Suffering In Henry David Thoreau's Musee Des Beaux Art

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If people were to look at the person in front of them, in the back of them, or next to them, that person might have the same physical features: nose, eyes, hair, face shape, or body shape. While both individuals would have similar appearances, their way of thinking and outlook of the world may be different due to many factors surrounding the individuals. An individual might appear like other people in society to the naked eye, but they might be suffering from circumstances such as returning home from a war, mourning a lost spouse, or getting laid off a stable job. These situations result in differing perceptions of the world; after all, Henry David Thoreau once said, “The question is not what you look at, but what you see.” One’s perspective …show more content…

Due to Ying-Ying’s previous circumstances in China, she understands Lena’s situation. Lena is a reflection Ying-Ying, which is why Ying-Ying knows that Lena will lose herself. Because of Ying-Ying’s similar mistakes, Ying-Ying can see the same harmful, dark road ahead and signs that Lena can’t see. Similarly, in “Musee des Beaux Art,” the speaker starts off by observing how “About suffering they were never wrong, / The Old Masters: how well they understood / Its human position”(Auden 1-3). While the circumstances aren’t the same for all Renaissance painters, famous painters, such as Leonardo da Vinci or Michelangelo, suffer from mental illnesses …show more content…

Individuals must feel their way and get hurt before they are aware and can see everything clearer; in “We grow accustomed to the Dark,” the speaker admits that even “[t]he Bravest - grope a little - / And sometimes hit a Tree / Directly in the Forehead - / But as they learn to see - / Either the Darkness alters - Or something in the sight” (Dickinson 13-18). Though the speaker doesn’t view the world just like how others that haven’t been lost in the darkness do, she becomes hardened to her pain, and her emotions ease off, leading to a lighter perspective to what was previously dark and negative. The way a person feels influence the way he or she wants to see things since emotions, such as grief, play a big part in distorting what is actually there. Paralleling to The Joy Luck Club, Rose was also trapped in a cloud of darkness “... with no feelings of dimensions or direction” after Ted demanded a divorce (Tan 215-216). By staying in a coma-like state, Rose’s senses dull, and she chooses to no longer view the world with her eyes. She shuts off strong feelings of sorrow and closes herself off to the rest of society. However, like the speaker in Dickinson’s poem, Rose’s perspective becomes more clear as she gets used to the darkness, but she loses herself in the process. Both texts incorporate sight as a connection to the outside world. As the speaker and

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