“If you don’t speak up, people will take advantage of you”(Simon 43). This quote is the best definition of what life really is. In life if you do not speak for yourself, people will push you around and take advantage of you. If you want something done right in this world, you have to do it yourself. Depending on others is what others want, but that dependency will take over your life and it will become something that is not yours anymore.…
Therefore, this hackneyed statement devalues beneficial statements like the motto used by the Traveling Symphony, “Survival is Insufficient.” The versatility of this quote is abounding. In all facets of life, this quote can be applied. According to this statement, the stagnancy of life should not be endured, it should be used as motivation to project the best possible versions of ourselves. Whatever we may find ourselves partaking in, this quote reminds us to find the courage within ourselves to contribute to something in the best conceivable way. This quote also stresses the importance of finding your personal calling. Whether it be a ditch digger or leading a Fortune 500 company, this quote empowers everyone to make the most of themselves. In the age of tolerance, we find ourselves suppressing our true feelings and desires. The insufficiency of this existence is not what we were made to do. We are supposed to trail blaze new paths and constantly reinvigorate ourselves to make our university, our town, our state, our nation, our world the best it can possibly…
David Foster Wallace informs a graduating class that in order to succeed, they need to learn how to think. Wallace gives examples of selfish thinking; he asserts, “We rarely think about this sort of natural, basic self-centeredness because it’s so socially repulsive. But it’s pretty much the same for all of us” (Wallace 201). Wallace argues the fact that people have a tendency to not think about being in someone else’s shoes. His speech states the importance of awareness thinking and how that can be a better overall education. Alain de Botton reaches out in a similar direction in his essay, “On Habit.” De Botton educates his audience on thinking in a way of your surroundings. He remarks the importance of slowing down and appreciating your everyday location, just as if you were on vacation. These two authors are educating their audience on better ways to think. Their goals are to change your perspective on life, to stop and think once and a while. Wallace makes a point of selfish thinking and to avoid judging society’s actions for a better life style. Botton educates his audience in the same direction, but a slight turn to a more positive way; to appreciate anywhere you go. He gives an example of sitting in your bedroom and finding something new and noteworthy, just as if you were sitting on the beach in the Caribbean’s. It seems these days society gets so caught up in world issues like gun control, politics, wars and the economy and quickly judging opinions; thinking differently and enjoying the better part of life is a skill worth achieving.…
People make changes in their lives constantly. Whether the changes are big or small, they will impact the person’s life in some way, shape, or form. The literary works The Bean Trees and “Who Said We All Have to Talk Alike” prove that if a person takes control of their life, it will likely result in a change of mindset or their outlook on life.…
This paper is about the story “The Open Boat” written by Stephen Crane. In this paper, I will try to provide the similarities of the original story with the newspaper account. The differences in each article will also be discussed. Lastly, I will provide a conclusion based on the facts of both articles.…
First to Fight by Leuitenant General Victor H. Krulak, was written in the post-Vietnam Unite States Marine Corps and at the height of the Cold War. Since 1984, the year the book was first published, the characteristics of war, the enemy, and the United States Marine Corps have changed a number of times.…
We should be determined to live for something. May I suggest that it be creating joy for others, sharing what we have for the betterment of person-kind, bringing hope to the lost and love to the lonely -Leo Buscaglia.” This quote is very special because I relate to this by giving those people gifts that were unexpected creates joy for them, when they get it so it brings hope to other people when they see kindness in this world happening right in front of them, because in the modern world there isn’t that much kindness.…
Throughout the 1800’s, transportation seemed more feasible upon water, as opposed to having to make an attempt by traveling on dry land. The Open Boat, as written by Stephen Crane, gives us the story of a group of men who are set to embark on a journey through the treacherous waters which are in their path. It was during this era that the idea of motored vehicles had never even been mentioned, and the idea of flight by humans was unfathomable. Although the train had been developed at this point in time, transportation through water was just a concept that everyone felt was much more adequate. It is in Crane’s novel that we can envision some of the tumultuous dangers that can occur when you least expect it, and how an individual can react to the current situation.…
We were given a lecture by our Deputy Headmaster at Canon Kituri and asked us to compare our lives with a person in a boat. The question was ‘What were we planning with our lives or we were just sailing without oars and without knowing our destination. It was such a powerful message and we were left to digest it for a couple of decades.…
Ecology, most simply put, is "the study of relationships between organisms and their environment". (Encyclopedia Britannica) Garrett Hardin, writer of the essay Lifeboat Ethics: The Case against Helping the Poor was a professor of human ecology at the University of California at Santa Barbara and had some extremely harsh opinions about the solution to global population issues. As a professor of human ecology, Hardin studied the relationship between humans and their environment, and in this case the entire globe. It is a well known fact that environmental degradations, unequal wealth distribution and exponential population growth are growing problems in the world, and in his essay, Hardin explains that there are relatively simple solutions to these problems. While Hardin's solutions to the interconnected global environment, economic and population problems are harsh and potentially immoral, Hardin convinced me they are the only solutions to a growing global issue.…
The short story “The Boat” by Alistair MacLeod that was written in 1968, is a story about conflict between tradition and freedom. The father is a fisherman who only continues his job because he is chained through the past of others. The family son is restricted from his education because he spends a lot of time on the boat worried about his parents expectations. His mother believes that he will carry on and take his fathers place in the fisherman position. When the father is not out on the boat, he is in his room reading, to escape the world of imprisonment and monotonous duty. The mother of the family believes that the tradition of being a fisherman in the boat, is the only right way for her husband and children to continue living their lives. The author is trying to tell us to follow our dreams in life that won't keep us chained and unhappy and to never limit your options. As the father is unable to live freely, he is chained to his job through tradition.…
There are many times when a person goes through life with many ups and downs, however when you are going through these changes, you have to have the ability to know how to handle stressful situations. When dealing with humanistic personality, this would allow the people to have the freedom to choose their behavior. Humanistic Holistic Theory is a theory that emphasizes on engaging the person as a whole and focusing on the future rather than the pass (Brill & Levine, 2005, p. 58). This theory let you know that whatever a person has done in their lives, they have room to grow and prove that no matter what their life styles may have been or how they are living, they can always change that; once a drug addict does not means that you will always be a drug addict, you have room for…
A person’s journey through life should not and will not be like driving down a smooth road; simple, consistent and predictable. There are always potholes, bumps along the way; obstacles we must overcome or avoid in order to keep moving forward. If we don’t respond to these obstacles, we may crash, leading us to a halt, setback or even an end to our journey.…
• From birth to death all that we do is behave. With rare exceptions, everything we do is chosen. Every total behavior is purposeful. It is our best attempt to get what we want to satisfy our needs, to close the gap between what we want and what we perceive we are getting, and to gain the most effective control of our lives.…
As the great Eleanor Roosevelt once stated, “In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility.”…