This week, we were reading Waiting for Godot, when something popped out at me.
Vladimir: What is terrible is to have thought.
I think this is the greatest moment in the play that made me think. It is also the greatest truth.
In our readings, again and again the characters are hindered by their own thoughts. In Hamlet, Hamlet wanted to kill his Uncle, but also wanted to wait until the timing was right and he was sure that the king was guilty. He planned how to trick the king into inadvertently admitting his guilt, as well as how to best exact his revenge. But Hamlet waited while he thought. He never acted, and this resulted in the death of his love, his mother, and many other innocent or almost innocent characters. He eventually recieved his revenge, but at a great loss.
Vladimir and Estragon were waiting for Godot. Who or what Godot is isn't really important. They were just waiting. Maybe it was for something better, something happier, or just something more. The point is, they were waiting and thinking and waiting and thinking and spent the whole day doing nothing, for any number of days. Although these characters seemed crazy, I think they just thought too much to function. The play was full of pauses and meaningful statements, almost as if they didn't speak unless something needed to be said, and gave it meaning. As brilliant as that is, the overall feeling I got from the play was contentment. Not happiness or fulfilment. Contentment. These characters thought brilliant and amazing ideas and then did nothing with them, wasting their days away.
This sort of thing happens far too often in real life as well. As individuals, we tend to overthink every decision we have to make, and this leads to great opportunities passing us by. While I was searching so hard to find the perfect college and weigh each university's pros and cons, deadlines for merit scholarships were passing me by. And maybe now that I've found the perfect place, I won't be able to afford to go. As a nation, our congressmen and representatives seem like they can never come to a decision before a deadline.We talk and talk and talk. "What if-" "How come-" "Why don't we-" "Instead-" We're still arguing about global warming and taxes, even though these issues have been on the table for as long as I can remember.
I believe that we need to be secure in our decisions and stop over-thinking every aspect of our lives. Thought is great. It's what separates us from turtles and squirrels. But it should be more of a gift, and less of a curse.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
October 2011- Oedipus Rex
I love the story of Oedipus. He is such an amazing character. I'll be the first to admit that he is blind at some points, and just plain dumb at others, but there is something about him that draws me to his story again and again. I have read all three of the novels about Oedipus and his family-- Oedipus at Colonus, Oedipus the King, and Antigone-- and have heard of his story long before I read it. It facinates me so much, that he was ever imagined, that his audience was able to relate to him so well, and that his actions were possible. For these reasons, I wanted to write about Oedipus Rex for my monthly blog for October.
In class, we discussed fate. A question was posed to us: "Is Oedipus responsible for his actions, or is he simply a pawn of the gods, unable to control his own life?" Many of my classmates believe that it Oedipus's fate, or destiny, to kill his father, marry his mother, and be cast out of society. However, I feel differently, and I do not feel as if had ample opportuniy to explain my reasons in class, but with a computer in front of me, I feel as if I could spout my opinions forever.
I think there are many mistakes the character of Oedipus Rex made that led to their eventual destruction. Iocasta and Laios were told by an oracle that their son would kill Laios and marry Iocasta. Personally, I would rather not kill my son, but since they left their son out to die, I doubt that the King and Queen had such qualms, so in their case, I would make sure Oedipus was dead. I suppose that would have solved the problem quite early and easily. Many years later, Laios should have travelled with a larger guard. I know that he was going incognito, but as a king, he should protect himself not only for himself, but also for the sake of his people. That was pure, reckless stupidity. Iocasta should also have been very wary of any man seeking her hand. To be fair, she did not have a choice in the matter of her marriage, but a little bit of hereditary research would put an end to the wedding issue.
This is not to say that the parents are all to blame. Oedipus has his fair share of guilt. After Oedipus learned of the prophecy and began to doubt his parentage, he should have searched to the ends of the earth to find his true parents. If he loved his adopted parents enough to run away so as not to hurt them, he should have loved them enough to seek the truth.
And you cannot just go and kill any old guy on the road! That's not okay! That is what I consider to be the most serious Oedipus flaw. I am aware that people spent most of their time killing other people in those days, but that doesn't make it acceptable. Even if Laios wasn't Oedipus's father, he was someone's father. And that matters. Not to even mention that, since he was told he would kill his father and doubted his parentage, Oedipus should never have killed anyone. After killing the Sphinx(very cool,very cool), Oedipus should have been very careful with and future wives. He could at least look into Iocasta's past.
All in all, the characters in this play led the path to their own destruction. Did fate have a hand? Did destiny? Yes, but only because I believe in these ideas. Yet I also believe in a human's ability to stand up for themselves and dictate their own fate.
I really do love this play.
In class, we discussed fate. A question was posed to us: "Is Oedipus responsible for his actions, or is he simply a pawn of the gods, unable to control his own life?" Many of my classmates believe that it Oedipus's fate, or destiny, to kill his father, marry his mother, and be cast out of society. However, I feel differently, and I do not feel as if had ample opportuniy to explain my reasons in class, but with a computer in front of me, I feel as if I could spout my opinions forever.
I think there are many mistakes the character of Oedipus Rex made that led to their eventual destruction. Iocasta and Laios were told by an oracle that their son would kill Laios and marry Iocasta. Personally, I would rather not kill my son, but since they left their son out to die, I doubt that the King and Queen had such qualms, so in their case, I would make sure Oedipus was dead. I suppose that would have solved the problem quite early and easily. Many years later, Laios should have travelled with a larger guard. I know that he was going incognito, but as a king, he should protect himself not only for himself, but also for the sake of his people. That was pure, reckless stupidity. Iocasta should also have been very wary of any man seeking her hand. To be fair, she did not have a choice in the matter of her marriage, but a little bit of hereditary research would put an end to the wedding issue.
This is not to say that the parents are all to blame. Oedipus has his fair share of guilt. After Oedipus learned of the prophecy and began to doubt his parentage, he should have searched to the ends of the earth to find his true parents. If he loved his adopted parents enough to run away so as not to hurt them, he should have loved them enough to seek the truth.
And you cannot just go and kill any old guy on the road! That's not okay! That is what I consider to be the most serious Oedipus flaw. I am aware that people spent most of their time killing other people in those days, but that doesn't make it acceptable. Even if Laios wasn't Oedipus's father, he was someone's father. And that matters. Not to even mention that, since he was told he would kill his father and doubted his parentage, Oedipus should never have killed anyone. After killing the Sphinx(very cool,very cool), Oedipus should have been very careful with and future wives. He could at least look into Iocasta's past.
All in all, the characters in this play led the path to their own destruction. Did fate have a hand? Did destiny? Yes, but only because I believe in these ideas. Yet I also believe in a human's ability to stand up for themselves and dictate their own fate.
I really do love this play.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
September 2011 - We're All Hypocrites
We're all hypocrites- truly we are. I doubt there is a single person anywhere who always does exactly as they say and says exactly what they mean. It's hard to be honest with yourself and the people around you all of the time. I'm not saying we need to be, but that seems to be the ideal that we put ourselves to.
I try to do all of my homework as soon as it's assigned and I certainly could tell you that I do, but we all know I did this at the very last minute. In fact, I'm willing to bet our entire class did. But of course, no one will stand up and say, "Yes! I waited! I procrastinated!" No one's going to admit to that becuase we all know we should do our work on time. But, we'd all be hypocrites if we said that happened all of the time.
Have you ever seen the show, "What Would You Do?" If not, it's about people who are put into situations that need a hero to see how they react. A man robs a cashier right in front of you; you see a couple dine and dash; a young woman seems to be choking to death. They put real people in those situations and see what they do. We would all say to call the police, to talk to the manager, to do the Heimlich until that woman breathes, but quite a few of the people on these shows just walk on by. When confronted by camera crews later, most of the passerbys say that they thought the situation was being handled by someone else. As a society, we really don't put enough pressure on ourselves to act, but expect others to. Hypocracy at its finest.
Hypocracy can be found in our reading, too. In The Power of One, Peekay as a young boy is made to feel hated and unworthy of love by the African boys he goes to school with, when throughout the rest of the novel, this same race is suffering to be recognized and appreciated by the white culture which overpowers them. Peekay himself becomes a British young man who fights for Boer rights. In Invisible Man, Invisible Man works most of his life to be accepted by the powerful white society he lives in, but by the end we really know he's for the blacks. I.M. tries, not only to campaign for whites, but also to get the races to cooperate with each other. In The Fountainhead, Roark loves building and sees them as his own personal religion. He simply wants to build. I believe his hypocracy comes into play when he destroys Cortlandt Homes, which was originally his own design, but has at this point grown into its own being. That building was going to be someone's home, a place where they could raise their children and be happy and safe. I don't think he has the right to take that away from so many people when he so venhemently fights for his own chance to be heard and be happy.
I think that hypocracy is a huge issue facing society today. We are deep rooted in it with no easy fix. I believe the first step is to take responsibility for our actions as individuals and work towards having the same standards for ourselves as we do for others. Then, perhaps, society will begin to change, and we will all say what we mean and do as we say.
I try to do all of my homework as soon as it's assigned and I certainly could tell you that I do, but we all know I did this at the very last minute. In fact, I'm willing to bet our entire class did. But of course, no one will stand up and say, "Yes! I waited! I procrastinated!" No one's going to admit to that becuase we all know we should do our work on time. But, we'd all be hypocrites if we said that happened all of the time.
Have you ever seen the show, "What Would You Do?" If not, it's about people who are put into situations that need a hero to see how they react. A man robs a cashier right in front of you; you see a couple dine and dash; a young woman seems to be choking to death. They put real people in those situations and see what they do. We would all say to call the police, to talk to the manager, to do the Heimlich until that woman breathes, but quite a few of the people on these shows just walk on by. When confronted by camera crews later, most of the passerbys say that they thought the situation was being handled by someone else. As a society, we really don't put enough pressure on ourselves to act, but expect others to. Hypocracy at its finest.
Hypocracy can be found in our reading, too. In The Power of One, Peekay as a young boy is made to feel hated and unworthy of love by the African boys he goes to school with, when throughout the rest of the novel, this same race is suffering to be recognized and appreciated by the white culture which overpowers them. Peekay himself becomes a British young man who fights for Boer rights. In Invisible Man, Invisible Man works most of his life to be accepted by the powerful white society he lives in, but by the end we really know he's for the blacks. I.M. tries, not only to campaign for whites, but also to get the races to cooperate with each other. In The Fountainhead, Roark loves building and sees them as his own personal religion. He simply wants to build. I believe his hypocracy comes into play when he destroys Cortlandt Homes, which was originally his own design, but has at this point grown into its own being. That building was going to be someone's home, a place where they could raise their children and be happy and safe. I don't think he has the right to take that away from so many people when he so venhemently fights for his own chance to be heard and be happy.
I think that hypocracy is a huge issue facing society today. We are deep rooted in it with no easy fix. I believe the first step is to take responsibility for our actions as individuals and work towards having the same standards for ourselves as we do for others. Then, perhaps, society will begin to change, and we will all say what we mean and do as we say.
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