Great Minds Think Alike

I think that if all the authors we have learned about thus far were to sit down for dinner, they would share many of the same ideals. Jill Bolte Taylor talks about the power of being present and the beauty that the right hemisphere of our brain has to offer. Although her point of focus is on the benefits of the creative properties of the right side of the brain, I do not think she would underestimate the importance of the left side as well. A. O. Scott also emphasizes the importance of the right-hemisphere by focusing specifically on emotions and their place in our lives when talking about the movie "Inside Out". Noah Charney, on the other hand, talks about the importance of analyzing what we see and engaging deeply with the material by using the left-hemisphere of our brain, specifically in art. Taylor and Scott give us this information to help us engage with the world, while Charney is more concerned with how to engage with art. Howard Rheingold in “Reading Rhetorically” talks about the importance of engaging seriously with text, and this also places emphasis on the left-hemisphere of the brain. I do not think the authors are contradicting each other, they are just focusing on different areas. The difference between Taylor and Scott's views and the other two authors is that the former seem to be focusing on being happy and fulfilled, while the latter two value critical thinking and intellectual competency. I think everyone would agree that both have a place in our lives.