Taught to Imitate

I completely agree with Pirsig's statement about how we are taught to imitate in school. Whenever I get a new teacher for an English/Writing course I have to adapt my style of writing to their liking. Every teacher thinks that one way of writing is better than another, and they will give an A to someone who writes the way they feel is correct. There is definitely an obvious difference between good and bad writing however A work and B work is sometimes subjective. Because one teacher may feel that more description with a lot of imagery is better while another teacher would prefer that you just get to the point.

Grading System

Pirsig expresses his disdain for the grading system in schools. He feels that grades are not a good way to motivate someone to do their work, and do it well. Anyone who is really worth something should be motivated by the search for knowledge. However I disagree because there are few people who are the exception to the rule. And in order to keep our world functioning we need to cater towards the rule and not the exception.