Is mt TOK oral topic too controversial?

[crazian]

My topic is how the human mind limits the physical evolution of the human race.

My introduction on the topic is "shocking" the audience, and telling how we can correct the de-evolution that the human race has been going through.

I'm saying stuff like we shouldn't have hospitals, we shouldn't have compassion for the sick, we shouldn't have compassion for other humans, we should eliminate obese and homosexual people,etc....

I don't believe all of the above stuff, but it's only an example. Is this too harsh for a TOK oral topic?

[QueenSara]

My topic is how the human mind limits the physical evolution of the human race.

My introduction on the topic is "shocking" the audience, and telling how we can correct the de-evolution that the human race has been going through.

I'm saying stuff like we shouldn't have hospitals, we shouldn't have compassion for the sick, we shouldn't have compassion for other humans, we should eliminate obese and homosexual people,etc....

I don't believe all of the above stuff, but it's only an example. Is this too harsh for a TOK oral topic?

Well, I would say that as long as you JUSTIFY YOUR CLAIMS (because to me it now seems like you are going to CLAIM things: we shouldn't etc..) with ToK knowledge and problems, that is absolutely OK. But our teacher said that stating things wihout explanations is the the worst thing one can do in their ToK presenation.

[yazzie]

i dont think its a controversial topic to discuss in TOK at all, lol i think they actually like it when you get controversial topics and discuss the reason for it being controversial and so on. as long as you observe it in an objective manner, and show everything supporting and going against your claim, or just show the different views on the topic.

[cullenh]

My topic is how the human mind limits the physical evolution of the human race.

My introduction on the topic is "shocking" the audience, and telling how we can correct the de-evolution that the human race has been going through.

I'm saying stuff like we shouldn't have hospitals, we shouldn't have compassion for the sick, we shouldn't have compassion for other humans, we should eliminate obese and homosexual people,etc....

I don't believe all of the above stuff, but it's only an example. Is this too harsh for a TOK oral topic?

I think that after your presentation you won't have any friends because you'll hurt too many people's feelings. What about your gay classmates, friends who are overweight, teacher who's mother is in the hospital with a bad case of pnemonia?!

[Guest Lily Bean]

As with a lot of things, I think this topic really depends on how you present it. As long as you make sure to make it clear that your purpose is not to offend but to present knowledge issues then I don't think too many people will be offended. You should definiltely check with your teacher first.

I think it's an interesting topic with lots of knowledge issues, ethics and emotions come to mind. as long as you take it seriously and don't make it into a joke then it should be fine.

[blindpet]

As with this 'people will hate you business' - what you appear to want to discuss is eugenics. This idea is certainly not yours so if you're worried about people despising you as long as you attribute all the blame to Sir Francis Galton (wikipedia.org/eugenics) and analyse the idea of a perfectly functioning society with the abolition of freedom you should be fine.

For homosexuals evolution will rid them anyway since they don't reproduce naturally. But the idea that humans are ****ing with evolution is a very very ToKish topic and I think you should totally go for it. Can humans really alter natural selection to human intervening selection? I'd love to discuss it with you and play devil's advocate - god do I miss ToK!

[Silviana]

Nothing is too controversial for TOK, but you'll need to carefully phrase what you say.

But... yeah! It sounds interesting, and has the potential to be a powerful oral.

[callum]

It's not too controversial at all. The idea of TOK is to be critical about everything. That's exactly what you're doing: being critical. As long as you examine the justifications and implications of the issue you'll be fine. You might want to use the ethical frameworks of relativism or utilitarianism in your analysis.

My TOK teacher's an IB TOK examiner and we had some pretty controversial TOK presentations in our class. One guy tried to argue that cannibalism was ethically right. What our teacher said as long as you follow TOK principles, you'll be fine.

[Bandev]

For homosexuals evolution will rid them anyway since they don't reproduce naturally.

I am not exactly sure how you can say that, considering homosexuality has been present throughout the history of humanity and it hasn't gone away since the beginning of humanity. We also don't know how homosexuality occurs.

[yodude888]

Obviously homosexuality isn't genetic haha. It's about as ridiculous as my friend who claimed to be the decendent of a eunuch!

Be careful, it depends on the atmosphere of your class. Intelligent, rational IB students shouldn't take it badly at all if they're able to look at the wider significance. Don't present it if you know your classmates are likely to say "OMGZ, is yous sayin dat my moms is like gonna die? is you wantin my moms to die?"

[robertomx]

It all depends on three things: a) the maturity of your classmates, b) the way you phrase what you say and c) the way you justify what you say. As for the maturity of your mates, even if some of them are overweight or gay, if they don't take it personal but rather as just a tok presentation that actually does talk about a knowledge issue, it will be okay. As for the way you phrase it, you should be really careful to avoid any expression that might offend people. As for the justifications, do find GOOD STRONG arguments, because if you justify your claims lousily people will think you actually think what you say. Try not to focus on a single pov. if you get on it in a thoughtful way then you'll be fine. I'd say go for it, definitely. If you plan it carefully you'll be fine.

Edited June 21, 2008 by robertomx

[yodude888]

Props to robertomx for managing to say what i was going to attempt to put into words but then didn't.

I agree completely.

One last point: As your teacher is marking it, it very much depends on your teacher's maturity, sensitivities etc. as well.

[circusmind]

Your topic is pretty awesome.

Controversial is good. It means your topic is uncharted terrain and it will subsequently make people THINK. Besides, it's TOK. If you can't voice your own thoughts in a TOK class, then where else can you?? As long as you support your arguments effectively, I don't see why you can't do it. But, your question was if your topic was controversial....yes, it is.

[Ib_slave]

The "shock and awe" approach can be pretty effective in TOK classes, if executed correctly and as long as you don't offend anyone. Just make sure your teacher approves of your topic and you'll be fine. I actually find it pretty compelling.

[Oryxy]

It is an excellent topic. Our teacher sort of discussed it in class. By "my" you mean your group's topic right? Because we have never had a solo presentation in TOK.

De-Evolution... what's so bad about it? Just a slight reference to Warcraft. Humans in there build machines, tame animals, arm themselves with heavy armory and weapons so that they are as strong and sturdy as other races, what's wrong with that? We made our technology evolve, which can then help us. Maybe only other species can keep on evolving without the aid of tools, and it takes a long time to do so. If we have no hospitals, the entire human race will be gone in like... 50 years, because our bodies and our way of life have already gotten used to now, and from ancient times, we did evolve into more civilized people who use tools, make medicines, build better shelters. Not necessarily weaker in strength, but more well-rounded.

Then you would have to redefine the definition of Evolution. Let's say 2 species, 1 human, 1 ... Orc! Lived for same amount of time and all evolved. Humans - technology. Orcs - Brute, muscles, giant teeth, hairy body, no cloth, no axe, just bare hands that can break a tree, and can jump 100 meters into the air. If they fight, human is going to win, because we would have evolved more efficiently.

Sick units happen in all species, because no unit can ever remain flawless. It is those flaws that push us into better lives, to make better fuel efficient cars because the weather is too hot; to cure ... cancer because just for the heck of it etc. Then again, will evolution stop when we have all we ever wanted? Or more problems will keep on coming and more evolution???

Focus your topic... But then again, the topic has been debated for a long time