One of the most interesting classes that I took at the University of South Carolina was SAEL 200: Social Advocacy and Ethical Life. In this class, the focus of discussion was the origin of ethics and its application to socio-political contexts. One philosopher that we studied was Richard Taylor. He proposed that human activity is synonymous for goal-directed actions. One's purpose is important and significant to them and therefore, they will devise the means to attain the ends. He believes that humans have certain wants and will go about trying to satisfy it in different ways. Taylor explains that the end goal is not always met in one term but rather in a collection of smaller successes. My written paper on this philosophy centered on the risk of brain injury when playing football by focusing on solutions to resolve the ethical dilemma. From my research, I learned that fulfilling immediate goals will hopefully then help to achieve some further purpose. The definition of success changes depending on how much improvement towards the end goal is made. This class allowed me to see that ethical situations are not always solved at that particular moment, but rely on many small goal-oriented plans.

 

          In my junior year, I joined Epsilon Sigma Alpha service sorority in hopes of meeting new people while volunteering my time at various local community events. The two philanthropies of the sorority are Easter Seals, a non-profit providing disability services, and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, a pediatric and research facility focused on children diseases. As an organization based around community service, the sisters of Epsilon Sigma Alpha hosts several fundraising events to help relieve some of the costs of the non-profits. For example, percent nights are held once a month at local restaurants where a percentage of the sales will go towards that specific philanthropy. Through my participation with my service sorority by organizing events and capturing moments with my camera, I have learned that my efforts may be small compared to the overall effect but they contribute to good causes. The philanthropies are not located specifically in South Carolina, but it is heartwarming to know that our fundraising events are helping those most in need. Like Richard Taylor's theory, although our contributions are not directly solving the issues of disease or disability, our actions are relieving some of the hardships that these patients go through. Small successes that we have here at the University in conjunction with hundreds of other goals fulfilled by other national campus organizations have made a vast impact on many lives.

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          Another organization that focuses on a similar platform is Dance Marathon. It is a 14-hour long event where participants, also called "heroes", are invited to stand and dance for the entire day in support for children who cannot stand. Throughout the year and at the event, participants raise money for the local Children's Miracle Network Hospital and have raised over $1 million. During the main event, participants get to meet some of the children and their families who have gone through treatment at the local hospital. During those moments, I get inspired knowing that our efforts benefit these kids. I realized that I am just a face in the crowd to the families, but as a whole organization, we have helped them tremendously.

 

          The purpose of Dance Marathon is to raise money for the local hospital,

so according to Richard Taylor, anyone who partakes in this organization will

find various ways to meet the end goals. I learned that asking people directly

for donations is not always effective. Therefore, I became creative in the ways

to fundraise money, such as selling painted canvases or helping others in

exchange for donations. In the end, my personal success of reaching my

donation goal is only a small part in the hundreds of other participants hoping

to do the same. When revealing the total amount raised at the end of the night,

it is the collective work of everyone involved that makes the difference.

Celebrating our combined achievement affirmed to me that our small success

is valuable to our community and to Miracle Network Hospitals nationwide. 

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          An individual is satisfied with their progress when they feel a sense of accomplishment. All of the determination, stress and hard work is rewarded with pleasure and contentment that one's personal goals were met. In the case of Dance Marathon, strong happy emotions filled the entire room when the final reveal of the fundraising goal was met. These euphoric-like emotions are due to the chemical messenger of dopamine being released throughout the body. In my Biology 460 General Physiology class, dopamine was discussed as regulating emotional responses, as well as movement, attention and learning. As part of the reward system, dopamine contributes to feelings of pleasure and satisfaction. It allows us to see the rewards and take action to move towards them. As I fulfill a goal and reach a point of success, dopamine is continually released which motivates me to repeat that specific behavior. Dopamine is significant because it drives humans to behave in ways that contribute to success. 

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          My involvement with these organizations are close to my field of interest in medicine. As a future physician, I want to ensure that my patients receive the best treatment in order to relieve their difficulties. My working relationship with other physicians and nurses will help promote the well-being of my patients. After seeing the direct effects of my contributions in my undergraduate years, I hope to apply these experiences in my interactions with patients. It is important to be realistic when dealing with illness, but also optimistic that treatment will help. Ultimately, the end goal is to extinguish the origin of sickness. in order to achieve this, little but significant strides should be made. It is these accomplishments that should be celebrated, for life is a fragile thing.