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Essay about heroism and the notion of sacrifice
Essay about heroism and the notion of sacrifice
Vigilantism In The World
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“There are so many ways to be brave in this world. Sometimes bravery involves laying down your life for something bigger than yourself, or for someone else. Sometimes it involves giving up everything you have ever known, or everyone you have ever loved, for the sake of something greater.”
This quote by Veronica Roth implies that one must make sacrifices when it c. It has been seen throughout history that the strategies that have brought the most positive change have been accomplished through sacrifices. The termination of slavery in the United States required a civil war, Martin Luther King sacrificed his life and put the life of his family at risk for blacks to obtain equal rights, God sent his only son to die for the salvation of all. As
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long as the result arises more good than harm, the ends will always justify the means. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons introduce the plot in their graphic novel, Watchmen, by first explaining Hollis reason for becoming a vigilante, which according to him had to do with society becoming damaged by the media and him wanting to do something to stop that.
The writers introduce this whole concept of the vigilantees. Through the vigilantees the authors challenge the idea of heroism, what is justified and what is not. Rorschach being an example of this concept, has a view of the world which only allows him to see it in black and white. To see the evil and the good but nothing in between, there is no gray in his world. “Understood man's capacity for horror and never quit. Saw the worlds black underbelly and never surrendered. Once a man has seen, he can never turn his back on it. Never pretend it doesn't exist.” (Watchmen chapter VI, pg. 15) Rorschach is guided by his desire to stop injustice, showing no mercy for those who perform evil. Although having a vigilante with who is so intensely driven by anger could result dangerous, it is better than not having any type of security around at all times. The case of the 37 who saw murder and didn't call the police that appeared in the NY Times during the 1964, proves that vigilantees are necessary for the safety of the people. This case presents a women being killed while people witnessed it and did not do anything to help her. A policemen stated that “If we had been called when he (the murderer) first attacked, the women might have not been dead now.” (NY Times 3/27/1964) Witnesses could have saved the life of an innocent if they had chosen to do so, but they chose not to. This demonstrates that although vigilantees may get out of hand sometimes, when they do it they do it promote safety . If a vigilante would have been present during the murder of the women, she would have probably still be
alive. Like Rorschach, the characters of Dan and Laurie also are against Ozymandias plan. However they compromise to not reveal the truth because they acknowledge that if they did so they would only cause more damage than what has already been caused by Ozymandias plan. Although Dani and Laurie may be hindering people from the truth, and it may not seem justified, they are only protecting humanity from more damage. After all revealing the truth or hindering people from it would both cause damage. The question is, which one could cause less harm? Through the character of Rorschach the authors keep on challenging the readers morality as it raises the question of what is justified and what is not. Rorschach has a quest to solve the Comedian’s murder. Since the beginning to the end of the novel Rorschach sticks to his beliefs. He doesn't stop searching for answers until he gets them. Rorschach in chapter I is presented using violence to obtain information from people. Although his strategy to find who is behind the murder might not be the best approach, he is trying to protect the lives of the vigilantees, therefore his cause is greater than the consequences, which are not as serious. WhenRorshach finally discovers the truth and the world threatens to change around him, thanks to Veidt’s ridiculous lie, Rorschach preferred giving up his life rather than living in a falsehood, as he believes that when one witnesses horrors one can “never pretend it doesn't exist.” ( Watchmen chapter VI, pg. 15) He couldn’t stand the idea of not being able to tell people the truth, yet he knew that if he did so he would cause a bigger chaos, furthermore he decided to give up his life for the greater good. Similarly we see the same concept In chapter IV as the readers learns about Dr. Manhattan's background. Being forced to give up his normal human life, and afterwards dedicated his life to serving the U.S government, the character of Dr. Manhattan proves that the safety of an entire nation is worth a life. Same concept is seen during the American Civil War. Although this war caused the life of many in short period of time, if it wouldn't of happened it would have caused an extended life of suffering and compression for the African Americans who had to live as slaves. As Abraham Lincoln stated in the Gettysburg Address; People died for a greater cause. “The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.” Actions speak for himself, when one is making big sacrifices for a good cause then one will obtain an even bigger impact. Humans are brought up to the earth for a purpose, one of those purposes is to keep the earth alive, and to keep it alive we must keep humanity alive. Therefore it is the responsibility of us humans to look over one another and if the life of 10 could save the life of millions, than be it. If one must not eat for a day so that 100 can eat for a week then be it. If one should sacrifice happiness for the happiness of all, then be it. Not everyone is brave enough to commit in such way to humanity, however those who do so are remembered through centuries because of the tremendous impacts they have caused.
Bravery isn't having no fear; it is accepting and welcoming your fears and getting past
It is brave to look out for others even if you have to stand up
Mark Twain best described courage when he said that, “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear” (Twain). Both in The One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey and Watership Down by Richard Adams, the authors deal with the topic of courage and each share a similar view on it as this quote. Indeed, both authors suggest that courage is not accumulated simply by acts of heroism, but rather by overcoming fears and speaking one’s mind as well. These books are very similar in the way that bravery is displayed through the characters in an uncommon way. Firstly, an example of bravery
In the poem, Guest creates this serious tone to display the importance of courage. Additionally, he states that there is more to being courageous than what is commonly recognized. “Courage is more than a daring deed: It’s the breath of life and a strong man’s creed” (Guest 31-32).
Through the character Rorshach, The Watchmen explores the issues of nature verses nurture for him. Moore adds that a super hero, can be a psychological argument. A super hero is neither born nor shaped by environment, it is the creation of an alter ego to suppress childhood conflicting inner issues. Rorshach dealt with issues as a young child that rationalized in his mind to hide behind a costume and a mask in order to live.
Courage is categorized as a big act of heroism in face of danger, but no act of courage is too small or fruitless, but an act of courage is what helps the development of individuals and growth of society. In the American Scholar’s Article, To Live Is an Act of Courage, Jennifer Mitchel Hecht talks about suicide throughout history and the implications that come with the act, she refers to Greek mythology and follows with the philosophy of Seneca to then emphasize the suicide crisis in today’s military and how the act of living is courageous itself even though the idea seems minute it plays a critical point in our society. Post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental illnesses make it harder for people to continue living, suicide has increased drastically throughout the twentieth century and we have seen this great fall through many heroes from military, celebrity, profession, and school suicides. Hecht quotes Seneca, a Roman philosopher, “I saw not my own courage in dying, but his courage broken by the loss of me. So I said to myself, ‘You must live.’ Sometimes even to live is an act of courage.”(Seneca qtd. in Hecht) Noting that true courage comes from sparing ourselves in times of emotional agony. Sparing other people from a repeated mission of suicide, accomplishing courage by not succumbing to agony and therefore giving way for others to gain courage too. Unlike,
you to see what real courage is, instead of seeing courage is a man with
Bravery is a heroic quality that everyone has and when put into action it can become deadly or even unstoppable. Martin Luther King pushed through the racism as if he had no fear of the consequences. Martin Luther King stood tall as Beowulf did when fighting Grendel for the Danes; people not his family but for those in need. They both fought having no fear of their death but the greatness they would achieve in the end. Beowulf and Martin Luther King were both men who fought for the people and not themselves. Martin Luther King was pushed to the edge when being jailed for protest, But through all he prevailed and overcame. Bravery
In their graphic novel Watchmen, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons establish their story during the Cold War period, when a group of superheroes tackle the task to save humanity from a potential World War III caused by tensions among governmental powers. Managed by the intelligence of Adrian Veidt, the worst was avoided after the attack of alien forces causes the death of millions of New Yorkers that leads to a temporary world peace. The representations of the Watchmen superheroes of Moore and Gibbons, particularly Rorschach, display the concept of heroism being a part of the real world, among the regular public of our society.
This is just one line that is used to give one an image of 'brave
The value of sacrifice consists of having a result, accomplishment, satisfaction or relationships from what is sacrificed. Likewise, when working towards a goal there must be sacrifices to be able to accomplish it. Without the willingness to take sacrifice there will be no results. Therefore, it is important to be disposed to leave things that are not of importance or unrelated with the obtention of the goal proposed. For example, if a student wants to enter into a prestigious university he or she must be willing to dedicate her time and effort to obtain good grades, instead of spending time with friends. If the student is willing to sacrifice his or her social life, there will be a result and would likely accomplish their goal. In the end, the value of the sacrifice will be the satisfaction of the student to enter in the University of his or her dreams. In other cases, a sacrifice may imply a different purpose. Such as risking your life for another human bean like Wesley Autrey did when saving a complete stranger from what could have been a fatal incident. After Mr. Autrey saved the young man from the train, he said: “ I did what I felt was right.” In this situation the value of the sacrifice more for Mr. Autrey it means saving a men life along with his family and friends. Sacrifices strengths individuals and centers them towards a better life. The value of sacrifice is present through the course of people’s lives and makes the society grow with a
In Mitch Albom’s fictional novel The Five People You Meet in Heaven sacrifice was the main theme as the protagonist Eddie sacrifices his life, aspirations, and career throughout the book. Eddie Maintenance sacrificed his life by keeping the little girl at the pier safe. He also, gave up his career as an engineer after taking his dad’s job at Ruby Pier after his dad passed away. Eddie sacrificed his life and career by enrolling in the military and going to war to fight for his country. For a sacrifice to be real it must hurt, and empty ourselves and that’s exactly what Eddie sacrificed all of those
Finding the courage to be brave is not always easy is explained and illustrated with examples of Salva being brave. “He was crying so hard he could hardly get his breath. He could not think, he could barely see. He had to slow down and for the first time on the long journey, he began to lag behind the group.” ( Park, 53) While Salva was walking through the Akobo Desert he got injured by stepping on a rock. Salva kept walking even when he could hardly breathe and he was falling behind, because he could have gotten lost and wouldn’t know where to go, and would have to travel alone. In addition, Salva shows
An example of this that is related to my life is how my mother had a choice: either take care of me, specifically be my mother, but lose a great deal of her opportunities or say, “I’m not their real mother, I don’t have an obligation to raise them.” but instead, she said, “I love these children and I only want the best for them. Also, I believe it is in the best interest of the children that they have a mother to raise them up to be kind people in this chaotic world.” Her decision lead to several years sacrificed, which I find quite touching the heart; therefore, I could only try to be the best I can be while remaining grateful at the same time being the source of her pride. The characters in “The Gift of the Magi” sacrificed something that is important to them to sell it for money to buy the person they love a gift that would be important to
In today’s culture, the act of sacrificing is viewed in a negative light. The dictionary definition for sacrifice is described as the destruction or surrender of something for the sake of someone else (Webster, Sacrifice). This view of sacrifice isn't necessarily incorrect, but I think it also depicts the self-centered attitude of people today. Very few people want to make sacrifices for others. Wether it be time, money, or dreams and plans. Yet there are many people who give up all of those things everyday. Those people are parents. Parents are required