Edited by: Mohan Rajagopal
It’s that time of the year when innocent little first-years are once again scrambling to get into Foundation Courses that match their interests and their schedules. They pick and choose their classes with little knowledge of what they’re getting into and more often than not, it’s a nightmare. Well, don’t worry because I’m here to warn you against the terror to end all terrors—a little course called Mind and Behaviour.
The first strike against this abomination is false advertising. Most people assume from its title (as they should) that it’s a Psychology course. Spoiler Alert: it’s not. It’s taken by (dun dun dun) the Philosophy department! That’s right, it’s not so much Mind and Behaviour as it is Body and Soul. You think you’re going to learn about human behaviour and the motivations and desires that drive it when instead, you’re stuck reading Plato and Aristotle’s conception of the tripartite soul. Under other circumstances, perhaps studying conceptions of the ‘self’ would be appealing (maybe) but not in your first year when you’re still struggling through 10-page readings on the Haitian Revolution. I say all of this while setting aside that one bizarre semester where Mind and Behaviour was taught jointly by the Philosophy and the History department, neither of which you are expecting or excited about.
Let’s move on to the classwork and grading of Mind and Behaviour. You’d think that to make up for all the disappointment, it’d at least be an easy A (or even an A-). Nope, not this course. In this class, effort does not translate into a good grade point average. I got a C+. Professors say that grades do not matter, that it is the learning that counts. I’d normally agree but I’d limit it by saying that it should at least be in the ballpark of how much you tried. But, the grading in Mind and Behaviour is mind-boggling. I did every single reading, attended every single class and got an average of 96 per cent on the quizzes (given at the beginning of every lecture session) and still, somehow came a hairsbreadth from flunking. I was taking four other courses plus a co-curricular that semester (like the good little overachiever that I was), put all my effort into my Foundation Course, and managed A-ranged grades in everything but that course. Justice? I don’t think so. This is not even to mention the Discussion Sessions at the ungodly hour of 8:30 am during Sonipat winters. I waded through blankets of smog, freezing in my flip flops, every week for nothing.
What really gets me though, is the inane assignment of the 4-sentence paper. Don’t get me wrong, I am a very strong proponent of clear, concise writing. It is the very reason I struggle to reach word limits. I say everything I need to say in the least number of words possible. And yet, those 4-sentence papers killed me, shot me dead, put an arrow through my heart reminding me of my woeful inadequacy. Have I been using excessive language in this article just to spite the idea of that frustrating and pointless assignment? Yes, yes I have.
One of the questions you might ask me is that despite all of the horrors I have just described, did I learn anything? I would say yes. I learned that I suck at Philosophy. I learned not to care about Foundation Courses. I learned that no matter how much I try, I will never be good enough. I learned to read heavy, dense, meaningless texts by old white men. If these are the things you’re interested in, then go right ahead—take Mind and Behaviour. If not, then apply the brilliant strategy of ‘Thank You, Next’ and take something worthwhile and actually awesome like Literature and the World (no, that is not my English Literature Major bias showing).