by
Robert Patrick
English IV AP/DC 1302
Mrs. Hayden
HERE COMES THE SUN
Robert Patrick
Happiness. The only genuinely universal desire sought after by all humans. Interestingly enough, unique distinction occurs as the individual assigns a personal definition to the mental state. Obviously, an avaricious materialist experiences an entirely different sense of fulfillment than that of an enlightened one and will, in all likelihood, never achieve the blissful serenity obtained from true satisfaction. The key to attaining happiness lies within the mind and relies heavily on inner strength. Along with the external conflict of society, a constant battle of good against evil wages on deep within ourselves. In a world as bleak as ours, one must remember, above all, to never lose hope. Wisdom utilized at an early age and cultivated over time allows for the proper development of such spiritual potency. Fairy-tales convey to young children the message that every story has a happy ending and a hero who always manages to save the day. With proper tending, these symbolic seeds of hope, deeply implanted within the soul, blossom and enable a state of enlightenment to be achieved. This management entails the benefits received from experiencing different forms and genres of art, which add value to life based on the personal meaning derived. Bernard Malamud’s short story, “The First Seven Years,” explores the profound relationships between knowledge, inspiration and happiness. Raphael’s masterpiece, Saint George Fighting the Dragon, depicts the triumphant hero alive with joy. The film, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, directed by Chris Columbus teaches that happy endings do exist outside the realm of Disney Movies. Lewis Carroll’s poem, “Jabberwocky” encourages the freedom of the mind through use of the imagination. Dune, written by Frank Herbert, exhibits fated dominance of goodness throughout the universe. The idea that “good always triumphs over evil” exists as the central theme encompassing all different literary aspects and genres.
Throughout the course of a literature student’s career, there are certain universal themes frequently iterated for the means of significant and appropriate impact. The theme of “good triumphing over evil,” shows up in almost every story imaginable. Humans preoccupy themselves with such ideas so that they can provide necessary escapes from the harsh realities of existence. Therefore, literature serves as a sanctuary for humans to get a taste of things they don’t normally experience. In this instance, humanity seeks a simple feeling of blissful happiness. The full comprehension of the concept allows for the dream to transform into a reality. Through the analysis of the different genres and aspects of idea transference in Bernard Malamud’s short story, “The First Seven Years,” Raphael’s masterpiece, Saint George Fighting the Dragon, the film, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, directed by Chris Columbus, Lewis Carroll’s poem, “Jabberwocky,” and Dune, written by Frank Herbert, the belief of the truth that “good always triumphs over evil.”
Frank Herbert’s Dune explores the state of humanity from many perspectives. The old saying that states, “good always triumphs over evil,” prevails throughout the epic and all perspectives that it encompasses. The well being of the Fremen peoples on the desert-planet Arrakis depends on the success of the spice trade, which is their only source of income. When wicked House Harkonnen assumes leadership of the planet, the business interests of the empire take over the lucrative spice trade and reduce the Fremen to slavery. Turning to Paul, the supreme source of goodness in the universe, for prophetic help, the Fremen accept him as the long-awaited messiah, who will “free them from their squalid existence and transform Dune into a paradise”(Herbert 178). This messianic quest is one of the several related religious elements; others include the eugenic work of the Bene Gesserit cult, the religious rituals of the Fremen, and the holy war needed to create a new mingling of the human gene pool. Furthermore, the underlying ecological theme serves as an allegory for the modern day “eco-crusades” and concentrates on the clash between the evil pollution of humanity and the environment. The empire's manipulation of the spice industry exhausts Dune's environmental resources and jeopardizes the future of the spice trade and the planet. Additionally, Paul's benign telepathic control of the sandworms endangers the ecological balance of Arrakis because it manipulates the life of its creatures, while the Fremen's well-intentioned plan to transform Arrakis into a water-rich environment fails to take into account the environmental dangers inherent in that decision.
Herbert blends Middle Eastern, Oriental, and Christian philosophies with Jungian psychology to examine the positive and negative results of abrupt social change. Herbert's interest in ecological interdependence is revealed in the barren desert world of Arrakis and its warlike natives, the Fremen. The Fremen's “existence is structured around tribal ritual and the reclamation of water”(McNelly 16). Arrakis's major life forms are huge sandworms; through their biological cycle, these sandworms produce a spice called melange, which the Fremen value for its prescient and geriatric properties and as their only source of economic wealth. The ingestion of the spice allows beings to perceive the interrelatedness of events in time. The spice is important to the Fremen's religion, which holds that “a messiah will eventually deliver them to victory over the universe's evil despotic emperor” (McNelly 17). Herbert's concern with genetic conditioning is expressed through the novel's hero, Paul, heir to the great House of Atreides. Paul is the product of centuries of secret genetic breeding by a religious matriarchy known as Bene Gesserit, who seek to create a superbeing with superior intuitive powers. The sisterhood's plans collide with the Fremen belief in a messiah after the archrival house betrays Duke Leto and Paul is forced to flee into the Arrakeen desert. There he encounters a more potent form of the spice and advances to a state of near-omniscience, in which he can foresee time as a series of causes and effects and thus choose among various alternatives to shape the future. The spice also allows him to communicate with ancestors through his inherited genetic memory, giving him access to the plural wisdom of a collective consciousness. Through psychic control of the worms and spiritual control of the Fremen, Paul overcomes the evil Harkonnen enemies and eventually assumes the position of emperor.
Dune
depicts a male-dominated existence in which women act within the confines of
traditional feminine roles. Herbert creates both an interplanetary empire and
planetary society, which “derives from past or present cultures we are familiar
with in our modern-day world” (Fland 26). The Padishah Empire seems almost
medieval in its reliance on political intrigue, marriages of state, and “force
majeur” as its instruments of power, although the existence of male-led Houses
Major and Minor, and the rather ineffectual Landsraad, might be interpreted as
the beginnings of a pre-Magna Carta parliament. The glue which holds the
Padishah Empire together on an interplanetary level is the Space Guild, once
again a male preserve, and one of the few forces which must be wooed rather
than pressured into functioning for the whole. However, the guild's dependence
on melange makes its members cooperative in matters concerning Arrakis or Dune.
Melange is needed for guild navigators to
see
in an unspecified way, through time nexuses, which enable faster-than-light
transport, without which this human-settled galactic empire could not function
or cohere. The spice-addicted navigators also gain a limited prescience through
the melange. One of the few provinces left in Herbert's world in which women
can operate is religion. Thus, going along with Western history, “religion is
the most natural and traditional method for women in a universe like that of
the galactic empire to gain and wield power” (Fland 27). Ironically, the Bene
Gesserit's secret breeding plan is that they are aiming for a male gendered
supreme being as the end product. This male, the Kwisatz Haderach, would have
the potential of vision forward and backward in time, and a way of sensing
crucial departure or splitting-off points in humanity's path, thus enabling him
to control the path of social and political evolution for the entire human
race. This would be prescience greater than that achieved by either Space Guild
navigators or the Bene Gesserit themselves. The Bene Gesserit sisterhood seems
confident that, through their unseen conditioning, they can control and direct
such a seer. This hope, for a male with the powers they expect, seems, in fact,
a rather foolishly optimistic wish and, in a way, an unconscious admission,
especially considering Paul's career, that they have not really grasped what
powers this male Bene Gesserit would have. It is, in Herbert's male-dominated
society, a condition of the Bene Gesserit's survival and acquisition of power
that their order remains closed to the scrutiny of male authority and operate
behind the scenes as advisors, information gatherers, and producers of the way
for the Kwisatz Haderach. They are seen publicly only in their religious guise,
as supporters of the male status quo who help to keep the masses more easily
controllable. They accept the traditional role of women as property despite
their grand breeding plan, and accept the relegation of women's power to the
traditional hidden kind of influence in which they must remain as shadowy
(though specially trained) counselors at best. Even the eugenics plan, which
might seem to give them a large say in the human future, is traditional, in
that it uses and accepts the traditional role of women primarily as breeders,
and aims not at the development of a superior female as its end, but at the
development of a superior male. Fascinating how in a realm of far superior
technological capacity the society draws the majority of its parallels from
medieval
The genuine beauty of Raphael’s Saint George Fighting the Dragon extends much deeper than the mere aesthetic sense of the term could ever convey. The masterpiece relies on the symbolic representation, enhanced by the graphic illustration, to present all humanity with the message that “good always triumphs over evil.” The painting portrays the recurring fictional paradigm of medieval chivalry and embodies the forces of evil within the dragon, adverse to the virtuous knight in shining armor riding high upon his trusty white steed. The heavenly halo of Saint George (the painting’s valiant hero) further supports the purity of the knight and reinforces the concept of his heavenly destiny to destroy the wicked creature. The subterranean dwelling of the dragon alludes not only to the damp cold darkness of the demonic entity but also the hellish milieu from whence it derives existence. In addition, the lance through the heart of the dragon (slain at the hands of the heroic Saint George) powerfully demonstrates the theme in which the good knight relinquishes the evil dragon. Consequentially, the solitary kingdom on the horizon and the fair maiden watching hopefully on the sideline serve as the essence of his external motivation to save their vitality from certain peril. This collectively provides a firm basis on which the truism of good conquering evil draws support for its realization.
Upon a first glance of the painting, a reaction of sheer admiration overcomes all attempts to categorize the masterpiece. The viewer achieves a whole new respect for the defining aspects of art. The magnificent skill involved has no rival worthy of comparison, the paintings of other artists exist as mere chicken scratches on a dirty canvas while “those of Raphael are living things; the flesh palpitates, the breath comes and goes, every organ lives, life pulsates everywhere” (Vasari 59). Further contrary to the common practice of a viewer ingesting art as if it were an ordinary after-dinner treat, this painting consumes its audience, cultivating within them the euphoric sensation of existing as one with the illustration. The explicit detail and techniques bring about a realistic feel to a realm of fantasy which therefore serves to provide a therapeutically sound escape. In fact, the overall emotions evoked consist of fulfillment and satisfaction brought about by the justice administered by the valiant hero.
Born in
Films possess the awesome ability to not only captivate imaginations but also influence passions on a tremendous scale. The latest installment of the author J.K. Rowling’s ongoing epic, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, produced for the big screen by Warner Brothers Entertainment accomplishes just this. In fact, the movie utilizes a powerful arsenal of high-tech digital computer imaging to bring about the confluence of fantasy and reality to the ‘muggle’ population. Even further inspiring still, the depth at which the story explores results in the profound discovery of wisdom and nobility within Harry. The truth behind the trite cliché, “good always collapse over evil,” achieves full realization. Throughout the entire second year at Hogwart’s School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry faces the ordeal of knowing that within him kindles the potential to be hideously evil of the likes never seen before by any in the wizarding world. As composure and security crumble swiftly at the academy during the year’s progression, the majority of the students begin to suspect Harry of performing dark magic. For a while even Harry has his episode of self doubt, he approaches the sorting hat in search of answers and asks if he was “only placed in Gryffindor because [he] didn’t want to be put in Slytherin.” Finally, through extensive inward reflection, in which the entire tale relates, Harry manages to save the day by believing that the goodness which resides within him has the ability to conquer all evil. He utilizes his full potential for good and eradicates the evil plague from the school. Dumbledore later informs Harry, rather after the fact, that “the choices we make and the actions we carry out are what truly define us.” This substantially supports the stated ideal and reinforces the concept that in the battle of good and evil (even within the confines of a hero’s psyche) the good guys always come out on top.
Like that of her
own character, Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling’s life certainly has all the luster
of a fairy tale. Divorced, living on public assistance in a tiny
The film features fantastic displays of the wizarding world, which actually ‘apparate’ the viewer’s to the magnificent settings. Such splendor evokes the desire within for an escape from the clutches of reality. Though widely thought a children’s story, Harry Potter definitely maintains a loyal following of older generations. The silver-screen adventure of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets has “evolved from the innocent beginnings witnessed in the first movie,” the darker mood of the picture coupled with the matured demeanor of main characters encourages the audience to respect the seriousness and credibility of the film (Morone 1). This further supports the theme that in the giant scheme of Harry Potter’s time at Hogwarts, time and time again, as the perilous evils increase in magnitude, so does the power within Harry. The universal theme of the dominance of evil by goodness holds true once again. Continuing on the exploration of the theme into the realm of the unknown allows for further revealing analysis.
The understanding of ideas and concepts benefit man more than mere comprehension of finely worded written expression. The appreciation of literature inspires readers by evoking emotions and personally interacting with the soul by initiating beliefs. These principles flourish with genuine spiritual acceptance and nourishment. In Lewis Carroll’s, “Jabberwocky,” the representation of goodness heroically triumphing over evil manages to clearly reverberate with the audience though the taste of confusion lies faintly on the palate. The poem construction strongly resembles that of an epic or heroic ballad. The initial illusion of peace and tranquility depicted through the “slivy toves [, which] did gyre and gimble in the wabe,” quickly fades to despair as the shadow of darkness engulfs the innocent and unsuspecting (Carroll lines 1-2). The hero sets off to relinquish the wicked Jabberwock, fully aware of “the jaws that bite, [and] the claws that catch,” from the warnings of his daunted father (Carroll line 6). The impetus within the son holds fast to his belief in the truth that good always triumphs over evil. This driving faith further motivates him to endure the arduous pursuit of his foe instead of being tempted to give into the darkness and thereby ending his quest as time progresses and his efforts become useless. The slaying of the foul Jabberwock restores a radiant peace that shines a magnificent healing light into the souls of those who can now abolish their fears justly. Furthermore, the hero returns home with the decapitated head of the Jabberwocky, ultimately proving the concept that goodness always manages to conquer even the vilest enemies of the pure hearted.
The absence of women in the poem show the female gender as having no set role or service to either the forces of good or evil. In fact, this encourages the Victorian era belief that women should be ignored and dismissed simply as sub-beings. In the poem, they exist further below even the ranks of the dastardly beast, the Jabberwock. Although monsters fit a neuter sexual profile, their status still ranks high enough to strike fear into the hearts of men. Thus, they qualify for the privilege in the honorable recognition of worth to battle man throughout the ages in hopes to diminish their prosperity. The genuine struggle exists for the purpose of advancing the glorification of masculinity and the preservation of a patriarchal controlled society. Anything opposed to this traditional view entails irrational thinking and therefore becomes labeled as evil. The very name of the Jabberwock induces the thought of a nondescript creature which “represents the dark forces of chaos and irrationality” (Saunders 2). The efforts to conquer and destroy the beast suggest a hidden allegory in the subtext, which reveals anti-feminist sentiments. Appearances are never what they seem. The feminist women elevate themselves to neuter status by denying their genders (so they become ‘irrational’ beasts in the mind of the traditional male), they do this in an attempt to battle the men for equality; however, this quickly becomes labeled as chaotic, evil behavior, so the power of men, represented by the power of goodness in the poem, endures and in the end restores the males to a peaceful state of unchallenged superiority.
The reader’s initial reactions to the poem greatly differ from the highly analyzed meanings of literary critics. The experience as a young child, the audience to whom Carroll often wrote to, consisted of a group of mostly weak readers who had difficulty in comprehending even basic words. Therefore, the portmanteaus used in the poem, thought to be real words, allow the reader to settle on their own definitions, thereby creating individual and unique interpretations of the poem. This produces stimulation of a child’s imagination which subconsciously unlocks the door to literary appreciation at an early age through entertainment. In fact, “[“Jabberwocky”] wasn’t written to educate children, but to amuse and entertain them” (Witcover 4). Furthermore, educated adults unable to decipher elipsish and funjubus wording have far more to learn and enjoy from the poem than imaginative children. Our loss of youthful innocence over time serves as an evil detriment to our overall moral justness and successfully decreases as we persist to remain young at heart. The final genre reveals the relevance of the homily in a realistic situation.
The basic social dilemma illustrated
in Bernard Malamud’s short story, “The First Seven
Years,” uniquely betrays the timeless opposition of two classic adversarial
foes. The potent evil of ignorance
dominates the battle against the goodness of compassion and understanding
throughout the entire story until finally an unlikely epiphany brings about
triumph over the dark forces. The personal desires of Feld,
a typical impoverished immigrant father, demand of him that Miriam, his
daughter, must live a better life than what he can furnish. However, the
seemingly good intentions of this “practical man,” along with Feld himself, lie tarnished and contaminated like dusty old
relics in a burnished
A
capitalistic culture such as modern
“And
when Feld, in a moment of grace, sees this, he is
freed from the prison of his selfishness and his belief that only practical,
material things have value. In that moment, he is able to make a generous
gesture, no matter the cost to himself that previously had been beyond his
reach.” (Aubrey 144)
Aubrey describes the immoral societal influences as imprisonment, not in body, but in mind, and therefore liberation results from breaking the conventional principles that govern our lives as American citizens. Thus, only a special, educated breed can successfully deviate from the herd. Luckily, wisdom has commutable properties -- similar to its hideous counterpart, ignorance. This provides society with the only safe exit from the spinning vortex of unhappiness. Malamud uses his story to chastise modern society’s obsession with trivial materials, ultimately aiming to expose the evil which compels humanly behavior to occur and reveals how to escape from the dark side.
Although
Malamud lacks a detailed description of setting, the
time of publishing of the story during the post World War II era entails great
historical significance. At that time
The homily most effectively supported the short story
selection, “The First Seven Years,” written by Bernard Malamud.
The rather shocking prospect of goodness defeating evil in a realistic setting, stands out as a wake up call for the mere value of
its shock-factor. Ideally, this action should send a ripple of epiphany through
the backbone of those who have lost touch with their fairy-tale loving inner
child over the years, thereby opening their eyes to the possibility of
enlightenment. The main character, Feld, in Malamud’s short story serves as an important model for
inner awakening. Another great hero for achieving enlightenment, Siddhartha,
was able to find true peace only after first realizing the error of his greedy
ways. From his definition of self happiness he concluded that the wealth and
riches of being a business man could never satisfy him, so he made a life
change in order to pursue and accomplish his ultimate desire of inner peace. If
not for his inner triumph of good over his evil, Siddhartha would have died
unhappy and miserable. This greatly alters my views for the future, while
causing me to look differently at my past at the same time, specifically
wondering at all the art that has influenced my personality and thinking up to
the present. Most importantly, the steps I have set forth in my life’s plan are
in accordance with my personal definition of happiness. As long as hope
remains, nothing can keep you from accomplishing your goals. In order to ensure
this happens remember that good always triumphs over evil and you will always
hold hope, along with happiness, in your heart for all eternity.
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