Life of a Closed Mind

The general point made by Anna Quindlen in her work Life of the Closed Mind is that post 9/11 has made us become intolerant. Specifically, Quindlen argues that people view things as either good or evil and nothing in-between. She writes, “It occurs to me…that the tourists did win. Since September 11 we’ve become more like them. The essence of the way zealots think about the world is polar: good and evil, holy and profane, them and us.” (page 67) In this passage, Quindlen is suggesting that we have become like the terrorists instead of having an open mind. In conclusion, it is Quindlen’s belief that we are choosing sides between good and evil. We view the world so narrow mindedly because of it.

In my view, Quindlen is right to a degree because you can be strong in your own beliefs and still be more accepting of others. For example, we should be more understanding and learn the differences between opponents and enemies etc. Although Quindlen might object that people should be driven by religious certainty, I maintain that, like Quindlen suggests, you can also learn to be tolerant and have an open mind toward other people by learning about them so you don’t form harsh opinions. Therefore, I conclude that we have become a nation of conspiracy theories and intolerant. We should do better at keeping an open mind.

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