The Seducer’s Diary Analysis
The Seducer’s Diary is a book written by Kierkegaard that discusses the idea of individuality versus the greater good of society, the difference between what is selfish and what is ethical. Kierkegaard wrote discusses the difference between the artistic or self-persona and the person who thinks of the greater community under the segment Either/Or. Either/Or seems to be the question that the author would like the reader to know about, and Kierkegaard illustrates this though the two main characters that have an ongoing argument and ethical debate about this, and they are A and the Judge. The argument carries a lot of meaning for both parties, each with their own point of view and valid points to convince the reader
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The community that surrounds an individual is a major source of happiness, there are many attributes that make this claim a valid one in the eyes of the Judge. In response to A’s seductive way of reaching the reader, the Judge seems like a more logical and mature person, using common sense and ethical reasoning in his efforts to make his point. The Judge explains that the benefit of the community is far more important than the individuals and is a more stable and rational way of living. Moreover, individuals live in the community to start with, and the safety and wellbeing of the general public as whole helps make society safe and sound, which in the end will benefit the individual greatly. The Judge seems like a well-balanced person using common sense and a more mature way in convincing people that the ethical route is the right one to take. The Judge uses reason and a clear goal to make his argument about the benefits of society before the individual, unlike A that tries his best to persuade the reader into agreeing with his point of view. For example if a country is safe then the states are safe, and if the state is safe then the community is safe which translates to the individual living in this area to also being safe in the
Often, a person is seen as the embodiment of the value of their action, thus a person can be seen as “good” or “bad,” and the consequences of justice that affect them are based on the general value of their general actions. The value given to actions is based on a soc...
In individual searches to find themselves, Frank and April Wheeler take on the roles of the people they want to be, but their acting grows out of control when they lose sense of who they are behind the curtains. Their separate quests for identity converge in their wish for a thriving marriage. Initially, they both play roles in their marriage to please the other, so that when their true identities emerge, their marriage crumbles, lacking communication and sentimentality. Modelled after golden people or manly figures, the roles Frank and April take on create friction with who they actually are. Ultimately, to “do something absolutely honest” and “true,” it must be “a thing … done alone” (Yates 327). One need only look inside his or her self to discover his or her genuine identity.
Everybody in this world has the right to happiness. However, I don’t think we should seek our happiness by all means. I don’t agree that people should be selfish in order to get whatever they want. I’m not saying that there aren’t any selfish people in this world, but some people are more selfish than others. So we need to have some balance in what we want and what would make us happy. Also we need to make sure that we don’t burden ourselves for the sake of others’ happiness. Therefore, I’m not convinced that Mr. A and Mrs. B did the right thing; also, I know that sometimes we may give up our right to happiness to please others, and sometimes we have to do whatever it takes to meet our happiness.
Also, the paper will discuss how ignoring oneself and one’s desires is self-destructive, as seen throughout the story as the woman’s condition worsens while she is in isolation, in the room with the yellow wallpaper, and at the same time as her thoughts are being oppressed by her husband and brother. In the story, the narrator is forced to tell her story through a secret correspondence with the reader since her husband forbids her to write and would “meet [her] with heavy opposition” should he find her doing so (390). The woman’s secret correspondence with the reader is yet another example of the limited viewpoint, for no one else is ever around to comment or give their thoughts on what is occurring. The limited perspective the reader sees through her narration plays an essential role in helping the reader understand the theme by showing the woman’s place in the world. At the time the story was written, women were looked down upon as being subservient beings compared to men....
Imagine what it would have been like to be cooped up in an attic during the Holocaust,with only very little space eight people in one little attic. For the Franks and the Van Danns it was eight people and a cat for most the time. With no one to talk to they have to keep everything in, unless they write it. In “The Diary of Anne Frank” the two families live this way. Anne and Peter were two of the characters who experienced this. Anne is a teenage girl who has a sister and lives during the Holocaust. Anne also had a lot of friends so she was popular; she loved to read and write in her journal. She was very loud and obnoxious. In Act one Scene two ,Peter says “I was always by myself, while you were in a big crowd of people.” This shows that Anne was very popular and is used to people; while Peter was not used to as much attention and people. Then in Act one Scene three, Mr.Van Dann says, “ Why can’t you be more like your sister Margot?” This proves that the Van Danns like Margot more than they like Anne ; it also proves they think Anne is obnoxious.
“Like a river flows so surely to the sea darling, so it goes some things are meant to be.” In literature there have been a copious amount of works that can be attributed to the theme of love and marriage. These works convey the thoughts and actions in which we as people handle every day, and are meant to depict how both love and marriage can effect one’s life. This theme is evident in both “The Storm” by Kate Chopin and “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Gilman; both stories have the underlying theme of love and marriage, but are interpreted in different ways. Both in “The Storm” and in “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the women are the main focus of the story. In “The Storm” you have Calixta, a seemingly happy married woman who cheats on her husband with an “old-time infatuation” during a storm, and then proceeds to go about the rest of her day as if nothing has happened when her husband and son return. Then you have “The Yellow Wallpaper” where the narrator—who remains nameless—is basically kept prisoner in her own house by her husband and eventually is driven to the point of insanity.
In the short story “The Cheater’s Guide to Love” by Junot Diaz, the author pinpoints on the Yunior’s life as a writer and college professor who is also struggling with his romantic relationships. The short story is filled with his experiences of using women for his beneficial needs and how it negatively affects him. It focuses on Yunior’s downfall through life after the destruction of his relationship with his fiance. The diction includes the narrator’s hateful consideration of women and a paradox of his own endeavors which prevent him from pursuing a meaningful relationship, but he grows to realize that he treats women awfully and his ex did the right thing by leaving him due to his untruthfulness.
In “The Yellow Wallpaper” Gilman presents the behavior of society of the time. The protagonist is suppressed by her husband, John, and her brother, though they both mean well. The way she is treated by her husband and her brother is not outwardly “mean” because they never deal with her in anger, but the way that they suppress her by not letting her express her feelings or do what she wants, is still abuse. Even though, the way that they are treating her is wrong, it does not seem wrong because they both act gentle and kind towards her and make her think that they really do care about her. Throughout the story, the protagonist states her intentions to herself, but then does not act upon them because of her husband. This is further shown when she speaks of her husband and her brother, who "is also of higher standing," (Gilman 317) showing the high ranking of men in society. They keep her from doing the things she wants because they believe it is best for her to rest. She disagrees. "Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good" (Gilman 317). On p...
Either/Or, published in 1843, was Kierkegaard’s first publication.The book, written under the pseudonym of Victor Eremita (Latin for "victorious hermit"), has two parts: the first deals with the aesthetic, a word that Kierkegaard uses to denote personal, sensory experiences. The second part of Either/Or deals with ethics. Kierkegaard's work outlines a theory of human development in which consciousness progresses from an essentially self-indulgent, aesthetic mode to one characterized by ethical imperatives arising from the maturing of human conscience. (Kierkegaard) A common interpretation of Either/Or presents the reader with a choice between two approaches to life. There are no standards or guidelines which indicate how to choose. The reasons for choosing an ethical way of life over the aesthetic only make sense if one is already committed to an ethical way of life. Suggesting the aesthetic approach as evil implies one has already accepted the idea that there is a good/evil distinction to be made. Thus, existentialists see Kierkegaard as presenting a radical choice in which no pre-ordained value can be discerned. One must choose, and through one's choices, one creates what they
Many short story writers have written about the gender and role of woman in society. Some of these stories express what Barbara Walter calls, “The Cult of True Womanhood” meaning the separation of both man and woman in social, political and economic spheres. In order to be considered a “true woman” woman were to abide by the set of standards that were given to her. Women were expected to live by the four main principal virtues - piety, purity, submissiveness, and domestication. In Kate Chopin’s short story, “The Storm,” Calixta the main female character breaks away from “The Cult of True Womanhood” when she has a sexual encounter with her past lover Alcée. The storm goes through many twists and turns that tie with their adulterous actions. Although she breaks away from the four main principal virtues, she in the end is considered to be pure innocent of heart because the action in which occurred happened instantly, and as white as she was, she was taken away from her innocence.
(Jensen, 2005, p. 69) could be compared with the importance of desired moral reasoning. The
The first component is the desire to reprimand a person who has done wrong upon them. Humans, like animals, have self-defense mechanism. However, unlike animals, humans are capable of sympathy. Humans have a wider range of emotions. Therefore the need they feel for punishment onto the person who did them wrong depends on the severity of the act according to the “victim.” This brings us to the second point that talks about how certain rights are protected by law therefore punishable by law enforcement. Society must defend itself against those who disobey their laws in the interest of general utility among its people. The conservation of justice and of just laws preserves harmony and well being among human beings. As a result there is a very big utility interest in preserving and enforcing justice 's commands. Each person’s happiness must be held to the same standard of importance in order for this system to work. A rich man’s rights in the justice system must be no more important than the rights of the poorest man. Justice is meant to provide the overall greatest happiness to human beings. It is looking at the greater picture rather than individual
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1843 short story entitled “The Birth-Mark” is, at face value, a traditionally formatted Hawthorne story; it is a textbook example of his recurrent theme of the unpardonable sin as committed by the primary character, Aylmer, the repercussions of which result in the untimely death of his wife, Georgiana. However, there seems to be an underlying theme to the story that adds a layer to Hawthorne’s common theme of the unpardonable sin; when Aylmer attempts to reconcile his intellectual prowess with his love for his wife, his efforts turn into an obsession with perfecting his wife’s single physical flaw and her consequent death. This tragedy occurs within the confines of traditional gender
She argues that this system allows juveniles to be viewed differently from society thus giving them more leeway. The criminal justice system was designed to serve justice to the victims, not to appeal to the emotions of others. A criminal is a criminal and should not be viewed any differently based on race, sex, religion, nor age. However, society is being impacted by these factors and are not creating fairness as we are not able to put aside these
Mill believes individual should be given liberty to do what they want unless they harm others. According to Mill, liberty should not be enforced by law as any imposing would lead to breach of individual liberty. On the contrary, Devlin claimed that if society has the right to make judgments it can also use the law to enforce it. He said that society does have a right to use the law to preserve morality in order to safeguarding social morals. Further Devlin said that the law is not looking for true belief but what is commonly believed by individuals in a civil society as a whole. He said that the judgment of the “right minded person” will prevail and immorality would be something which the those people will consider immoral. For example, murder and theft are prohibited because t...