Statement of Purpose, Part 1

Throughout the history of intricate social structures among human relations there has always been a dividing line between right or wrong, good or evil, respect or callousness, and simply the willingness to understand and appreciate or not. During my numerous years of continuing education in order to actually learn, I find myself always pondering why it is so difficult to find a median between absolute power and equal distribution of power. Of course, I am not one to offer any specific answer that is the answer, but it is necessary, in my opinion, to question why people are homeless, why children are dying by the thousands every day, why women are so abused and made into objects of pleasure, why men deem themselves the hierarchy of all living things, and why some people are just simply forgotten and cast aside. The ultimate question each of us should be asking is: how can I make a difference?

So here I am at Appalachian State University seeking two degrees in Communication Studies BS and Interdisciplinary Studies: Third World, not simply to earn two degrees and consider myself intelligent, but to acutely listen to other opinions on social issues, shape my understandings through each course, and to see where there is a connection between the Third World and Communication, if there is one. I theorize that there is link between these two very different studies, and in order for me to make a

difference, I must seek this correlation and find a way to use the betterment of human communication in order to help those who need it the most.

My degree in Third World Studies through the Interdisciplinary department offers a liberal view of different courses to better profile why the Third World exists in the first place. There are no courses that say ‘IDS: Why should you care about Third World Studies’, but rather areas structuring around specific regions of the world that are considered to be “Third World” and historical, geographical, political, artistic, and anthropological fields are offered in order to surround this idea of ‘what is Third World?’ This creates a substantial amount of thinking and understanding on my part since no person is telling me what there is to do to change political and social constructions to decrease the potent definition of Third World, and since I want to achieve finding this molding point of two areas of study, then this degree allows me to search on my own time and in my own way without giving me one specific way to think.

This links directly as to why I chose to go into the Interdisciplinary department, this freedom of seeking a different opinion and way of thinking, but I feel it is important because human power was initially created and made substantial due to this idea of ‘thinking’ and how those who are able to do it better in order to manipulate win. They are the monarchies, hierarchies, and democracies today. My question is why can’t we manipulate in a resourceful, practical, and dignifying way in order to create stability socially, economically, and politically in order to find a solution to poverty and the unjust treatment of victims of race, class, and gender. Is it possible or not?

This is how I plan to make a difference or, hopefully, some sort of change. If I fail, I fail, but it is reassuring to know that one can think, feel, and understand through a typically strict construction of learning.