The overarching message presented by Mlodinow to the readers in his book is the effect of randomness in our lives with the math and psychology behind it that causes it to impact our life. The effects of randomness are continually addressed by the author through the description of events that he believes can be chalked up to elements of randomness whether it be a tech entrepreneur rising to the richest man in the world or the success of an actor based of of one role. Bill Gates is a primary example by the author of how a random event so little can have a much larger impact. When IBM initially approached Gates with a request to develop an OS for the IBM PC he declined and referred them to another person and he then declined and Gates developed the OS and from there began what would make him the wealthiest man on earth. …show more content…
The book also focuses largely on the mental aspects of people that allows randomness to rule our lives and the fight to control it. Humans have a giant amount of randomness within them as a core, this leads to wild variance and how we observe it such as what movies we find to be successful or which author is good. Often we try and fight randomness in life based off of the human need to be in control. While we try and control life randomness comes in so many forms and manners from the butterfly effect to the large numbers theory the attempts to fight randomness often lead to more
... sets in the book is optimistic. Kerman enforces the idea that things happen for a reason, and a person will learn and benefit from good or bad things happening in his or her life.
...eeps through the pages as Odd relays his thoughts for the book. This gives us a glimpse at Odd and the influences in his life. While not all of them are listed here, the ones that are, play a pivotal role in his life; something he seems to become more and more aware as this story goes on. It’s as if Koontz is trying to tell us a little about ourselves, that while we have known influences like our family, there are many more out there that help shape us into the beings that we are. Humans are a product of influences, but since no one human is influenced by exactly the same things then how are we to know what others want, need or feel. This story is a beautiful adaptation of that very concept with a little bit of mystical tossed in to keep it and the story interesting.
The belief in fate or free will shapes the way a person lives their life. In Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle and Chloe Benjamin’s The Immortalists, many incidents cause the characters to question their destinies. Through the psychoanalytical lens, the characters in both novels challenge their fate and free will in response to negative events that impact their lives. The characters reevaluate their belief systems as they experience loss, death, and change.
In Shirley Jackson’s short story the Lottery and Flannery O’Conner’s “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, there are a few aspects of a similar nature that attempt to tackle the nature essence of the human condition. Both short stories respectively portray two similar types of foreshadowing where one is random the other is premeditated, which leads these stories to their very surprising dramatic climax that is held until the end of each story. I believe that these important variables of both stories have a strong influence on the reader’s objectification regarding the way each story presents the idea of the human condition.
Humans are born into certain circumstances, genes, and an environment which shapes them (Cave). These factors also create natural biases which also influence them. However, “ there is a big difference between having less and none at all” (Nahmias). In the novel, the characters exercise their free will based limiting factors beyond their control. For example, Zeena and Mattie come and stay in Starkfield due to the gender roles at the time. They could not get jobs to support themselves, and therefore relied on living in the Frome household (Wharton). This demonstrates how limiting factors influence influence how people exercise their free
One major theme that comes up in both of these books is the theme of no free will.
Although the book has many stories to tell, all with something in common but yet with a different feature, the point of the book was to not only educate the world about these situations but to also give us real scenarios that we all can relate to in some sort of fashion. This book is about the human mind and the abstractness of our visions and memories. Everything affects us physically and mentally. We all share a common feature; we are all simply human with simple human minds.
The essence of the book is about perspectives. one of the most common ideologies about perspective is how one views a glass of liquid is it half full or half empty. This is supposed to speak volumes about how one sees life. of course there is more to perspective than how one sees a glass of liquid but it is one of the easiest ways to put perspective into
Randomness is the major factor involved in the ascension of Carrie and descending of Hurstwood. The lesser factors encompass will, looks, and gender. Carrie would have never been equip by men to succeed if she were not a pretty girl. Mr. Hurstwood would not have had as much loss if he had not lost some of his will. The lesson variables would not matter if it were not for the random events.
To conclude, I believe that this novel gives a warning to the reader. I believe that it is telling us not to push the boundaries of reality and not to tamper with things that would perhaps be better left alone, because the consequences are unknown, unpredictable and unnatural. It tells us that death and birth are things that in the modern world we just have to accept, and that we should not even attempt to exceed mortal limitations: Playing God should be left to God.
The theme of this book is that the human capacity to adapt to and find happiness in the most difficult circumstances. Each character in the novel shows this in their way. For instance, their family is randomly taken from their home and forced to work but they still remain a close nit family. In addition, they even manage to stick together after being separated for one of their own. These show how even in the darkest time they still manage to find a glimmer of hope and they pursued on.
This book teaches the importance of self-expression and independence. If we did not have these necessities, then life would be like those in this novel. Empty, redundant, and fearful of what is going on. The quotes above show how different life can be without our basic freedoms. This novel was very interesting and it shows, no matter how dismal a situation is, there is always a way out if you never give up, even if you have to do it alone.
These weekly writings are connected by how history is always progressing due to people connecting better with themselves, and acknowledging how we can open up to things we don’t understand. If you believe in free will, you can’t believe in fate. Sophie Amundsen from the novel Sophie’s World is in this position. She has been learning all about philosophy and why things happen by her philosophy teacher, Alberto Knox. She starts to get random letters from this man named Albert Knag, addressed to Hilde, his daughter. This confuses them both, but they eventually connect the dots. They are both characters in a book Albert is reading to Hilde, inside this novel. Jostein Gaarder shows us the twist
It deals with obstacles in life and the ways they are over come. Even if you are different, there are ways for everyone to fit in. The injustices in this book are well written to inform a large audience at many age levels. The book is also a great choice for those people who cheers for the underdogs. It served to illustrate how the simple things in life can mean everything.
Other than how this book personally encouraged me and discouraged me, it was eye opening to see such a coincidence of birthdates among all-star hockey players and how Bill Gates just happened to be born in the wake of computer technology. It is also very shocking to see the racial demographics behind plane crashes and the relationship between math, rice, and Asian people. I am glad that I was able to read this book because despite the limits it places on success, it provides a better understanding of the possible reasons why some people become outliers while other remain average.