Our text, "Western Civilizations: Ideas, Politics and Society", includes many of the fundamental values ​​of today's modern society. Rationality, the first value listed, is simply the ability to use mental analysis to clearly understand different, sometimes complex, topics. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rationality) Rationality is extremely important for the effective functioning of any society. The only alternative to acting and thinking rationally is to act on impulse or without thinking about a situation. (http://www.importanceofphilosophy.com/Ethics_Rationality.html) A prosperous society cannot act this way. I feel that, for the most part, rationality is still alive and well today. While everyone doesn't always agree with our president's moves, I think everyone can agree that every move he makes for our country needs to be thought through. Political freedom is the second value listed. This is precisely one of the most precious assets for a democratic society. Living in a society without overt oppression and having civil liberties and human rights are some examples of political freedom. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_freedom) I'm a bit hesitant when it comes to modern political freedom. It is obvious that as Americans we are free, but how free are we really? Gay and lesbian marriage is illegal, which means the government has a say in who we can and cannot marry. The use of cannabis is illegal, although medical specialists have proven its ability to cure some diseases, including cancer, but alcohol, which kills many people every year, is still perfectly legal. To me, this shows that we are not truly politically free, we are just exponentially better off than other countries. Inner freedom, the ability to... middle of paper... would exist if it weren't for human dignity, so obviously it's the most important thing of all. When it comes to pre-modern and modern values; I am mostly with the modern value set. I feel that to become a better society of people; everyone must continue to move forward in all areas; including the change and growth of society's values. As for postmodern values: it seems that they will revolve around the rejection of open-minded truths, the role of language, power relations and the attack on “clean” classifications; black and white, male and female, for example. (http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100420051934AAkkCqy) I feel a bit postmodern in my beliefs. I believe that “dry” classifications are not correct, however I also believe in extreme open-mindedness, so I seem to fall in the middle of modern and postmodern thinking.