Group+8

Shannon O'Dwyer     Brendan Wass Nacha Marco Rafa Rios
 * TYS Group 8**
 * ASV Group 8**

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=Introduction= Truth, beauty and ethics are difficult words to define. At first glance, it seems obvious, truth is fact, beauty is being attractive, and ethics are what’s right. However, after much consideration, we discovered that there is more to these three words than just a simple definition, and that the key would be to create solid explanations pertaining to the challenge in order to explain our choices regarding ethics, music, language and geography. The problem with defining truth is that we have no way of knowing what is actually true. We can call truth a logical statement, such as with the coherence theory. This theory states that if a statement fits with other statements that we as a society accept as true. Another main theory is the correspondence theory, which states that if a statement is perceived it as part of a reality, and it corresponds with this reality, then it too is true. It was on these two theories that we based our definition of truth. We decided that truth meant something that has been proven to be correct through mathematical or just logical reasoning, or something that corresponds, or fits with this logic. At first glance, beauty seems to be just an outside appearance, something that is appealing to look at. Upon greater examination, we decided that beauty was not only on the outside. Something or someone is extremely capable of being beautiful not based on the outward appearance. However, we did agree with the conventional definition that it is something that is pleasurable. This led us to the modified definition that beauty is something that gives pleasure or deep satisfaction when experienced. Whether or not something or someone is beautiful is a very controversial topic, because not everyone has the same opinion. This issue will be explored in greater detail later on, in conjunction with the other topics. The final word, ethics, might be the most controversial of all three to define. However in this situation, we decided that ethics were moral standards and practices commonly accepted by a society, that are socially acceptable. -SO

=Art= Fo art, they should learn about some important artists, and their different style sof painting. Also they could learn to play the flute and maybe also teach them how to make them so they would be able to produce them and then sell them for some source of income. For dancing they could learn a mixture of occidental contemporary dances with a bit of their own traditional dances.

=Music= While the Organization is not focused much on music it can still be an important part of their life and should be introduced. One way to bring music into their lives would be to bring wooden flutes. Also, we can bring someone who crafts this instrument for a living. They already have drums so it won't be necessary to bring those. We can switch their war drumming into drumming to provide a rhythm. Then the flutes can be added to create a melody. The reason wooden flutes would be beneficial is that they can be made with no special materials. They can be created with the environment they live in. If they get good enough at making these instruments they can also sell them off to create income. Flutes are also a beautiful sounding instrument. It will please the organization to hear beautiful tones coming from these people. The last thing about music we will teach is the theory part. They should be taught how to read and write music so they can be more independent and be able to play any kind of song they want. If we ever leave they will still have sheet music and their own minds to continue playing. Making music is overall a great way to bring the clan together and bring creativity into their lives. -BW

=Language= We believe that the two languages that we teach should be English and Portuguese. English should be taught because it is a widely spoken language and and can be spoken in many places. Also the NGO most likely speaks English and it could be a way for the tribe to thank us and the organization after they learn it. If they have English as a language they can travel to many places once they are ready to get a job and start a new life. Some may argue that it is not the most spoken language, and this is true. It is proven that over twice as many people in the world speak Mandarin than English. However, Mandarin is only spoken in Asian countries such as China, Malaysia and Taiwan, and for this reason, it is not the most beneficial language to teach the tribe. English is the most commonly spoken language, and it is the universal language for trade at this moment in time. If we teach the tribe English, they will have a better chance of trading in the bigger cities, and therefore a greater chance of increasing their income. Lastly, the people who want to go in and take their land are most likely English-speaking, therefore they would be able to hold civilized discussions with these people, instead of automatically using violence to reject the outsiders.-SO & BW Portuguese -

=Map= This map of Brazil will be brought with us. It will teach them about their country - cities and landforms - and some of the surrounding countries.

=History= The history of Brazil and also trhe history of portugal, so they would be able to know a bit from were they come from. Some contemporary world history would be also useful, so they can be situatred well in time.

=Ethics= Since the Organization of Truth, Beauty and Ethics is a western based organization, we decided to introduce western style ethics to the Amazonian tribe. However, the problem with introducing anything to this tribe is that they will probably reject it at first, meaning we will have to start slowly, and build up patience, tolerance and most of all trust between us and the natives. We decided that we should try and teach the natives the Golden Rule “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This is the basis of most western societies, and one of the easiest ideals to teach another person. We will teach the natives that they should treat every other person as they would want to be treated themselves. Under this main topic, we hope to modify their views on war, cannibalism, and possibly infanticide. We believe that the tribe was too focused on war and violence, and didn’t think enough about the repercussions it would have on others. We wanted to teach them the benefit of peaceful negotiations, in order to minimize the death toll, and therefore increase life expectancy and productivity in the village. Also, we would like to teach them that cannibalism is not right. This coincides with the main point of treating others as you would want to be treated. The natives would most likely not want to be the victims of cannibalization, so we would teach them not to do it to others, regardless the reason or motif. Lastly is the issue of infanticide. We believed that in this particular situation, infanticide might be for the betterment of the tribe, and should therefore be left alone. They only practice it when the crops do not turn out well, and do not have enough nourishment for the children which means that they would probably die of malnutrition anyway. Some may argue that infants are humans too, and that the elders have no authority to kill these innocent babies, but as I stated before, the children would not be provided with enough nourishment to survive anyway, and it saves the tribe a lot of grief and aggravation always caring for sick and dying children. The tribe is able to function much more productively when all members (large and small) are healthy. However, we would teach them that it is not always the right answer, and try to help them understand that if it can be prevented, in any way, infanticide should not be practiced. - SO