An Analysis of the Theme of Obligation in Literature
Obligation isn't always driven by reason. What a person feels obliged to do may not be the most reasonable choice of action. In fact, this choice may even physically harm them in some way. The following short stories, The Inheritor, Tell-Tale Heart, and Harrison Bergeron are all examples of a sense of obligation leading someone to make an unreasonable choice. In The Inheritor, Tell-Tale Heart, and Harrison Bergeron, the main characters are all forced to make a choice to either follow what they felt was their moral obligation as a human being or to ensure their own safety.
In “The Inheritor by Frank Robert ” the main character is forced to make a choice between staying safely in the tree or putting his life on the line to save a helpless ewe from being eaten by a dingo. This dilemma troubled the man but after a short while he decided “he was beyond reason and (had to do) what he must.” (38) He felt morally obliged to try to save the ewe. The man battled to kill the dingo and to save the ewe and eventually succeeded.
The conflict in “The Inheritor” reiterates the theme that the choice a person makes based on moral obligation may seem unreasonable. The man could have been killed but he felt he had to try to rescue the ewe from the dingo. Because he was true to his conscience he felt satisfied with his choice. In “Tell-Tale Heart” the conflict is different but the theme is the same. The conflict was whether or not he was going to live with the guilt of murdering someone or to follow his moral obligation to tell the truth and admit he killed the old man. This obligation not only makes him admit that he killed someone but it also ensured that he was going to go to jail for a very long time. The man could have easily gotten away with the murder but he felt like he must “scream (the truth) or die.” (61)
In “Tell-Tale Heart” the theme is reinforced by the fact that it is an unreasonable choice for a murderer who could walk away away from a crime to turn
In “The Inheritor by Frank Robert ” the main character is forced to make a choice between staying safely in the tree or putting his life on the line to save a helpless ewe from being eaten by a dingo. This dilemma troubled the man but after a short while he decided “he was beyond reason and (had to do) what he must.” (38) He felt morally obliged to try to save the ewe. The man battled to kill the dingo and to save the ewe and eventually succeeded.
The conflict in “The Inheritor” reiterates the theme that the choice a person makes based on moral obligation may seem unreasonable. The man could have been killed but he felt he had to try to rescue the ewe from the dingo. Because he was true to his conscience he felt satisfied with his choice. In “Tell-Tale Heart” the conflict is different but the theme is the same. The conflict was whether or not he was going to live with the guilt of murdering someone or to follow his moral obligation to tell the truth and admit he killed the old man. This obligation not only makes him admit that he killed someone but it also ensured that he was going to go to jail for a very long time. The man could have easily gotten away with the murder but he felt like he must “scream (the truth) or die.” (61)
In “Tell-Tale Heart” the theme is reinforced by the fact that it is an unreasonable choice for a murderer who could walk away away from a crime to turn