Anyone who wants to call themselves a gamer has to have some idea as to what Zelda is. It is among one of the most popular video game series out there and has created its own cultural wellspring. There have been spin off cartoons, websites, walkthroughs, forms, etc…but strangely enough the story for one of the video games doesn’t change much. You are this elf looking boy or adult named Link that is on a quest to rescue Princess Zelda, reunite the Triforce, and save the land of Hyrule from evils such as Ganondorf. That is the general idea for almost every single one of the Zelda games, but what is so different about the Zelda games is that they marked the beginning of the gamer being able to actually guide Link. The gamers are allowed to make decisions as to where Link goes next, how to fight the boss, or even what to buy. It is these decisions that allow the gamer to project his or her personal ideas and beliefs onto Link. While the gamer cannot do anything he or she wants since Link is considered the hero and there are some limits that the gamer must learn to accept, like the religion of Hyrule, there are other games that allow the gamer to have complete control over the actions of the main character such as Grand Theft Auto 5.
In Grand Theft Auto, you virtually have no limits what you can do from killing people on the street, to robbing a bank, to just taking a bike ride around the park. This allows for the gamer to project all of his or her beliefs or anti-beliefs on to the main character. It is this freedom that in fact makes it harder for us to care about the main character in Grand Theft Auto, whereas in Zelda we care more about Link. Why is this true? It is true because in Zelda we are forced to accept some ideas that are...
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... not constantly in the same emotional state, but changing.
So in conclusion, the Legend of Zelda has many aspects of different religions across the entire series and used them all to create one central religion that doesn’t seem to have any flaws in its existence. It doesn’t punish evil in the afterlife, besides Ganondorf who is sealed in a cosmic prison since he is so powerful and evil, but it does punish evil in the current life with Link, who is allowed to choose to be the hero or not. The goddesses keep themselves hidden only to a certain few, which keeps people completely free to choose to be good or not, based on the advice of their selected guardians. All of this creates the idea of a perfect religion, one that doesn’t cause any wars or doesn’t exclude any race but accepts everyone and gives them a purpose in life, which is what religion is supposed to do.
The game is control by the game designers, but life is control by the society. The game designers set up the rules for their game characters and society create its rules for its people. We must follow the rules that our world created for us and accept any kind of consequences if we against it. We are all equally responsible for following these rules and should have equal punishment as well. These rules are important for us because of most of the time, they create a certain order in our lives. Rules draw the boundary line for our behaviors and no one can pass this line without permission. Like in the movie, game characters can’t run two other games, they must stay in their games forever because that is their responsibility. No one is completely free without limitations and their free wills should establish the foundation of following the basic rules in the
This paper is an attempt to explain the negative conceptions about role-playing games, especially claims that the games are Satanic. I will be using many primary sources from the Internet, most of which are from Christian websites, to determine precisely what is being claimed about the games. I will be using more academic sources in order to try to explain where the claims are coming from. As the websites primarily focus on Dungeons & Dragons (henceforth noted as D&D), I too will focus on this game. First I will examine the most common conceptions one by one and try to determine the source of each, and then I will examine the claims as a whole to give an overall theory about them.
In the world, there are five major world religions, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. In the past few classes, I have been exposed to and absorbed a tremendous amount of information on the religion of Buddhism. According to the dictionary, Buddhism is a religion of which originated in India, was founded by the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, and teaches that life is full of suffering caused by desire and that the way to end this suffering is through enlightenment that enables one to halt the endless sequence of births and deaths to which one is otherwise subject. Buddhism is a way of finding peace within oneself. It is a religion that helps it’s believers to find the happiness and contentment us humans seek. One thing I found
In today’s society, there are roughly around 4,200 religions that exist on this planet. Some define "religion" as a cultural system of behaviors and practices that help people make important decisions in life. Out of the many religions, Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism have many similarities that connect them to one another. Themes of morality, justice, love are found through both the Buddha's teaching and the Hebrew and Christian Bible.
Religion reinforces the beliefs of individuals within a society. Additionally, religion has played a vital role in society since it influenced the way they lived and the rituals they may or may not have practiced. Different regions of the world during ancient time held a distinct set of beliefs, each based on different or similar principals. Deriving from the polytheistic set of beliefs, monotheism came in place of many Gods, holding just one god accountable for the creation and the existence of mankind. Christianity and Buddhism share similarities and differences, but most importantly the impact that each had on the culture is what is mostly referred to.
What is religion? Each person’s definition of religion is different. Each person’s faith is different. This is a question that has been asked for centuries, and regardless of the answer given there is no right or wrong answer. Religion can be defined as a group of people who have shared beliefs who feel their life has purpose or meaning. This feeling or belief that their life has meaning can come from outside of themselves, as well as within. Taking this one step further, these shared beliefs put into action in the form of worship, can be easily identified because they happen regularly. It can be said the Primal religions were in fact not religions. Some may argue Confucianism is not a religion. Others may say Taoism is not a religion. However, one argument can be made. All three of these “religions” share “features.” Huston Smith, author of World’s Religions, says “six features of religion appear so regularly as to suggest that their seeds are in the human makeup.” These six features discussed in World’s Religions are as follows: authority, ritual, explanation, tradition, grace, and mystery (World’s, Page 67). First is authority, Smith argues religion is so complex that people will need assistance or guidance from those held in a higher light, or of a higher authority. Next is ritual, which can be happy (a wedding) or sad (a funeral), rituals are shared between people of the same religion in many forms as a sign of common beliefs. Following rituals, some explanation is required. Many of a religion’s followers ask for explanations, some ask, “What is my purpose in life?” Others may ask, “Who is God?” Depending on one’s religion, the questions or
Eastern religions have originated from the east side of the Earth from countries such as: China, Japan, and India. The Eastern religions have different histories some of which include a founder like Buddha in Buddhism and others without a founder like Shinto. Most of the Eastern religions have similar belief systems which must be applied into their way of life. According to the authors of World Religions, “These religions profess living in harmony with nature and seeking a balance between the spiritual world and reality.” In addition to balance and harmony, these religions also share the belief in the use of meditation, treating nature as sacred, and most importantly a polytheistic universe.
Religion; a complex idea that originated many centuries ago by various groups of individuals and has continued to shape and change the world ever since. Early history of many of the different religions, such as Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, etc., seem to start off with a society stuck in this state of un-happiness, and a world that needs to be changed for the better. Ultimately there is one goal… to be happy and live by morals/codes to be able to reach this happiness. While there may be several differences in the various religions in the world such as how they practice or interpret ideas, they all have the same purpose just shown at a different angle. Religion has provided liberation and purpose to individuals, especially in the earlier centuries where chaos and disorder were more common. A leader or prophet was needed to speak what they believed was the
Ever since I was little I remember playing games where I would fight the bad guy and win the girl in the end. This never seem to affect me or make me wonder what small effect it had on my thought process. In games such as Zelda, call of duty, assassin creed, gears of war, Mario, and even halo you play as a white heterosexual male. The idea of playing this way never seemed to phase me as a young child. As I grew up and became more aware of the difference of people and the need for other as well as myself a need to be able to connect and find one 's self in different place such as games, movies, and TV shows. I became aware of the one sided views that video games seem to have. Then I realized that it was seen as acceptable to only have the one sided displayed due to the lack of speaking out on the need for change.
According to Merriam-Webster, religion is based on “an organized system of beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used to worship a god or a group of gods” (“Religion”). In every part of the world there is a struggle between individual religions that are trying to institutionalize their “system of beliefs” on each other, and within those individual religions there is also a struggle of sects that claims that their teaching should be the basis for that religion, not the teachings that is presented by other believers of the same religion. These religious sect later go on to create religious organizations. The first thing these religious organizations try to propagate to their followers is that anyone that are not a follower of their doctrines is corrupt and needs a divine deliverance from themselves. This deliverance cannot be given to the individual in another religious organization, it has to come from them. One of the biggest organization that has openly declared themselves as the divine judgers of men from God is th...
It is human nature to question, research, and be in awe of our surroundings and environment. We live on a planet within a galaxy made up of multiple galaxies; it is no wonder we question our place in the universe. In questioning our world and how it works it is only natural to wonder why? Why do we exist? What is our purpose here and what happens to us when we die? Although science attempts to answers our questions, faith in religion has generated a much more soul oriented and gratifying answer. Religion is a system of beliefs, values, and world views that attempt to connect mankind to the spiritual realm. In making these connections, religions around the world have developed their own creation stories and ideas about the afterlife. Jainism and Judaism are two established worldly religions that attempt to answer existential questions and questions regarding an afterlife. These attempts are made through their doctrine, stories, way of life, and beliefs. Jainism, thought to have originated in India, is a polytheistic religion believing in an innumerable number of Gods. Jainism is a religion known for practicing nonviolence (ahisma) and deep ecology (respect for nature). Judaism is a monotheistic, Abrahamic, religion. Judaism teaches that there is one true God, whom revealed himself to Abraham. They refer to god as Yahweh. Jews are taught to live lives through the word of the Bible, Torah, and the Talmud. Both Jainism and Judaism have their own theories as to why humans exist here on earth and whether or not there is an afterlife for them to look forward to. These theories differ accordingly to their religious beliefs and written doctrine.
Each religion has a different perspective but most important is where the religions generated from. Major religions started in various parts of the world.
Religion has always been a topic of much debate. Between faithful adherents and their spiritual leaders, questions the deal with religious law and the afterlife have always been at the forefront. The three Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) are no exceptions. Although all three religions share a common ancestor, they are not beholden to one singular believe in the matters of religious law and ideas of the afterlife.
Religion can be defined as a system of beliefs and worships which includes a code of ethics and a philosophy of life. Well over 90% of the world 's population adheres to some form of religion. The problem is that there are so many different religions. What is the right religion? What is true religion? The two most common ingredients in religions are rules and rituals. Some religions are essentially nothing more than a list of rules, dos and don 'ts, which a person must observe in order to be considered a faithful adherent of that religion, and thereby, right with the God of that religion. Two examples of rules-based religions are Islam and Judaism. Islam has its five pillars that must be observed.
Religion, as defined by Webster’s Dictionary is a belief in and reverence for a supernatural power accepted as the creator and governor of the universe (Houghton Mifflin, 2001). With that said, there is no commonly accepted definition of religion. Different people and different experts have different views of religion. Many people associate the religion with belief in some entity generally described as God. But then different religions and even people within a formally defined religion may hold different views about the nature of God. The only commonality between all religions is that they are all directed at guiding the individual behavior in directions that are expected to lead to their personal good as well as that of the society in general. Unlike other social institutions though, history has proven religion can rally people on a global level (Powell, 2009). Whether your experience is limited to the diversity within the United States of America or firsthand observations abroad, religion, or opinion of some form, religion is instilled and deeply rooted into all people.