In my view, my autobiog _is_ my education. How can one learn without
first knowing one's self? We may, no doubt, learn without knowing how we
learn, but is this unreflexive, instinctive type of learning of any real
benefit? I think not: it's less than human, IMHO .
Whilst reading an excellent account of Adorno's thinking (Jarvis, S.
[1998]. <italic>Adorno: A critical introduction</italic>. London: Polity
=96an excellent account, I highly recommend it!), my schoolboy German
noticed that the word 'gift' in German means poison. The etymological
root of the English 'gift', as told by the Oxford dictionary, is Gebhen
(give).=20
In my experience, being gifted in whichever area - as Jay quite
poignantly pointed out - is tantamount to being socially poisoned, so I
think the German etymology may be more literal than the Oxford has it.=20
So ... I guess I'm with Eve on the autobiog question. As a newbie here, I
have no knowledge, or authority to speak, but I think that, at the heart
of Mind, Culture, and Cognition, is the issue of identity - personal
histories can only enlighten us on this.
Cheers,
Phil Graham
Student
Queensland University of Technology