¶ … death means that all human accomplishment is in vain, according to Tolstoy. Do you think Tolstoy is right about this? Explain and defend your reasons for your answer.
Death is indeed inevitable, but Tolstoy was incorrect in his conclusion that death's finality and unavoidability meant that it made all human efforts on earth irrelevant and in vain. Tolstoy is incorrect about this idea because he devalues the importance of human effort and human activity. Human activity on earth is the point of living: the point of human existence is to grow and to develop. Often the desire to accomplish certain things and to achieve certain things is more important than the outcome. For example, if a runner desires to win and run a 10K marathon, often the experience for him that is the most shaping and influential is the time he spends training for the marathon -- all the early mornings and all the times he struggles to push himself past his limits. All of these moments will be far more important than the actual single moment that he crosses the finish line -- even though that was the single moment that the runner was striving for. Life is the exact same way: just because we are not immortal doesn't mean that the things we do on earth are inconsequential.
Death is not powerful enough to destroy the meaning of life. Rather it is the task of an individual during his time on earth to inform life with meaning. Some say this is the role that religion should play in one's life: this is what C.S. Lewis definitely believed. "All that we call human history -- money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery -- is the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy. . . . The reason why it can never succeed is this. God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine. A car is made to run on petrol, and it would not...
Eleanor Roosevelt�s Personal Account of the UN�s Universal Declaration of Human Rights in December To be honest, life just was not the same after I lost Franklin in April 1945 and in many ways, I was devastated by his loss (Marsico, 2008). Though Franklin and I shared a rich partnership advancing human welfare, our marriage also faced some rocky periods I cannot ignore. I understood the political world he inhabited
Price Beauty? 'For though beauty is seen and confessed by all, yet, from the many fruitless attempts to account for the cause of its being so, enquiries on this head have almost been given up" William Hogarth, The Analysis of Beauty, (1753) Not very encouraging words, but if the great artist William Hogarth felt himself up to the task, we can attempt at least to follow his lead. That beauty is enigmatic
Hook or Me This Time Ideological changes of a Pirate and a former Lost Boy in two narrative essays) Life is defined by the changes that take place during it. Our bodies change and we grow larger; time passes and we grow older; our philosophy and ideals change and we grow up. These metamorphoses compromise any coming of age story, whether the story be one of a small juvenile accomplishment or
Post Bac Discuss an academic, professional or extra-curricular activity or accomplishment that has been important to you and that you feel demonstrates your capacity to meet the challenges of returning to school to prepare for a new career in medicine. In framing your response please keep in mind that this essay is not intended as an examination of your desire or decision to pursue a career in Medicine. Do not attempt
The beginning of the end being her attempted suicide, due to the fact that she felt disconnected from him, her first husband, and the world, as he was in the military and they had constantly moved away from human connections she had made. (Carver NP) Her second marriage, to the insular narrator, going to bed at different times, and he sitting up watching late night television in his insular
Out of about 40 million slaves that were transported from African to the United States, only 15 million of them could survive, however they ended up in pure hell. It was expected of the African-Americans to meet the demands of two ideas, both of which met the needs of the rich white Americans. Thus, where slaves had a disguise to serve their masters and please them, they were just
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now