first paragraphs

The BBP (big bad paper) begins, 300 words down, one thousand more to go:

     Our course, Overview of the Humanities, is “an introduction to the cluster of academic disciplines usually known as the humanities, to what they do and how they do it.”  The course encourages reflection on what it is to be human, how we relate to the world, and what it is to live the good life.  By studying historical and contemporary ideas of truth and knowledge we are better equipped to explore and develop our own views.  During the first seven meetings of our course we have explored what the humanities are, what evidence there is of humankinds’ first world view, and what some of the first explanations of the world were.  We read about and discussed several philosophers and their views of knowledge and truth. Then we began exploring changes in knowledge through the disciplines of medicine and astronomy. 
    Constantly questioning and critically examining our beliefs and what we think we know, frees us from our assumptions about our world and our place in it.  As man’s knowledge of the workings of the world increases, his idea of truth changes.  He  views himself as more in control of his surroundings and more able to affect change.  This perceived power to know and control one’s place in the world is necessary for the good life.  The good life comes from understanding ourselves and choosing how we interact with our world.  For me, the strength that comes from knowing and valuing who I am as an individual and as a link between the past and the future is the good life.