The opening three chapters of “The Last Lecture“ introduces Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, as well as the narrator and co-author of this book. Pausch has pancreatic cancer, with ten tumors on his liver, that will inevitably lead to his passing in a matter of a couple of months. However, he was offered to give a last lecture to students, staff, family, and friends at his University that he deeply desires to present, despite the struggles in his way, and the ones to come.
A “Last Lecture” is a talk made by professors in which they reflect on their life and share what really matters to them while giving advice based on what they have learned throughout the years. Although Pausch is all for this lecture, his wife Jai was opposed to it at first as she felt that he needed to be spending his precious time with his family, but she eventually agreed and attended the lecture that he titled “Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams”. In his soon to be inspiring talk, Randy Pausch focuses on his childhood dreams and how most of them have come to be achieved, with the help of the effective people he meets along the way. The main purpose of this lecture was to “leave a legacy” for his young kids in
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It consists of a compilation of morals and advice derived from Randy’s experiences, including encounters with different influential people throughout his life. He reminds us of life as it is and imparts strong morals and life lessons for readers to adhere to. Some of his advice includes: “dream big”, “treat the disease, not the symptom”, “never give up”, “tell the truth”, along with a multitude of other moral values displayed throughout this section. However, Randy Pausch doesn’t just plainly state these principles, he provides us, the readers, with a short story about how he has come across grasping each of these lessons first hand, or how he has implemented them in his
It is truly remarkable how Randy Pausch and Morrie Schwartz stories are so similar but yet so different. They both seem to have an outlook on life in a positive way, not sad or demeaning. The only crippling difference is the fact that Morrie was at the age that wasn’t abnormal to be sick and Randy was just dealt the cards for a short life. One of Professor Randy Pausch’s many quotes during The Last Lecture makes a similar point between his experience and Morrie’s when he says, “…it’s hard to raise awareness of pancreatic cancer – people who get it don’t live long enough.” ALS is such a rehabilitating disease that scientist have issues pinpointing the causes to even get close to a cure, which didn’t hinder either of their strive to keep going as far as they could.
A story review of the book. Relationships change over the passing of time as circumstances in life shape a person's way of thinking and way of life. Whether it flourishes or decays depends greatly upon how people react to these alterations. Before it is too late Relationships change over the passing of time as circumstances in life shape a person's way of thinking and way of life. Whether it flourishes or decays depends greatly upon how people react to these alterations.
To read a story that deals with this theme makes us realize that it is not everyone that can accomplish what they really want in their
One theme the story leaves us is that always chase your dreams no matter how hard it is and if you fail just stand up and try again.
To regard the importance of the bigger picture, he maintains parallel structure and utilizes the repetition of words in the body of the speech. “The fulfilling life, the distinctive life, the relevant life” occurs when one seizes the day—when one finds the joys in life by realizing “you are not special”. The pauses and short sentences also adds to the conversational aspect and pace of the commencement piece. To continue, he notes how in this moment of time, every single one of them is dressed “exactly the same” and their diplomas are “exactly the same”. The unification of these prospective seniors further augments the message of settling. McCullogh further critiques the phrases that defy logic. High school students have perceived that “good is no longer good enough, where a B is the new C”. The goal into doing one’s best has been shaped into doing the capabilities of another, in which McCullogh responds metaphorically to only focus on the betterment of the self: “climb [the mountain] so you can see the world, not so the world can see you”. All of these seniors have fallen into the preconceived mindset of superiority, unifying them together but it is their personal capabilities that distinguishes one from another, successes from failures. The support and inspiration he is aiming for is clearly portrayed in proposing to the students to, “[d]ream big. Work hard. Think for yourself”. He inspires them to experience life instead of accomplish
Life presents a wide array of obstacles as well as opportunities, and it is important to be prepared to take on whatever it is that life has to offer. In his Harvard Commencement Address, Will Ferrell reinforces this idea into the 2003 graduating class of the prestigious Harvard University as they prepare to move on to do greater things. His comedic approach is successful due to his ability to evoke feelings of laughter from his audience while also making them realize that they are entering a new stage of life. Although Ferrell is speaking directly to the class of 2003, anyone who listens to or who views his speech will experience humor in an otherwise serious event, and they will reflect on their own life or envision their future. Through
...el, The Other Side of the Bridge by Mary Lawson accentuates the fact that society’s expectations of a character causes negative impacts upon their lives through the creation of a struggle to achieve his goal. Ian is an impeccable example of this because he is prone to adolescent tendencies due to youth. Ian struggles to achieve his goals due to the following expectations: to leave Struan, for a superior opportunity to become successful; to strive for a medical career, since he excels at the trade already; and to … Society is too abrupt in its assumptions of an individual, these assumptions often catch one unprepared, spreading chaos and confusion through one’s mind. It would be substantially more beneficial if society did not place expectations at all.
The talk is about the importance of overcoming obstacles, enabling the dreams of others and of truly enjoying every single moment of life. The talk follows a sequence of events starting from the childhood dreams of Dr. Pausch reflecting his self-awareness as he talks about various life lessons learnt, and how one’s life is shaped and molded by various life experiences both good and bad. Dr. Pausch lists his childhood dreams and takes the audience through what he learnt from each of those in dreams in either achieving them or failing to achieve them while trying. Some of his dreams include experiencing zero gravity, publishing articles in the World Book Encyclopedia and winning stuffed animals in theme parks, which he does achieve in life and talks about the sense of accomplishment and the pride one takes in achieving something you always wanted as a child. For example when his research team submitted a proposal for the ‘Vomit Comet’ project at NASA , Dr. Pausch discovered that only students are allowed to experience zero gravity part of the program. Nevertheless he relentlessly pursues to challenge the process while ensuring innovative ...
What does it mean to give yourself completely to your vocation or life? We find in a fictional story from Wes Anderson, his eighth feature presentation, “The Grand Budapest Hotel” What it means to be completely giving of oneself. Even though Wes’s movie is fictional, we find many deep and underlying themes, tones, and values. these are values are applications that anyone male or female that one can implicate in ones life to any situation. The main values we can find in the movie are simple, but can improve life ten-fold. Three easy steps to improving ones life are as stated: gratitude, positivity, and you must contribute yourself 100% of the time no matter how hard the road in front of you is going to
Shaffer invites the audience to consider both sides of this dilemma and encourages the conclusion that a middle ground must be found. To not only truly happy, but also to be accepted into our society. Individual desires must be explored but kept within socially acceptable limits. Shaffer’s two main characters, are highlighted to show the conflict between responsibility and desire is present in all of us and that everyone has to deal with their personal and unique combatants. This emphasised by the author in Alan, who has a
Power and control plays a big role in the lives many. When power is used as a form of control, it leads to depression and misery in the relationship. This is proven through the themes and symbolism used in the stories Lesson before Dying, The fun they had, The strangers that came to town, and Dolls house through the median of three major unsuccessful relationship: racial tension between the African Americans and the caucasians in the novel Lesson before Dying, Doll’s House demonstrates a controlling relationship can be detrimental for both individuals and The Stranger That Came To Town along with The Fun They Had show that when an individual is suppressed by majority they become despondent. For starters, in the novel A Lesson Before Dying,
‘Strategies for Lifelong Learning’ has been unexpectedly and therapeutically revealing. Throughout our correspondence we’ve shared personal, and professional challenges, and wins. In doing so, I’ve come to realize strengths and areas for improvement, which is why I chose to discuss the second habit from the 7 Habits of Highly Successful People, titled; ‘Begin With the End in Mind’.
Adam, a corporal officer, starts as man who works everyday to catch the ‘villains’ of society, but is not spending enough time with his family, especially his son. He favors his nine year old daughter over his fifteen year old son. Adam views his daughter as a sweet child, and his son as a stubborn teenager who is going through a rebellious stage. However, when his daughter is killed in an accident, his perspective of family changes. In his grief, he states that he wishes he had been a better father. His wife reminds him that he still is a father and he realizes that he still has a chance with his son, Dylan. After his Daughter’s death, he creates a resolution from scriptures that states how he will be a better father. Because of the resolution he creates, he opens up to and spends more time with his son. By th...
It was one of the most exciting and nerve racking days of our lives. Although we were finally leaving high school, the feeling of being unsure didn’t go away. The whole day was full of practicing for the big moment when the entire class graduated on to a new beginning. All the girls wore shiny bright red robes and the guys were dressed in a shiny navy blue. Standing there, I had no idea what to expect. Some things I were aware of, my friends were leaving and we wouldn’t be the same friends anymore. My role was that of being so aware of the future that I was too shocked to soak in the present; being a pessimist was my main goal and everything I was sure of became true.
If the nineteenth century was an era of the Industrial revolution in Europe, I would say that computers and Information Technology have dominated since the twentieth century. The world today is a void without computers, be it healthcare, commerce or any other field, the industry won’t thrive without Information Technology and Computer Science. This ever-growing field of technology has aroused interest in me since my childhood. After my twelfth grade, the inherent ardor I held for Computer Science motivated me to do a bachelors degree in Information Technology. Programming and Math, a paragon of logic and reasoning, have always been my favorite subjects since childhood.