In his 1984 work Jitterbug Perfume, author Tom Robbins explores nearly any and all aspects of life. And not just a conventional life, but ones that span for centuries and transcend boundaries between life and death. Robbins calls attention to the connection between humans and nature, the power of belief, either religious or secular, and the factors that motivate humans to act. In the novel, characters are motivated by various causes, all looking to achieve a similar feat but for differing reasons. The motives of the characters can be divided into two categories; passion-based or responsibility-based. The line between these two agencies can be interpreted differently and in some cases characters experience both, ultimately contributing to a …show more content…
For example, Alobar and Kudra are representatives of this dynamic enduring a 600 year relationship. Where Alobar feels resigned and acts out of self preservation to ensure they can continue in their longevity, Kudra feels longevity for the sake of just longevity removes the purpose for a long life. These schools of thought could really be interpreted in multiple directions, but for these purposes it appears Alobar is motivated by a sense of responsibility and Kudra by a passion for meaningful life. For Alobar, an obligation to his individualism, preservation and longevity motivate him. In contrast, Kudra is not satiated by the nomadic life longevity has driven them to out of necessity, but rather a passion to explore boundaries between life and death. Alobar and Kudra have differing beliefs about death and its permanence, causing them to act based on responsibility or passion, …show more content…
The Bandaloops represent a connection to the Earth, natural means to immortality. The use of elements: Earth, Air, Fire and Water (and later Positive Thought) are all based in a passionate mind possessing cyclical sense not seen in the approaches later seen being experimented with in the modern timeline by scientists at MIT and physicists like Albert Einstein. From the natural passionate state of existence, a nymph called Lalo prophecizes to Alobar the potential ramifications of diverging from passionate minds to more clinical, responsible ones. She cautions, “‘Someday there wilt be men who seek to defeat death by intelligence alone.’ She warned that huge evil would result if those men should attain immortality requires advancement of heart and soul as well as mind” (Robbins, 237). The followers of passion have an intense compass within their hearts and souls, while those lead by responsibility have a compass in their brains. Lalo fears the day when the compass of the mind will supercede that of the heart and soul. In this case, the potential rivalry between passion and responsibility is
Since the beginning of time, mankind began to expand on traditions of life out of which family and societal life surfaced. These traditions of life have been passed down over generations and centuries. Some of these kin and their interdependent ways of life have been upheld among particular people, and are known to contain key pieces of some civilizations.
People of different ages often have problems with one another because of the depravity of society and culture. Because of age differences, people are usually seen as incapable or have no ability to carry out things that others are able to do, like surviving or taking care of themselves. In one book, Two Old Women, by Velma Wallis, the two main characters, Sa’ and Ch’idzigyaak, were left because they were old and just wore down the tribe or so the tribe believed. “The council and I have arrived at a decision… We are going to have to leave our old ones behind” (Wallis5). They thought that doing so would help them rebound and get back to living a normal lifestyle. However, the complete opposite of what they expected happened. Instead of thriving, many of the tribe’s members ended up dying on their journey. The society that they were a part of made a decision of leaving the elderly behind, in hopes of recovery, but deterioration is what resulted. In the end, the society and its influences on the desperate people i...
People’s perceptions of themselves and how they think others perceive them influence their actions. This theme is evident in The Death of Benny Paret, Shooting an Elephant, and On Dumpster Diving, but in different ways in each piece. Once people know who they are and are comfortable with themselves, they have reached self-actualization.
Bernard William’s The Makropulos Case focuses on the topic of immortality, and the issues that would arise from being immortal. William’s uses the concept of the Makropulos play to refute the idea of immortality, because the protagonist kills themselves out of unbearable boredom from exhausting their categorical desires. Whereas John Martin Fischer rejects William’s view of immortality, due to the limiting constraints of his argument. Fischer asserts the immortal life would be livable, because it reflects a mortal life. In effect, I will further Fischer’s argument, in proposing the concept of categorical desires evolving, and then the significance of external factors occurring in society. Therefore, this essay will explain the significant components
In his paper “The Makropulos case: reflections on the tedium of immortality” Bernard Williams asserts his central claim that when immortality is feasible it is intolerable; further, it is reasonable to regard death as an evil. He argues his position by utilization of The Makropulos case, or the case of E.M. This character and circumstance is derived from a play by Karel Capek. E.M. is a woman of three hundred and forty two years. She has survived so long due to an immortality draught concocted by her father, a physician, long before the play’s action. E.M. explains her problem with immortality is that her unending life has become incredibly dull, her emotions have become cold and indifferent. She feels that in the end, everything has happened before and life has become unsatisfying. She stops taking the immortality draught and death overtakes her. This invokes the optimistic thought that immortality may be rewarding, if certain desires continue to be satisfied. Williams expands on the idea of these desires, called categorical desires and inherent motivation, but first we should confirm the views of death that make the conversation of immortality desirable.
Diotima stated that humans were in love with immortality, thus they longed to procreate and let their offspring resemble the old ones in order to achieve the continuity of existence that means immortality. For procreating, in Diotima’s case, there are two ways: one is physically giving birth to ordinary children, the other is mentally giving birth to offspring. These two types of procreation represent two stages of Love. The former is for Love that stems from the attraction to the beauty of human bodies, while the latter is for Love that starts from the appreciation of the mental beauty. Hence, in conclusion, according to Diotima, Love is the journey of the true beauty.
The way men and other races view immortality differs depending on who knows the proper knowledge regarding who holds the immortality. Those who hold the immortality may not fully understand the impact of what it is to be mortal, or may use their knowledge of immortality to their advantage. In Tolkien’s work, the race of Elves are blessed with immortality, and others recognize them as ”immortal were the Elves, and their wisdom waxed from age to age, and no sickness nor pestilence brought death to the...
Since the beginning of mankind, it has been the need to attain a specific goal, which has driven humans to work hard. Without any ambition, humans would not be inspired to overcome adversities and challenge themselves to become increasingly adaptable. When one is motivated by certain factors in their environment, the probability of them being satisfied with the results of their deeds depends on the moral value of their inspiration. If the individual is aware of the fact that their deed is immoral, then no matter how dire their circumstances which forced them to perform the actions, they will not be content. The irony establishes itself in the fact that those characters who are motivated by a cause bigger than themselves, tend to be happier,
Rajas is the mode of passion is born of cravings and desires, so the being is bound by material furtive actions. “Greed and constant activity, excessive projects, cravings, restlessness,” arise when Raja is the ruling mode (Mitchell 159). Actions done in the heat of passion can lead towards unplanned outcomes or even misery. Those in the mood Raja live on the earthly planets. When a being dies in the mood of passion, he birthed into life among those who are engaged in furtive activities on the earth. Since the being is so fixated on sexual acts, and achieving his desires, he becomes attached to the material life.
In south Asia, it is well accepted that a person’s action determines his or her own personal destiny. This idea that actions have repercussions in life is known as karma. Karma is defined by the American Heritage Dictionary as, “the total effect of a person's actions and conduct during the successive phases of the person's existence, regarded as determining the person's destiny.” Karma is called las rgyu-bras in Tibetan, where las can be translated to “work” or “actions” and rgyu-bras translates to “fruits.” Combined, las rgyu-bras can be translated as the fruits of one’s actions (Keyes 232). If a person performs a good action in life, Tibetan Buddhists believe that good things will occur later on in life as a result, and they expect the reverse for bad actions. By understanding this concept and trying to live a l...
One of the oldest and most prominent issues that mankind has faced throughout history is that of their own mortality. In every society mankind has wrestled with the inevitable problem of their eventual death, and literature often reflects each society’s take on their mortality. For instance one of the most pronounced motifs in the epic poem Beowulf is the impending doom that each and every character knows will eventually come for them. This is most clearly illustrated by the protagonist himself in his dialogue with other characters. It is also perpetuated by the compelling need for glory and renown that many of the characters continuously search for. Lastly, the issue of mortality is presented by the preeminence of the history of the clans
Akira Kurosawa’s 1952 film Ikiru Follows the story of an elderly government worker, Mr. Watanabe, who discovers he has a terminal stomach cancer and must figure out what to do with the time he has left to live. While trying to decide on how to live out the rest of his day, Mr. Watanabe discovers he really hasn’t been living his life the way he would have liked all these years, yet he struggles to determine exactly how he would like to live it. In this film Kurosawa seem’s to be taking Heidegger’s ideas presented within Being and Time, about the they-self and authentic-self and how death can enhance one’s awareness of those selves, and applies them to an actual human being; demonstrating how an actual person passes through both forms of being and the danger one faces when living too long as only a they-self without realizing the potential for an authentic-self.
How should we try to live? This question has baffled mankind for millennia. Jane Austen, one of the world’s most beloved authors, wrote extensively on this question, not only portraying characters struggling with it but also answering it through examples. Furthermore, she strove to act in a manner consistent with her principles. Jane Austen used her characters’ interactions in Sense and Sensibility, as well as her own temperament, to promote sense moderated by sensibility.
Life then death, life after death, or life and death, and so on. These phrases represent the varying understandings throughout the world’s cultures of the relationship between life and death and its relationship to living creatures. Throughout, it is understood that all organisms spend time on earth in a specific form and after some time that form will wear away and the physical form of that being will die--the body will no longer function and can return to the earth and nutrients from which it came. However, the disagreement lies in whether or not there is a literal end to that organism’s existence, or its being, its spirit. Both a culture’s understanding of this relationship and historic influences, cause variations of cultural attitudes toward life and death.
Tom Robbins the author of Jitterbug Perfume, wrote this novel with many hidden symbols, unique characters and with a interpretive plot. It comes to question if his life had any influence on where his ideas came from and who he based some of his characters on in Jitterbug Perfume. In Jitterbug Perfume Tom Robbins is a well known author for writing about many eccentric characters, using playful optimism and including constant wordplay. I believe that these imaginative ideas and unique style of writing, was largely influenced by his life. This being from his early childhood life or his later experiences in life and to the important people he has met, Robbins life really influenced the plot,