In the excerpt from The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert this was shown to us by the Alma, Henry Whitaker's daughter. She observed something that was more thrilling than anything she has ever seen and because she asked to be apart of, she was allowed to be a part of something meaningful to her. An individuals has the power to create a meaningful life if they strive for what they value in life, because if they don’t try as hard as they could they will not be able to live a purposeful life.
During the ball Alma’s father has put together she found something that was meaningful to her, the “solar system”. She has never seen something so exciting and she wanted to be a part of it so“She ran over to the garden wall and cried up to the
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Like Alma from the story, while she became a part of something magnificent she was also experiencing something she had never before, “She had never before been entrusted with fire. The torch spit sparks and sent chunks of flaming tar spinning into the air behind her as she bolted across the cosmos the only body in the heavens who was not held to as strict elliptical path.” (Gilbert 2) As told by the author, Alma was entrusted with fire and she was the only one who was not restricted to their pathing, she was the only one who was free. This shows us that by trying for she find meaningful it also give her exposure to new things she was not allowed to before. It tells us that those who achieve a meaningful life will experience and enjoy more. At the end of the excerpt the author tells us that, “She did not know she was not flying.” (Gilbert 2) From this we know that Alma herself thought she was flying. It shows how much she is enjoying the time she is having, we can tell from Alma that by finding what is meaningful to you can make your life much more
She was able to see a young woman only besmeared by old age and the labyrinth of a fulfilled life. The importance of peering beyond the earthly armor we develop through out our lives cannot be understated. Perception often changes easily for better or for worse. When we choose strengthen our resolve to read between the lines understanding
the great minds of our times: the meaning of life. He is able to somewhat
William Manchester, the author, wanted us to comprehend that it is goal-oriented people such as Desiderius Erasmus who doubtlessly have all the capacity to alter the world. As Erasmus once said, “There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are those who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other”. If people do not have faith in themselves and work hard towards their goals, then they will never reach said desired goals and continuously remorse the days that they did not take advantage of.
In Christy Wampole’s “How to Live Without Irony” and Richard Taylor’s “The Meaning of Human Existence” both authors argue how humans ought to live a meaningful life. Wampole tackles the argument in a different way than Taylor but they both have similar positions on the meaning. I agree with both authors in some of the ways that we should dictate our lives to justify meaningfulness but I also believe that meaningfulness can differ from person to person. Life is very precious to us; since humans have had the ability to consciously think, we have always questioning our existence. No other animal on the planet has had the luxury of pondering whether or not their life is meaningful.
Everyone wants to fill the void within themselves, and most humans try to accomplish this by finding jobs they enjoy, but it seems that most of them ultimately fail. When you are younger you look to your parents to show you the way, but as you approach adulthood you start to feel more of a sense of rebellion toward them instead of the admiration you once had. The writer makes the poem universal by saying he didn’t want to end up like his father, something most children in north america could relate to. It’s also easily linked to our society in north america because of the way our schooling system is set up, in a way that you must commit to what you’re going to do for the rest of your life when you’re still too young to vote, and our system being this way makes it easy to end up regretting what you choose. Humans in modern society are expected to make many commitments for a range of things- relationships or sports teams, even major life decisions, and it’s obvious that our natural need for commitment is prevalent in our everyday life. Consequently, this need for making commitments can end up leaving people making poor decisions or at least taking a route you’ll end up wanting to renounce in the
Boyle, Kay. "Astronomer's Wife." Responding to Literature: Stories, Poems, Plays, and Essays. Fourth Edition. Ed. Judith A. Stanford. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 619-623.
"How Tatiana De Rosnay Turned French History Into ‘Sarah’s Key’." Speakeasy RSS. N.p., 14 July 2011. Web. 21 Nov. 2015.
I think that what the author was trying to imply in this passage was that in his personal experience, he has noticed that many people take many things for granted and that they don’t live their lives according to what they want and need to do. So much is wasted during one’s lifetime, and people just allow their lives to pass them by.
That journey means that every day is a new change or a new transformation of who she is, and where she is going. She also highlights the idea throughout the text that the journey is one that everyone must take in order to discover themselves. Thus, the essay or story is about self discovery at its most basic. Understanding this allows the reader to see the importance of curiosity, of asking questions, and of heading into the unknown without questioning the journey
Butler begins with asking the question of what makes our lives worthy? What assists us in the relevance of humanity? What helps us become recognizable as an individual who’s relatable to others, along
...s is related to his philosophy about doing the right thing and about a being a good person. But it goes beyond this. He spoke often about having true compassion. It isn’t enough to help those in need, but we must truly care about them, to take a good look and see how they got that way. He asked us to examine how we as a society can change the conditions that led them to be there in the first place. Doing this makes us better as people. I have found that it also makes me feel better. Never give up on your dreams. While his life was cut tragically short, he died in pursuit of his dream and in spite of everything he faced, he never gave up on it. He faced obstacles I could never imagine having to face, and still persisted. This reminds me that the small things in my life that often seem insurmountable, are just my excuses for not taking action and are not obstacles.
“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson-
Poverty and homelessness are often, intertwined with the idea of gross mentality. illness and innate evil. In urban areas all across the United States, just like that of Seattle. in Sherman Alexie’s New Yorker piece, What You Pawn I Will Redeem, the downtrodden. are stereotyped as vicious addicts who would rob a child of its last penny if it meant a bottle of whiskey.
Again, I believe Taylor is missing some important feature to his theory. It seems he is correct in stating one should have their own sense of meaning to their life not just others’ perception that one’s life is meaningful. However, there is still the problem of giving equal meaning to everyone life that is doing what they love to do. As a result, to answer this problem one could suggest in order for one to have a meaningful life a person must be subjectively fulfilled by pursuing objectively valuable ends. This way it ensures the person must find meaning in their own lives as well as creating something that benefits many that will give others the perception the person has a meaningful life.
Shakespeare uses many powerful lines in his story, one of which reached out to me the most. "Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them." (II.v.144-145, p.48) To me it means much more than it says. Many people are born with certain abilities. Whether its athletics, knowledge, music, or any talent for that matter, they all reach their goals in different ways. Yes, some are born with a natural ability to do certain things, but it's their will power that makes them great at what they do. You have to push yourself to the edge to get the best out of yourself. To achieve greatness, it takes much more than just practice, you have to make it your life, give it everything you have, and then, you can achieve anything at all. It is said again at the end of the play to remind you of what it means. Don't give up on anything; you can do whatever you want if you try your best. I think Shakespeare just wanted to remind us again of what we can achieve.