Stand Your Ground

813 Words2 Pages

In life, it is natural to desire things, whether it is to open doors for one person or being able to see your family once last time. This type of desire has spanned over generations from the 1400s to modern day, from Verona, Italy to outer space. Critically acclaimed William Shakespeare, Pulitzer Prize winner Conrad Ritcher, Tony Award winner William Gibson, and Oscar winner William Broyles Jr. demonstrate an important message in life. Nothing worth having comes easy but you should never give up.

In William Shakespeare's most famous play, Romeo and Juliet, two teenagers who fall deeply in love find that their parents' acceptance does not come easy and suffer tremendously. Romeo and Juliet's love is constantly challenged by the rivalry, Tybalt's temper, Juliet's arranged marriage, and Romeo being a murderer. Being together is not an easy task once everything turns against them, even destiny itself. Friar Lawrence even laments, “A greater power than we can contradict Hath thwarted our intents” (Shakespeare 903). Despite the difficulties, Juliet remains determined to make it work, plotting to run away with Romeo. Juliet's determination is exemplified once she finds out she's engaged to Paris. She cannot stand idly by and quickly seeks out Friar Lawrence for his assistance, showing more maturity than before. Juliet understands that simply surrendering is wrong.

Finding one's identity and achieving internal peace is no easy task for Conrad Ritcher's protagonist of The Light in the Forest, True Son. After being isolated from white society and reentering it, True Son is subjected to prejudice, being put down by his uncle for his Native American behavior. He hates white people for their violence but soon finds out Native Americans can...

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...d giving up halfway is the wrong thing to do; although all these works displayed this message, I would say The Miracle Worker is best at showing this message because Annie's hard work is genuinely rewarded with Helen's love and mind. Helen Keller was an outstanding person with a big impact on history that never would have occurred with Annie Sullivan's help. She proves that there is no easy way to achieve something of such high value. We have to fight for what we believe is worth it and never give up. Giving up will achieve nothing in life and only leads to regrets. This message holds true to our lives today as presented by Bethany Hamilton who lost her left arm in a shark attack in 2003 but still continues to participate in surfing competitions today in 2011 despite this disability. It is better fight for what is worth having than to look back and wonder, if only.

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