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The Ultimate Fulfillment in Man's Fate
In Man's Fate, Andre Malraux examines the compelling forces that lead individuals to join a greater cause. Forced into a life of contempt, Ch'en portrays the man of action in the early phases of the Chinese Revolution. He dedicates himself to the communist cause. It is something greater than himself, a phenomenal concept that he has fused into. It is something for which he will give his life. How did this devotion come about? A combination of his personality, his interior life, as well as society's influence, molded him into a terrorist. Ch'en is self-destructive; he is controlled by his religion of terrorism and his fascination with death. He is representative of the dedicated soldier who begins as a "sacrificial priest" (4) and ends as a martyr. After all, the ideologies of communism and terrorism were practically a religion to those involved in the revolution.
An examination of Ch'en's past gives us an idea of how he formed his beliefs, and fell into a state of isolation. At an early age, his parents were murdered in the pillage of Kalagan. In addition, at age twenty-four, his uncle was taken hostage and killed because he couldn't afford the ransom, and with no wife or children he was severed from any attachment to a family. He was practically brought up by pastor Smithson, representative of the thousands of Christians that were present in Shanghai, who gave him his Christian education. However, "[a]s he was devoid of charity, a religious calling could lead him only to contemplation or the inner life; but he hated contemplation and would only have dreamt of an apostleship, for which precisely his absence of charity disqualified him" (64). Thus, he was u...
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...reams which take possession of us because we give them force, but which we can just as easily deny" (180). This is further reinforced by Ch'en's idea that "In the last hour I have felt nothing of what used to weigh on me" (192). Ch'en is the terrorist for the insurrection. His faith had isolated himself from the world instead of submitting to it. We have a personal need for connection, Ch'en is isolated until the end, when all differences are subsumed. Communism gives a sense of escaping isolation. For under this ideology there is a personal connection and a feeling of equality. It is the ultimate fulfillment to live his idea, and more importantly to die for his cause - a cause that is much greater than the individual. In the end Ch'en becomes the bomb.
Bibliography
Malraux, Andre. Man's Fate: La Condition Humaine. New York: Vintage Books. 1990
When asked to name great hitters, fans would probably mention the likes of Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, and Ted Williams. It would not come as a surprise if they forgot to include the Georgia Peach, Ty Cobb, on their list. The reason for their forgetfulness stems from the era in which Cobb played. Beginning his career in 1905, Cobb played baseball through the period dubbed “the dead ball era.” During this era (1900-1919), players hit marginally fewer homeruns than players from other eras. The reason for this homerun shortage resulted from the baseball used at the time. Indeed, the ball had no life. Loosely wound, one baseball often served throughout an entire game. Moreover, larger ball fields also kept the homerun totals down (“1900-1919”). Legal pitches also included the spitball, a terrib...
"Son of the Revolution" showed how inhumane many of the aspects of Chinese life were during the Cultural Revolution. It followed the important movements during the Cultural Revolution, the effects that "the cult of Mao" had on society and Heng, and the way the period affected Heng's personal family life. But most of all "Son of the Revolution" showed us the horrible way China treated its people during this time period. "You're a human being, not an animal. You have the right to be loved" (262).
... much different person who had become the “master of his own opinions” 2. Liang was more upset he spent "most of the time is spent memorizing dogma" (269)3. Liang began to research in search of him, and through education was able to think outside of the Maoist thought. We see that Liang grew to be happy; he found companionship, freedom, Liang and his wife were finally able to get married due to China being able to view the west as more openly. The Son of Revolution indicates the bounds and paradox of the communist government, which quarantined many individuals; regardless of the fact its main focus was on equality and the better of community.
Though the rewards are pleasing to the ear, the path to obtaining the benefits of communism is a violent one. This strict governing idea was derived from Communist Manifesto, a book written by two German economists, Karl Marx and Fredrich Engels, who declare that many problems in society are caused by the unequal distribution of wealth. These two believe that “Communism deprives no man of the ability to appropriate the fruits of his labour. The only thing it deprives him of is the ability to enslave others by means of such appropriations.” To achieve the goal of happiness and prosperity for all, the lines that distinguish the differences between the rich and poor must be erased. Obviously, the rich will never voluntarily give up their goods or status; therefore the figureheads must force equality among the citizens. Communism places their citizens, whether they be the wealthy or the laborers, into working classes that specify their contribution to the government. With such balanced placement of the people, individuality is impossible for any single person to achieve.
To fully comprehend a work you cannot just read it. You must read it, analyze it, question it, and even then question what you are questioning. In Richard Rodriguez’s The Achievement of Desire we are presented with a young Richard Rodriguez and follow him from the start of his education until he is an adult finally having reached his goals. In reference to the way he reads for the majority of his education, it can be said he reads going with the grain, while he reads a large volume of books, the quality of his reading is lacking.
Karl Marx 's writing of ‘The Communist Manifesto’ in 1848 has been documented by a vast number of academics as one of the most influential pieces of political texts written in the modern era. Its ideologically driven ideas formed the solid foundation of the Communist movement throughout the 20th century, offering a greater alternative for those who were rapidly becoming disillusioned and frustrated with the growing wealth and social divisions created by capitalism. A feeling not just felt in by a couple of individuals in one society, but a feeling that was spreading throughout various societies worldwide. As Toma highlights in his work, Marx felt that ‘capitalism would produce a crisis-ridden, polarized society destined to be taken over by
The one constant through all the years has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game, is a part of our past. It reminds us of all that once was good, and what could be again
The famed political author George Orwell once said “I write […] because there is some lie that I want to expose, some fact to which I want to draw attention . . .” (Orwell 3). This philosophy is at the heart of his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four in which he strives to reveal the dangers of communism through the extreme totalitarian world of Nineteen Eighty-Four. The principal danger which Orwell presents is that “communism [is] not a revolutionary force, but instead [is] a new, dangerous form of totalitarianism” (Rossi 207) in which the government is stifling society to gain control and power at the cost of its citizen’s freedom, and humanity. There are
Karl Marx never saw his ideals and beliefs, as the founding father of communist thought, implemented in the world and society because he died in 1883.1 The communist ideology did not rise to power until the beginning of the 20th century. Then it would be implemented and put into practice in the largest country in the world producing a concept that would control half of the world’s population in less than 50 years. The Manifesto of the Communist Party, written by Karl Marx and Fredrick Engels, searched for a perfect society living in equality and united in freedom. According to Marx this could only be accomplished in an anti-capitalist society.2 When their ideals where implemented in the 20th century, their message became warped and disfigured by the leadership of the worlds’ communist powers. Communism became in some ways more and in others less than Marx had first envisioned so many years before in 1848. Marx’s sought a social “Utopia,” while modern communist thought became a view of world domination.3 Many of the centralized governments of modern communism have fallen apart toward the end of the 20th century, confronted with concepts of self-government and revolution. Therefore, it is vital to document the rise and fall of modern communism throughout the world, and review the modern communist thought as it contrasted with that of Marx and Engels over 150 years ago.
Society is flawed. There are critical imbalances in it that cause much of humanity to suffer. In, the most interesting work from this past half-semester, The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx is reacting to this fact by describing his vision of a perfectly balanced society, a communist society. Simply put, a communist society is one where all property is held in common. No one person has more than the other, but rather everyone shares in the fruits of their labors. Marx is writing of this society because, he believes it to be the best form of society possible. He states that communism creates the correct balance between the needs of the individual and the needs of society. And furthermore thinks that sometimes violence is necessary to reach the state of communism. This paper will reflect upon these two topics: the relationship of the individual and society, and the issue of violence, as each is portrayed in the manifesto.
Linda McQuaig's book, The Cult of Impotence: Selling the Myth of Powerlessness in the Global Economy, is a refreshing new approach to viewing the current state of global economy and Canada’s place in it. In recent years, such mysterious terms as fiscal deficits, natural rate of unemployment, stock market fluctuations, interest rate cuts and zero inflation and so on, have received an exceptional level of public consideration. Nevertheless, in spite of the now generally acceptable importance of the terms, their meaning an the effects of the domestic economic policies is left for the “professional” economists to analyze and present the public, as well as nation’s governing bodies with a list of remedies. Their guiding logic and principles are rarely questioned and more rarely fully understood. In such an environment, McQuaig has earned a wide audience for her writings by stripping away the aura of complexity from controversial economic issues and making them accessible and relevant to a general audience. Challenging the opinions of the “experts”, she is trying to bring back the debatable economic policies of the “global age” to democratic accountability.
The game of baseball has several elements of motion to it – throwing, catching, hitting, running – but I’ve chosen to focus on the physics involved in hitting a baseball. To a spectator, the exchange is simple: the pitcher throws the baseball, an opposing batter tries to hit the ball. Even to an athlete, the process is not one of thought, but of instinct and action. However, in actuality, the laws of physics dictate everything that will occur from the moment the baseball leaves the pitcher’s hand. Even the very familiar equipment o...
Crack is the name given to cocaine that has been transformed into a condensed, more pure, rock form that can be smoked. It is the most addictive form of cocaine due to a higher potency level than the typical batch of street cocaine. Crack cocaine has often been referred to as a ‘soul drug’ because it has a tendency to rob its victims of everything including money, family, morals, and even life itself. Furthermore, it is possible to become addicted to crack cocaine from the very first time it is used, creating a vortex of misery for those who come into contact with it. Compared to other drugs, crack cocaine has a rather short history in America since it was only introduced the 1980’s. However, within this short period, Crack cocaine
Born on January 1, 1919, Jerome David Salinger was to become one of America’s greatest contemporary authors. In 1938 Salinger briefly attended Ursinus College in Pennsylvania where he wrote a column, "Skipped Diploma," which featured movie reviews for his college newspaper. Salinger made his writing debut when he published his first short story, "The Young Folks," in Whit Burnett’s Story magazine (French, xiii). He was paid only twenty-five dollars. In 1939, at the age of 20, Salinger had not acquired any readers. He later enrolled in a creative writing class at Columbia University. Salinger was very much interested in becoming an actor and a playwright, which was quite odd because he would later in life become a recluse (Wenke, 3). Salinger adjusted his writing style to fit the literary marketplace. He was writing for money and began writing for magazines like Good Housekeeping and Mademoiselle. Many of Salinger’s characters have unique character traits. "Salinger presents a number of stories that consider characters who become involved in degrading, often phony social contexts," states a major critic (Wenke, 7). These characters are often young and have experienced a lot of emotional turmoil. They have been rejected by society and mainly categorized as "misfits." This alienation of the personality is often viewed as a sign of weakness by society when in fact the outcasts ultimately gain strength from their experiences as shown in Nine Stories, The Catcher in the Rye, and Franny and Zooey. Salinger is telling a tale of the human condition in its reality through his novels. Nine Stories is a collection of short stories of people who are uncertain of the next path to take in life. They are lonely, needy, and searching for love. One of these stories, "A Perfect Day for Bananafish," is the story of a young couple who try to understand their life together and the true meaning of love. Seymour Glass has just been released from the Army Hospital and he is unable to adjust to life with his "crass wife Muriel amidst the lavish and vulgar atmosphere of their post-war second honeymoon" (Gwynn & Blotner, 19). It has often been called "the loveless tunnel of love." Salinger portrays Muriel in the first part of the story as superficial. ...
The first section of the Communist Manifesto describes the history of all society as the history of class conflicts. Claiming, that every society is essentially divided into, the oppressors and the oppressed. Furthermore, Marx adds, in the past, societies were organized in more complex combinations and hierarchies, but modern society is being split into two ‘hostile camps’. There has always been a continuous conflict between the different classes; the end result of these conflicts is always, either the total suppression of the oppressed classes, or a revolution, which leads to an overhaul of society. He blames the cause for the separation of modern society into only two groups, on the fall of feudalism. These new class antagonisms are between the proletariat, and the bourgeoisie.