Since the first day I set foot on campus for freshman orientation I have been bombarded with this minute yet overwhelming seven-word question. As a part of each first year student's Humanities base, professors have taken the initiative to ask this question repeatedly in various classes. Although challenging our minds by posing critical thinking questions such as this one is a great idea, I feel this is really not the best question for us to be pondering and answering.

In my opinion this question is far beyond our level of comprehension. Many obvious factors are involved in what it means to be human, but some are not so obvious. Each individual realizes either consciously or subconsciously what the obvious factors are, but it seems clear that certain elements exist that we, as humans, cannot perceive. Because we are human, I don't think we make appropriate judges of what it means to be human.

Take beauty pagaents for example. The average American family has more than two television sets, and during the Miss America Pageant at least one of those is generally tuned in to it. While watching this delightful spectacle, one would assume to see a bikini contest, a showing of special talents, and an intelligent interview.

One event that you likely will not see, however, is one contestant judging another. Miss New Jersey will not be rating Miss Idaho on a scale of one to ten, and Miss Rhode Island will not be publicly highlighting the flaws of Miss Arkansas. The reason pageant contestants do not judge one another is because, in short, they are all in the same boat. Even the lovely ladies of the Miss America Pageant need something more powerful and something above them to be the judge.

Just as pageant contestants can not judge one another, we can not judge the elements that make us what we are. It may seem that humans would know best what it means to be human, but in all reality, something else will be the final judge.

Recently, peer-evaluations have become popular in almost all English classes. Peer-evaluations are one of the hardest parts of many classes, due to the similarities of peers. Distinguishing between which punctuation is correct and which is incorrect, and which forms of verbs should be used is very difficult when you are relating on many levels to the writer. A teacher or professor is necessary to objectively grade the papers written, just as a higher power is necessary to judge what it means to be human.

Overall, I feel that trying to spur creative, individual patterns of thought is a magnificent idea being put into practice at the University of Dayton, but not through the right question. Because we are human ourselves, we cannot accurately judge what it means to be human. Beauty pageant contestants cannot accurately judge who will win, and students find it hard to judge a paper written by such a similar person. From the elements that make humans what they are to beauty queens and English papers, each require an outsider to observe and judge.

So as first year students, if your professors continue asking 'what does it mean to be human'? be certain you think about more than simply the obvious factors. Think long and hard about whether that is even a fact that we can determine, and ponder who can. The possibility that we might not be the ones with all the answers adds even more opportunities for discussion, and even more interesting points of view. Just keep your mind open, UD, and be humble, as we really might not know everything.