The Creation Myth Reading Passage
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The Creation Myth Reading Passage
Paragraph A
That creative people's abilities are God- or nature-given is a widespread myth. Many of us carry the seeds of genius resting within us, but we have yet to discover its full potential. However, how far do we have to go to discover the road to originality? Far beyond the imagination of so many of the things we do on a daily basis—opening the door, shaving, getting dressed, walking to work—we do it out of habit because we have to. If this weren't the case, we would likely go crazy without it. Though it varies from person to person, the strength of our habits is such that they can overwhelm our conscious efforts at creativity. For instance, we might set out on foot to take a different route to the office, only to find ourselves back on our regular route. It would be too late to reconsider our decision at that point. Perhaps some other time. The same is true in every aspect of our existence. For instance, when we set out to solve an issue, we could take different approaches, but we usually end up retracing the same steps.
Paragraph B
So, many people's acts and behaviours are fixed in immovable blocks, their thoughts clogged with the cholesterol of habitual actions, stopping them from operating freely and, as a result, limiting creativity. The obsessive need to impose order on the world is just one example of how mankind's battle for survival has backfired and become a form of tyranny. You can see it in the way people treat time, social norms, and the multitude of laws and restrictions that have been imposed on the human mind.
Paragraph C
School is where people learn how to keep their creative abilities in check. School, college, and then work all teach us how to control our lives by putting more and more limits on us, which is getting worse as technology gets better. So, should we be surprised that creativity seems to be so rare? It is stuck in the prison we built for it. Yet, even in this hostile environment, the groundwork for creativity is being laid. This is because getting started on the creative path means using rules and regulations. These restrictions are needed so that they can be broken once they are learned.
Paragraph D
True creativity is typically depicted as the product of a mind that is uncontrolled and unbound. But, a more accurate representation would be of a mind that is free to roam when it so chooses and that understands laws and regulations as mere parameters that may be established and torn down at leisure. Maybe it would help to see how the human mind may be conditioned to be creative. The brains of others have an arch, and like stiff muscles, this arch must be released in order to realise its full potential. As a sort of stimulation, the participants in the activity can be restricted from using specific solutions or lines of reasoning in order to complete the task. This forces them into uncharted areas, where they may make surprising discoveries. Convincing others that creativity is possible is challenging because of the widespread belief that it is impossible due to the widespread myth and mythology surrounding the creative process. Subconscious fear is also at play here; after all, breaking out from one's established mental routines is comparable to crazy. When you crack open Pandora's box, though, a new world appears.
Paragraph E
Removing obstacles is a significant factor in facilitating thought regulation, as opposed to the mind's default of allowing ideas to bump into each other at random. Parameters help the mind focus by providing a structure for ideas. Thoughts from various parts of the brain can combine to generate a new concept through the process of "lateral thinking," which is equivalent to the formation of a molecule from a collection of individual atoms. In other words, once the concept has been conceived, it must be contained lest it evaporate into thin air. The mind has to concentrate on it for a while before it can recall or use it again. The constraints can then serve as avenues for the growth and maturation of the ideas. After an idea has been developed to its logical conclusion in one's mind, it is time to loosen the reins and let it freely mingle with other concepts.
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