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Self-Evaluation:

To be honest, the reason I registered for this course was because it cross-listed between Biology and English, meaning I would get a natural science credit; science is not really my strong suite or my chosen interest. At this point of the semester I thought of evolution as strictly scientific, I saw absolutely no connection between science and the rest of the world. When I did define the concept of evolution it was in relation to how it is constantly defined in anthropology, such as the evolution of cultures, societies and civilizations. This train of thought was based on anthropological theories that attempted to explain human interactions and how societies came to be what we know today.  To me this made a lot more sense than biological evolution. I never really saw nor accepted a connection between sciences and literature, these two fields were on opposite sides of the spectrum, these two would only intermingle in science fiction, but not in any other way.

               This semester I have explored this connection between science and literature –and well the concept of evolution to begin with. But throughout this course I have began to explore these topics, and most importantly how they intersect, (as represented in my final performance). During the first couple of classes we discussed the concept of theories of evolution, not as fact, but rather a very convincing story. A concept that I really do enjoy, theories are not absolute truths, but rather truths are stories we have chosen to believe, we being, greater society. I discovered the connection between biological evolution and evolution of civilizations. The idea of truths simply being convincing stories we have chosen to believe, is somewhat disconcerting, since it seems to leave us in an ocean of randomness. Although I am not completely comfortable with this idea, I am huge fan of knowing that I can construct my own truth, I can choose to make stories of my own, pick and choose what I think make sense and live by that, it gives me agency to my life.

It seemed like the course changed from the idea of a class about biological evolution to a class about life philosophy. But through this philosophical discussion I have begun to create a connection between biological evolution, the evolution of societies and the evolution of literature. I furthered my understanding in this connection through my final performance.  The truth is that this course has actually confused me, which at first was quite frustrating, but now I have come to embrace the confusion as a form of curiosity which subsequently broadens my scope and perspectives on life.

               Throughout this class my contributions in big class discussions tended to be quite limited, I tend to feel uncomfortable in these situations. But when it came to small class discussions, I often played the role of devils-advocate, this was not exactly something I did on purpose, but rather what I actually thought. For the most part our class discussions, people seemed to have arguments and thoughts that were based on static and seemingly hypothetical situations. I hoped to create a more holistic classroom discussion bringing in real life situations and societal views that could play a role in contradicting our previous views, and even broaden and explore no ideas. By doing so I hope that I was part of expanding my classmates’ perspectives on the ideas and themes we discussed in our class.