From what I have learned, the whole Taoist way of life is about letting go of what we feel to be materialistic and accepting things as they are. For one to live free of burden they must eliminate want and desire, this is directly correlated with the Taoist view of freedom. It is unrealistic to think one can live completely free in today's society, but striving for freedom is ideal to living a fulfilled life. In today's society, desires fill our daily lives, making it incredibly hard to stay away from the chaos that comes with material things. In an article written by Elizabeth Shadish, a professor at El Camino College, she states, "freedom seems to be our ability to realize and respond to the consequences of our own actions." In other words, we are imprisoned by our actions. When one actions are wholesome, they are closer to living in total freedom. On the contrary, when one falls to the cravings of society, they have decreased their opportunity to experience freedom. As Professor Peimin Ni states in his article, "The Taoist Concept of Freedom", western and eastern philosophy view freedom different. In the West, the word freedom is referring to an external constraint, being engaged for example. Professor Ni says, "this view lacks an evaluation of the individual's specific desires or will." Professor Ni states two external aspects that are crucial to achieve external freedom. One must have access to a desirable alternative as a substitute for whatever coercion they face. One must also have access to a wealth of information that will help them make well-informed decisions on what their desired external substitute will be. The Taoist philosophers look at freedom differently, and in my eyes their interpretation is much more relevant in todays society. In the first chapter of the Dao De Jing, it talks about nameless desire. We have created our own internal cage by creating names for myriad objects. How I have interpreted it, and the w