Discussion on the Greek proverb: The root of learning is bitter but its fruit is sweet

Topic: Debate on the Greek proverb: The root of learning is bitter but its fruit is sweet

Discussion on the Greek proverb: The root of learning is bitter but its fruit is sweet

I. Outline of the Debate on the Greek proverb: The root of learning is bitter but its fruit is sweet (Standard)

 

1. Introduction

Introduction to the Greek proverb.

2. Body:

a. Explanation:

- 'Learning' is an extensive process where individuals acquire or supplement knowledge, skills, experiences, perceptions, etc., through teachers, friends, society, through books, newspapers, etc., by synthesizing, accumulating various forms of information to feed into their own brain as their personal knowledge source.
- The metaphor of bitter roots and sweet fruits symbolizes the arduous and challenging process of learning and the successes achieved by individuals through relentless efforts.
- The proverb is one of the profound understandings of the learning process, as well as the role of education in shaping and developing individuals in society.

b. Discussion:

* The learning process is a cluster of bitter roots, full of hardships:
- Learning is a mental labor, and like any labor, it entails pressures and risks.
- Learning is a long and arduous process, days and nights of hard work to achieve success, requiring much effort and time. No one can become proficient without taking the time to absorb knowledge and develop.
- Learning cannot be rushed; it requires sequence, starting from the basics to the advanced, from easy to difficult, from simple to complex. It demands patience and relentless effort.
- Learning also comes with its own hardships and challenges that not everyone can overcome. Sometimes, it brings immense pressure, such as expectations for grades, exam results, the gaze of family and friends, financial burdens, and time constraints.
=> All of these are the bitter roots of learning that not everyone understands.

* The outcome is the sweet fruits that bring joy and pride:
- Enhancing one's self-awareness, along with a wealth of knowledge to be proud of, accompanied by a deep understanding of cultural, economic, and social knowledge, enriching the soul with education.

* Criticizing some lazy individuals who lack effort in learning and lessons:
- The proverb is a profound advice, deeply evaluating the learning process of human beings, emphasizing the need for self-awareness, nurturing, and relentless effort in the pursuit of knowledge.

- Nowadays, many young generations no longer value learning, failing to inherit the noble tradition of diligence from their ancestors. At the slightest difficulty, a low grade, a difficult math problem, or a long essay, they quickly blame the heavens and the earth, believing that learning cannot be applied to life, that the curriculum is dull and boring, leading to frustration.
- Moreover, some students, fearing the bitterness of the roots of learning, resort to cheating, relying on others to taste the sweet fruits without exerting any effort.
- But without tasting the bitterness, how can one understand the value of the sweet taste of success? The ephemeral pleasures gained from dishonesty will only bury one's own life.

3. Conclusion

Express personal feelings.
 

II. Sample Essay: Discussion on the Greek proverb: The root of learning is bitter, but the fruit is sweet (Standard)

I often hear the comforting words of encouragement from elders to young students striving to pass university or college entrance exams, to alleviate the pressure by saying: Learning is not the only path to success. However, people often forget the latter part: learning is the shortest path to success. In reality, learning may seem easy and straightforward, but personally, I find it to be a laborious process. Learners are like farmers exerting effort to cultivate their tree of knowledge, nurturing, watering, fertilizing, waiting day by day until the tree grows to bear its first sweet fruits. Achieving any academic success, such as passing university exams, obtaining scholarships, awards, etc., are all results of years of relentless effort in learning, which is by no means easy. Hence, the Greek proverb goes: 'The root of learning is bitter, but the fruit is sweet.'

'Learning' is a lifelong process in which individuals absorb or supplement knowledge, skills, experiences, perceptions,... through teachers, friends, society, through books, newspapers,... by synthesizing, accumulating various forms of information to transform into individual knowledge sources. Learning has two types: active learning process, individuals proactively seek to understand, learn information, knowledge that they consider beneficial to themselves, through observation, listening to what others convey, or through research, seeking experiences, practice. Another learning method is considered passive learning, meaning individuals do not have the intention to absorb, but it gradually sinks into the subconscious like a difficult-to-abandon habit, such as being influenced by someone's philosophy of life, imitating the sounds of animals without intending to learn them. It can be said that learning is a complex and interrupted process, not occurring sequentially but depending on the will of the brain and the living environment. However, in this article, we mainly refer to purposeful learning, built into a serious, systematic process, which is the education system of schools.

'The root of learning is bitter' is a quite interesting metaphor, we always know that the roots of most plant species are buried in sandy, dirty soil, enduring many hardships, moreover, most of them also lack the delicious flavor, only bitterness, yet above all, the roots are the most important part of a tree, without roots, no species can survive and grow normally. On the contrary, the 'sweet fruit' is the most delicious, wonderful part of the tree that everyone loves because of its beautiful appearance, sweet taste, it is also evidence of the results of many days of hard cultivation. Thus, the metaphor of the bitter root and the sweet fruit is an allegory for the arduous learning process, sometimes having to go through bitterness to create a solid foundation for the tree of knowledge to germinate, then form those sweet fruits which are the successes, the results of relentless effort in developing a strong root system. The proverb is one of the deep perceptions about the learning process, as well as the role of learning in training and developing individuals in society.

Saying that learning is a bitter root is because learning is not a simple matter that outsiders can easily perceive and evaluate. Everyone says that children who get to learn are carefree, happy, but I disagree, because learning is a mental labor that if it is labor, then anything has its own pressures and risks. Learning is a long, arduous process, day and night toil to become talented, takes a lot of effort and time, no one can study and be good at the same time, but everyone needs to have a space to absorb knowledge and develop further. For example, no one is born knowing how to read and write, no one can look and solve integrals, prove a geometric theorem, analyze a piece of literature without careful study, thorough research. In addition, learning is not something that can be done hastily, but it must be sequential, starting from small to large, from easy to difficult, from simple to complex. That process is calculated by years, by months, it cannot be written in minutes, in seconds, it can be said that learning is a process that requires individuals' patience, relentless effort, corresponding to the phrase 'desire for speed, not reaching'. In addition, learning also has its own difficulties, challenges that not everyone can overcome, we may spend hours on a difficult problem, a day on proving a theorem, even months, years on a scientific research,...

Learning sometimes brings people immense pressure, it is the expectation of scores, exam results, the eyes of relatives, friends, the burden of economy, time,... and the moments that almost make us collapse when we get low grades, research projects fail, fail the University Entrance Exam,... All of those are the bitter roots of learning that not everyone understands, perhaps only the learners themselves know how much sweat they have shed, how much effort, how many sleepless nights they have spent revising, how many tears they have shed in front of difficult books.

However, after experiencing all the bitterness of learning and training, what people receive is the most deserving and wonderful 'sweet fruits' in the world. The first sweetness that we often overlook, because it is not prominent, is the enhancement of our own understanding, along with the richness of knowledge to be proud of, accompanied by deep understanding of cultural - economic - social knowledge, and the richness, diversity of a knowledgeable soul. All of these make us more confident in life, become the foundation for progress in communication, learning, expanding social relationships, affirming our position in society by the great source of knowledge we have. Besides, excellence, good achievements in learning also become joys, pride for ourselves and for our family and school, people who dedicate a lot of love and expectations for us. Finally, the initial successes in the learning process also give people more motivation to strive, try harder in the process of realizing dreams, ideals of life, believing in a bright future with great success.

So the initial bitter roots are nothing compared to the sweet fruits that we will achieve in the future, as a person with great thinking and determination, we must know how to overcome the initial challenges, the harsh conditions of the intellectual development process in order to hope for good results. Look at the way President Ho Chi Minh studied to see that we need to try harder. From a young man in his early 20s, determined to go out to find a way to save the country as a cook on a sea voyage, He crossed the ocean, traded for 30 years abroad, He both worked for a living, revolutionized, and studied tirelessly. He learned about the revolution of advanced countries in the world, learned their language to facilitate activities under extremely difficult conditions, Uncle Ho knew up to 29 different languages, spoke fluently in French, English, Chinese,... Then came back to liberate the country from the shackles of imperialism. If anyone asks about the lifelong achievements of Uncle Ho's learning and labor, perhaps it can be summed up in a few words 'the independence, autonomy of the Vietnamese nation, the Vietnamese country'. Another example is Gregor Mendel, who laid the foundation for modern genetics, because of his poor family, he did not have the opportunity to attend university, but he still persisted in research and learning in a monastery with Dutch pea plants. The result is that he discovered the laws of heredity, opened a new era for modern genetics, as well as laid the foundation for researching the human gene system today. Or like Henry Ford, the father of modern cars today, and he himself founded a car company with quality models, with huge profits. All of those achievements stem from Henry's endless exploration and learning since childhood, his endless passion for mechanics has made Henry successful in creating his own car models, and become a pioneer in the world's automotive industry.