November 30, 2014
Individual Action in the Civic Realm
Final Reckonings of Citizenship
Throughout my time in Venice I have learned a lot about myself, what I believe in, and where I see myself in the world. The abroad experience I have had was both eye opening and motivating, and my curiosity for the world has grown immensely. I have started to realize what I value, and I am beginning to see possible opportunities to put my new beliefs into action. And this is what citizenship means to me now. To be informed about society, to have beliefs, and to put these beliefs into actions. Throughout my time in Venice, I have realized that I am not just a citizen of Venice, of Italy, or of America. I am a citizen of the world and I am ready to do what I need to do to take on the responsibilities of a citizen.
These notions of citizenship have been widely affected by what I have learned from the readings and assignments in our citizenship class. From Plato’s model of citizenship I learned about the importance of separation of philosophy and politics, theory and practice, and most importantly isolation and plurality. From Aristotle I learned about the importance of involvement in societal events in order to be a good citizen. Dissoi Logoi made me realize the value in recognizing and understanding all sides of a matter. Arendt emphasized the difference between public and private spheres and the way our citizenship roles differ in each. I think Arendt’s work spoke to me the most because it made me realize the importance of action. I have the privilege of freedom to enter the public sphere, which is not something that everyone in the world can say. Thus it is my duty to act in the public sphere in order to make a difference as much as I can. It is easy to submit oneself to the “truths” or “facts” that are constantly re-iterated to us in the public sphere. But to recognize the transparency of many of the things we are told in the public sphere, and to question the things around us, is more important than being an observer in society. In order to make a difference, we must act. We must speak up about what we believe. We have to take a leap of faith and put our beliefs into action, and we have to lose our fear of not being accepted in the public sphere when we do stand up for something. This, according to Robert Asen, is why a being good citizen involves a good deal of risk. Because being a good citizen means putting beliefs into action and calling out to the involvement of others. There were many more texts that we read that have influenced the way I now perceive citizenship, but these were the authors and philosophers that spoke to me the most.
For me, my new model of citizenship is not just about participating in society in beneficial ways. I used to think being a good citizen could just involve voting, buying locally made or environmentally friendly products, and being respectful to one’s neighbors. But it’s so much more than that. It’s about speaking up in the world and taking action to support those who can’t. And not just in the city or country that you live in, or are a legal citizen of. I think being a good citizen means being a good citizen of society, of the world. With a respect to people from all cultures, from all backgrounds, and with all mentalities. Being abroad has given me the opportunity to see so many countries, visit so many cities, and observe so many new ways of life. But if anything I have been inspired to see even more of the world, and to take on even more modes of citizenship. Because being a citizen doesn’t stop when you leave your country. I think you are a citizen no matter where you are in the world, and to have a respect for all cultures and to actively work to better them is something that I will try to take on in the future.