<p>Essay Prompt
Nowadays nothing is private: our culture has become too confessional and self-expressive. People think that to hide one’s thoughts or feelings is to pretend not to have those thoughts or feelings. They assume that honesty requires one to express every inclination and impulse.
Adapted from J. David Velleman, “The Genesis of Shame”
Assignment
Should people make more of an effort to keep some things private? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.</p>
<p>Every individual is entitled to their own privacy. It their duty to ensure that they maintain a safe distance from nosy neighbors or unwanted friends on Facebook who often try to make a havoc of their personal lives. Otherwise they can self invite peril, often unknowingly. It is not about shutting themselves from the world around or hiding important details, but it is about being able to decipher the fine line between privacy and publicity. It is a very fine line indeed! Hence,the statement "Should people make more of an effort to keep some things private? is true. Examples to prove this point are extensive and too many to delve into.
Firstly, well into the 21st century, scientific and technological advancements have enabled us to reach out to people across the globe, to explore ventures that seemed bleak 2 decades ago. The internet, a path breaking invention indeed, has almost become a part of our daily lives and so have social networking sites. By the latter, limiting out purview to Facebook only would be living in Fool’s Paradise! There’s the Snapchat, Instagram, Myspace, Youtube, Twitter and other no so noteworthy ones as well. These sites have transformed us into an open book for the masses to read and formulate their own conclusions, often prejudiced and well deviated from the original intention, sadly. Such sites also provide us with the freedom to express our views without any fetters with taglines like ‘what’s on your mind?’ ,but there are certainly some who go overboard with constant updates of their emotional outbursts or relationship statuses. Hence, it is essential that we keep certain details private and extend viewing accessibility of our pictures and posts to an immediate friend circle only if we wish to live a peaceful life, otherwise someone in some remote corner of the world could very well take advantage of our unwary naiveté and with their devious intentions turn our life into a social mess. Secondly, there have instances from literature when confiding in a supposed confidante has had violent repercussions. In the Bard of Avon’s Julius Caesar, tragic hero Marcus Brutus confides in Cassius, telling him about his concern for Rome and its people if Caesar was to continue as ruler. Not only did Brutus commit a flaw by sharing his thoughts with Cassius but also trusted someone to blindly with his inner emotional upheavals. Who knew that taking advantage of this Cassius would, on behalf of the other conspirators, write a letter to Brutus feigning to be the Roman masses to provoke him to take up their cause and thereby assassinate Caesar. This opens up another aspect of the above argument about choosing wisely about whom to trust and whom not to.</p>
<p>Further elucidating on the first point that although being a social butterfly might speak highly of one in the society and you may be the talk of the town but internally it is the sign of someone shallow. Hence, taking precautions is the mark of a wise one because every scientific invention has its bane and it turns out that the internet offers both: the boon and bane; we have to be careful enough to choose the former. Similarly human nature and their instincts should practice with precaution when its comes to trust and respecting one’s privacy.</p>
<p>My very first attempt at wrting a sat essay. Please score this anyone. Thank you!</p>