2^nd  Formal Essay —McFarland—Fall—2017

Thom Hartmann—and many other thinkers—believes that the values and beliefs of what he calls the “Younger Culture” are leading humans and our planet in a direction of great danger and calamity. So one reason that Hartmann in his book Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight seems to jump all around in human history, pulling in examples and concepts from deep in our past and from cultures that we may never have even heard of, is that he believes that one solution to this impending calamity is to draw on the wisdom of humans who may have different perspectives than us. He says we should look to the ideas of what he calls the “Older Culture.” (In our movie The Road, the term “carrying the fire” expresses the idea of passing on values and beliefs that benefit civilization.) 

In the Afterward of the book, Neale Walsch writes that because you are becoming familiar with the ideas in the book that now you are one of the “Crucial Ones.”  For this paper you will be evaluating Hartmann’s and Walsh’s argument through your own life and experience by looking at the following questions: 

1.     What do you think of Hartmann’s idea that we can learn how to live more harmoniously on the Earth by adapting ideas from what he calls the “Older Culture”?
2.     What do you think of Walsch’s idea that you are now one of the “Crucial Ones”?
3.     How do you plan to nurture or protect the future?
4.     What are some beliefs or ways of acting or organizations that you see today that you think actually help other humans and/or the planet?

In order to support your points, you need to use the ideas found in the books, the movie The Road, your research, and in any other handouts, info, etc. that we have access to. Of course you will want to do Rule of 3 for each question.

You will need to include in this paper outside sources that look at how we live today, or that suggest long-term consequences of how we live today, or that offer solutions for a better world in order to support your ideas, especially as relates to our relationship with Nature. 

You should try to include more than one quote per paragraph whenever possible. Quote length in a paper of this length should be no more than 1-2 lines. 

The essay’s page minimum is 6 full pages…(BNDJTM…) 

Paragraph topic sentences should start with concepts. Paragraph topic sentences should also feature KEYWORDS, which are taken from the questions that you will be exploring. 

For the Tuesday 1A Class: Paper is due Oct 17, Draft day is Oct 10.

For the Monday 1A  Class: Paper is due Oct 16, Draft day is Oct 9.

For the M/W 102 Class: Paper is due Oct 16,  Big Draft day is Oct 11.