typical of him to criticize ignorance.

Naive Candide

After leaving his fellow servant to wait for him in Venice, he encountered a compromising situation. He had to reach Venice somehow, therefore he had to find a ship that would take him there. He first tried to negotiate with a Dutch pirate, which asked for much more money tan it was worth to go to take someone to Venice. Each time he rose the price, Candide just gave him more money without questioning anything. He put his two sheep on board, and when he was in a rowing boat following the ship to get on board himself, the Dutch pirate took off. Candide was outraged by this, since he never thought a man would do that. He went to a judge but the judge also asked for a lot of money just to listen to Candide. Candide never suspected that he was being cheated on, being too naive and thinking that no man would be so cruel to trick him. Well, he was wrong. And he still had to find a way to get to Venice. Finally, he found a French ship, that would actually take him to Venice. Candide did not want to go alone, so after offering money for someone who would keep him company, he and Martin set sail to Venice.

Martin had the opposite philosophy to the one Pangloss had. Martin believed that the world was created to drive men crazy and that it was made by the force of evil, not the force of good. He had gone through so much that he couldn't have believed something else. He was robbed by his wife, left by his daughter, and beaten by his son. Martin believed that men were evil and that they have always been that way. They argued all the way to Venice, and were still arguing when they got to Bordeaux.

While they are at the ship, some gunfire is heard. Two ships were battling very close to them, so they were supposed to be scared. Were they? Voltaire says: "... but the wind brought them both so close to the French ship, that the passengers had the pleasure of watching the fight in comfort". (Page 93)That was very ironic, since the point wasn't to fight the fight in comfort, it was to prevent being killed by one of those two ships! I mean, who would want to be so close to war itself. After one ship won, one of his sheep was swimming towards the French ship. It was the only survivor. Candide was very happy to have one of his sheep back, and told Martin to see how crime is punished. Martin responded that the Dutch pirate had been punished, but the other 100 men were also punished and did nothing. He was right. The only conclusion I can draw from that is that the world is not just. Justice does not exist in the world, but one can make his own destiny and be successful with what he has. One can always be happy, no matter what. Sometime the day comes for some of us, but in the end we all die. Ones will be punished by the actions of others, and that is inevitable. I think that Pangloss and Martin are both to extreme, well I think the world is right in the middle. Some things happen for the best, while others make no sense and are unjust. That is just how it is, and there is nothing to do about it. It's all a matter of perception, therefore no belief is wrong but some to me are a bit too extreme.        

The Country of El Dorado

What they saw in the country of El dorado, when arriving to the His Majesty's kingdom, was marvelous. Candide and Cacambo were treated very well, as they were provided food for free in a restaurant they found there. They tried to pay the man with gold, but the man laughed and said that why were they trying to give him stones from the street. These stones were gold, diamonds, and other precious stones. Stones? That's jewelry right there. Candide and Cacambo were just as surprised as me with the fact that they called gold "yellow mud". They were taken to the palace, to see His Majesty, who received them with pleasure. It's ironic how the city works, it may as well be actually the city were it all happens for the best. The people al had the same opinions, so there would never be any problems or disputes between the people. There were no jails, no monks, and no materialistic people. The people were very happy with what God gave them, thanking him day and night (at least that is what the a "hundred and seventy-two" year old man told Candide).

Cacambo and Candide had a great life: they lived in great conditions, they could stay as long as they wanted, and nobody wanted them to leave or hated them. Even though they had such a great life, Candide couldn't live without Lady Cunégonde. He wanted to rescue her and then go back to the old world with some gold and sheep from His Majesty's kingdom. That is exactly what they did, but just until the part of leaving with sheep and gold so far haha. Who knows were Cunégonde is and what is of her. When they asked His Majesty for the gold and the sheep to leave, he said that even though he'd like them to stay, that he wouldn't stop them. It was against his religion and laws. He asked his engineers (pretty advanced for that time I think) to help them to make their way. Before they left, His Majesty said this: "I don't understand your European taste for yellow mud, but take as much as you wish..." (Page 83) It is ironic how different perceptions he Europeans have of life than the new world people. Voltaire may also be criticizing how the Europeans would do anything for gold and precious stones and how they killed people for those. The perception of the two sides is completely different, what some consider mud other consider a lot of money. Now they are off to sail with their gold and sheep, and everything seems to be good? Will they become rich or will they encounter  tragedy once again?

How Strangely Things Turn Out

Somehow, Candide is alive. By killing the brother of his loved one, he was not eaten. Besides, they encountered Cunégondes brother in Paraguay. Strange, he has been at the verge of being killed at least five times, and he always finds a way to escape. This time he had to kill his old master, friend, and companion. Then he killed two monkeys thinking he was finally doing something well but it turns out that he screwed it up again. They were thought to be jesuits and were almost eaten but they proved not to be and instead were treated like kings. they were offered girls, food, rest, etc. They were offered all you can need. Every time things are going badly something good happens and when they are in a good situation, then something bad happens. This story is full of ups, downs and surprises.

Who knows how Cunégonde and the old woman are doing, they have probably been ravished and sold to another governor. Without Cunégonde's brother, Candide and Cacamo will have to find those two alone. They are still doing somewhat well compared to the expectations after being separated. Who knows who will they encounter next and how they will manage to survive. Maybe in a way everything will actually happen for the best. Just kidding, of course it will not. The old woman has been through many different things, probably she will find a way to keep loving life and saving Lady Cunégonde. The reader, at least me, sometimes gets lost in the irony of the book. Sometimes I don't know if the characters are being ironic or not. Also, the changes in time and place are very fast, with many actions in each place. A lot of things happen in a short lapse of time so understanding why things happen takes time. Like when Candide and the Baron are crying of joy and suddenly the baron is dead. Oh, and i forgot to mention that the guy weeping a few moments ago was the one who killed him. It is very unpredictable, well i have no clue of what will happen next. Hopefully Candide and Cunégonde will marry and the old woman can die in peace after being the hero of the story. Very unlikely, but this book is full of surprises.

It will all depend on the decisions Candide makes. Hopefully he will be wise and evade any problems with natives besides the Governor of Buenos Ayres. Everybody wants to marry Cunégonde, hopefully Candide can be there in time before she marries the Governor of Buenos Ayres if they have not been married already. Again, good luck to Candide and Cacambo in all their voyages and adventures.

The Old Woman's Story

"I have tried to kill myself a hundred times, but somehow I am still in love with life". (Page 57) This is what the old woman says after telling what had been of her life, proving Candide and Cunégonde that she went through a lot more than they did. She was provoked to tell this story by Cunégonde, when she implies with a laughter that no one had suffered more than she had. The old woman's story is a tale full of war, disease, poverty, slavery, abuse and misery. It seems like no one can suffer more than the old woman. She went from having everything to having absolutely nothing and being treated like an priceless object. How she tells the story makes it even more miserable, like how she chooses the order of the words. the syntax of the book when the old woman is telling her story makes the reader be more impressed with the anecdotes each time. After the story was told, even Candide questioned the world's greatest philosopher and his way of seeing life. After hearing that, how can you even think of everything happening for the best? No way. How can you want to keep living after going through all that the old woman went through? Even with Cunégonde's and Candide's story you may be devastated as well. I mean, how can people's fate change so fast?

You've got to be in love with life as the old woman said to want to keep living after living those stories. And not only the stories, but how they end up in those situations. The old woman was a princess! She was recognized all over Italy, with an excellent future before her and somehow ended as a slave. That's how life tests you, putting you down until you can't keep up. I once heard: "It ain't not about how hard you hit, it is about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward". I fully agree on that, and respect Candide, Cunégonde and the old woman for moving forward. It is still a book, but in real life there a hundreds of people going through very tough situations, that is why we must not complain about our tiny problems and instead be thankful for what we have. At least in my case it is that way, I sometimes think I am so unfortunate without knowing how fortunate I am and not knowing with what other people are dealing with.

Back to the book. Now, they are in the new world, and their hopes of everything happening for the best in the new world are gone. A nobleman in Buenos "Ayres" wants to marry Lady Cunégonde and Candide has to be gone because they were persecuted for the death of the Inquisitor. Once again, Cunégonde will probably be ravished, the old woman will end up as a slave and Candide will be persecuted to be killed. Good luck finding your loved one again Candide...