Preview

An Analysis Of John Gardner's 'On Moral Fiction'

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
221 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
An Analysis Of John Gardner's 'On Moral Fiction'
Over the weekend an article surfaced about debating the practicality of art. The article argued that. When Grendel is introduced to the Dragon and the Shaper they have the greatest influence on Grendel’s journey and he voluntarily submits to these influences. The Shaper’s art is a practical one, an art that serves its time and its place. This is one of the points that Gardner emphasizes in On Moral Fiction: art is not a set of idealistic prescribed rules, or mere self-expression, but an approach that “seeks to improve life, not debase it. It seeks to hold off, at least for a while, the twilight of the gods and us.” The Shaper’s role, similar to that of a King, a philosopher, or any other leader within a society is to keep at the human condition

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    To this question I say yes, there are three reasons why I say yes. First people guilt themselves into things they have no control over. The second is that natural disasters are not something easy to plan for. Finally, Third. People will make mistakes simply because they are human.…

    • 466 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    This paper addresses the problem of framing effects for moral intuitionalism posed by Walter Sinnott-Armstrong in his controversial article “Framing Moral Intuitions”. In his article, Sinnott-Armstrong attempts to reject moral intuitionalism by questioning the reliability of our moral intuitions on the basis that they are subject to framing effects, citing several studies to support his position. However, critics such as William Tolhurst and Russ Landau-Schaefer argue that these studies are neither adequate nor sufficient for Sinnott-Armstrong justified his claim. In this article, I will address the main areas of contention in this debate and propose a solution that may be able to reconcile Sinnott-Armstrong and his interlocutors.…

    • 107 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Toward the end of the movie, Mark Ruffalo’s character, Mike Rezendes, flips out dramatically about getting this story out to the public to make sure no other kids become victims.(2015) The head editor on the team, Robby Robinson, tells Rezendes to be patient that they aren’t just going after the individuals, they are going after the system. Robinson makes this ethical decision based on that he doesn’t know what will happen in the future, but if they just release the priest's names the same thing will occur over and over. The only way Robinson states will cure this terrible tragedy, is if they bring down the whole system who is in charge. Being a journalist, Robinson uses his ethical code to make sure he can get a reliable source that is an…

    • 428 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Differences that are considered right and wrong. At this age he or she should know…

    • 265 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Moral Reasoning Quiz Paper

    • 1367 Words
    • 6 Pages

    | |[pic] |[pic]B)[pic|Virtue ethics is a moral theory that focuses mainly on one's intentions. |…

    • 1367 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In 2008, Barack Obama becomes the first African American president. Many people thought it could be a huge step to improve the relationship between White and Black, as well as to relieve all the discrimination and prejudice towards Black community. However, there are voices saying that the problem have became worse. After listening to the podcast “The Lady Vanishes,” I would say Malcolm Gladwell would explain this phenomenon using the concept of moral self-licensing.…

    • 330 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1992, Christopher Browning published his book Ordinary Men, a work in which he narrates the experiences of the men in the Reserve Police Battalion 101. Browning begins by classifying the men as ordinary people, as his title suggests, but quickly reveals not only how easily these men succumbed to the vicious acts they were expected to carry out, but how swiftly they began to take extra measures that were unnecessary as a result of their loss of morality. Based on this, Browning’s account of this Battalion allows him to explain that the Holocaust was made possible…

    • 875 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The theme of desire has been portrayed in many novels and stories. Perhaps the most well-known depiction of desire can be found in the Bible. In the Book of Genesis, a snake tempts Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge after he convinces them that they will gain God’s knowledge of good and evil and be protected from death. Despite God’s word to not eat of the fruit, Adam and Eve did so anyway. Surely, this story portrays temptation; however, beyond the theme of temptation lays the theme of desire. Knowing it was wrong, Adam and Eve ate the fruit because they had the desire for what the snake promised them. Similarly, Toni Cade Bambara and John Updike also display the theme of desire in their short stories. In “The Lesson” by Bambara and “A&P” by Updike, character, setting, and point of view are utilized to project the theme of desire.…

    • 1171 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    What defines honesty and integrity? Is there a connection between these two words, and what does that imply? Stephen L. Carter, a law professor and writer, questions the common definitions of these words and the their moral interpretations in his essay, “The Insufficiency of Honesty”. In the essay, he makes several about the key differences between what “honesty” and “integrity” actually mean, and I agree with Carter that too often integrity is mistaken for honesty. He mentions that, “…acting in accordance with what you think is right and risking no loss in the process is a rather thin and unadmirable form of honesty”, and I concur that selfishness of that caliber lacks integrity by definition.…

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The book Dark Secrets by Elizabeth Chandler is a book with two stories: Legacy of Lies and Don’t Tell. Both of these stories are graphic, haunting, and based in the town of Wisteria. They share many similarities and reoccurring themes such as death and paranormal activity, but they are also very different.…

    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Slam Dunk: Whole Foods scores BIG for meeting the Hodgson’s Seven Moral Principles Kent Hodgson identifies seven fundamental steps to guide managers in their decision making process. The seven principles are “dignity of human life, autonomy, honesty, loyalty, fairness, humaneness and the common good” (Krietner & Kinicki, 2013, p.24). The overall objective is to assist managers in changing the culture of business and to remove the histrionics of unethical and uncaring behavior. It would appear that Mackey formed his company on these seven principles as the organization meets them all.…

    • 424 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In her novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley simultaneously spins both a gripping horror story and an intense line of philosophical questioning—specifically, what it means to be human. After the titular character imbues his gargantuan experiment with life, he is overcome with the repulsiveness of his creature and flees, rejecting it as a demon. However, in the years between his next meeting with his creator, the creature blossoms into a sentient being capable of many functions unique to humans. Though initially beast like in concerning himself solely with his survival, the creature almost immediately develops human emotions, including compassion, envy, and anger. These emotions would contrast to the creature's expanding capacity for reason, locking the creature in a bout of inner turmoil exclusive to humanity. Ultimately, the creature would eventually manage to obtain an advanced level of self-reflection that he might feel the complexities of regret and sorrow. In all of this, the creature shows that despite his abnormal appearance, his recognition of emotional needs, capacity for reason, and ability to experience feelings of self-reflection truly make him a human being, becoming ever more so as these traits are expanded.…

    • 1528 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Even though living in pain can be a physical and emotional toll on a person’s life, no one can judge or comment on it without knowing how it feels, but choosing to end your life for this cause is ethically wrong. A person should not be able to choose between life and death like it is something normal that we do every day. Dying is not the answer to a person’s problems, pains, or sufferings. Now a day technology and medicine are highly advanced and can cure or reduce the pain of a person with a disease. Choosing to end your life is basically committing suicide and suicide is wrong.…

    • 786 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    After reading Roy Peter Clark’s “The Line Between Fact and Fiction”, I easily find myself wholeheartedly agreeing with his sentiment that addition is a far greater danger in the world of writing than subtraction will ever be. Those who omit parts of the tale that is being crafted are, as Clark puts it, still remaining faithful to the nonfiction genre associated with journalism reporting, but to add things that did not occur veers into entirely new—and equally hazardous—territory (p. 166). With the expansion of technology and how widespread the wave of information has become any exclusion s of a reported situation can be still be sought out elsewhere, yet creating details alters the entire basis of the story, and presents an issue with integrity.…

    • 323 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Grandmother Willow threw in another chunk of firewood into the bonfire set on the beach. The embers that rose from the fire seemed to be dancing in front of Kusai’s young eyes which left him gaping into space. The other kids who were gathered around the bonfire were sniggering at him. Grandmother Willow felt around the soft sand of the beach for something hard to throw at Kusai. Then she found her perfect arsenal-a small seashell. She threw it at Kusai’s direction, causing him to snap out of his daze with a startle. All the other kids were rolling on the sand, laughing at his cluelessness.…

    • 1695 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays