Who is the master of my heart?
The dazzling advancements in science and technology, including cutting-edge equipment and systems and computer programs that turn imagination into reality, make our lives more convenient and reveal a wider world to us.
But while the power of science and technology is useful when used for human benefit, what happens when humans become slaves to it? "Thought Avatar" begins with this imagination.
At first, the main character Seungwoo felt like he was going to fly when his computer avatar did the homework he didn't want to do.
Then, gradually, you start asking your avatar about even the most trivial things, and eventually, you start leaving all your thoughts and decisions to your avatar.
But it has enormous consequences.
An avatar outside the computer acts as Seungwoo, and the real Seungwoo is trapped in the virtual world inside the computer.
They become accustomed to easy and comfortable things and become lazy about thinking for themselves, and eventually end up losing the mastery of their own minds to an avatar.
Seungwoo, who was trapped in the virtual world by the avatar's trap, was able to return to reality because he thought of a way to escape the extreme situation.
It is also the result of an effort to find one's own subjectivity and identity through deep self-reflection and thought practice such as trying to change one's position from that of the other person.

Thoughts also need to be cultivated to grow.
Because humans are social animals, they cannot be free from social relationships.
However, if you are overly conscious of other people's opinions or overly sensitive to other people's evaluations, ignoring the voice that comes from within, you will never be able to grow into an independent person.
If you just follow the loud voices of the world and use other people's opinions, you are no different from an avatar that moves under the control of others.


So, the author says that it is important to cultivate the habit of listening to the small voice in your mind and watering the sprouts of thoughts in your mind.
This is because I believe that you need to cultivate your thoughts properly and practice them in order to grow.
But it seems that the children in this article did not hate thinking from the beginning.
The words of Jaebeom, who was a model student, have many implications for adults.

“At first, I worked hard on my homework, but instead of receiving praise, I only received criticism, so from then on, I couldn’t even think about doing my homework.
“I was scared of expressing my thoughts and lost my confidence.”
Unless it's a matter of clear right or wrong, it's important to respect and praise children's free imagination and even their sloppy expressions, even if they're outlandish, to help them develop the confidence to think for themselves.
Because only with the ability to think can we create standards of right and wrong.