The Only Thing of Which to Fear is Fear Itself
Fear no more, Roosevelt does murder fear - the innocent fear. This sounds like a line that would come from the pen of Shakespeare. However, this is a the underlying message in What Was I Scared of? by Dr. Seuss. The Great Depression and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s speeches were extremely influential upon the works of Theodor Geisel, commonly known by his pen name of Dr. Seuss. One of the primary examples of this influence is reflected in What Was I Scared of?. The overall message of this book may be synopsized in the following - the only thing of which to fear is fear itself. All other fears may be overcome through bravery. Fear of the unknown hinders the individual from developmental
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I ran for home! Believe me,
I had really had a scare” (Geisel, 10).
The bear and the pants start with mutual fears of each other. There fears of each other exponentiate to pure terror in the presence of each other. This fear of each other obstructs them from their progressions in life and growth.
Moreover, even though, at the time of the Great Depression, many business opportunities looked bleak for Geisel. He feared that his works may never be published. However, he overcame his fear of his works not being published and sent his works to 44 publishers (Lurie, 43). Even though only one of the publishers actually publishes his books, he still won an important victory over an internal conflict. Likewise, in the book:
“And now, we meet quite often,
Those empty pants and I,
And we never shake or tremble,
We both smile and we say...‘Hi!’” (Geisel, 23).
The bear and pants were able to be friends after overcoming their fears of each other. Although they never truly master fear of everything, they made an important first step through overcoming fear of each other. This shows that fear needs to be overcome in order to make progress in life. Their victories over their internal conflicts helps them on the road of
Theodor Seuss Geisel was born on March 2, 1904 in Springfield, Massachusetts. To Theodor Robert Geisel and Henrietta Seuss Geisel. His father was a successful brewmaster. All of his grandparents were German immigrants. His father managed the family brewery and later was a supervisor of Springfield’s public park system. The family brewery was closed because of the Prohibition his father had to get a different job he got the park system job from the mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts John A. Denison.
He interviews people such as George Saunders, Kathryn Schulz, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and several more well-known experts about topics ranging from books to music to the theory of gravity. These interviews give the points Klosterman is making credibility as he jumps from topic to topic. He also cites historical examples of the future being completely unpredictable during the present; for example, the novel Moby Dick by Herman Melville went from being a total flop at the time of publishing to being known as the greatest novel of all time. Nothing in Melville’s time indicated the success of that book, and there is no particular reason that the order of events couldn’t have led to another unknown brilliant novel’s success. While citing these historical examples and interviews with great thinkers, Klosterman maintains a conversational, humorous, and engaging tone that keeps the reader wanting more. There were times where I found myself laughing out loud while reading, a very rare occurrence for me. One of my favorite lines in the book was when Klosterman was speaking about how people’s perceptions of presidents change over time. He writes about how the “worst US president of all-time” has changed throughout the years from Grant while he was in college to Buchanan. Along with this,
Fear is a thing that strikes someone at heart. This man had overcame it in such a way it moved many people and had became another thing that this man has overcome. It sure will not be the last of it.As Wiesel said “Hunger—thirst—fear—transport—selection—fire—chimney: these words all have intrinsic
Two stories are brought together “A&P” and “Gryphon” to represent the struggles that every character faces. Sammy the main character in “A&P”, and Tommy the main character in “Gryphon” face a struggle that will put them to the test. For Sammy the struggle is, should he stand up to his boss and defend the girls or should he let it go. Tommy faces the conflict of, does he believe the substitute teacher and defend her against everyone else or does he follow what everybody else is doing. In their stories, Tommy and Sammy are put up against a conflict that they have never seen before, and their “job” is to decide what they should do and how they should approach the problem.
Almost twenty years later, contemplating the contemporary American publishing scene, I feel a Bealean rage coming on (and with it a vague longing for one of his fits).While three percent of the American population in 1976 would have been a little over six million readers, recent surveys suggest that the consistent buyers of books in this country now total no more than half that number, and may even be as few as one million.[1]
Roosevelt’s inaugural address focused on the current situation of the nation and he intended to declare war on the Great Depression. He stated a need to move as a nation through his leadership and become a better nation. Roosevelt took a strong stand and proclaimed, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. He looks to the future asking the nation to fulfill their “true destiny” of ministering to themselves and their fellow men.
Many people have issues with flying. Some are nervous that the plane might not make it to its destination while others think of flying as an overpriced, uncomfortable, and unpleasant experience. Than there are those who can afford to make their flight experience much more luxurious which are the passengers flying in business class or in first class. These are passengers that get the champagne in the plastic glasses and the chairs that stretch all the way out. David Sedaris is able to paint this picture of entitlement and lack of comfort throughout his article “Journey into Night.”
This internal conflict between how society characterizes bears versus the natural behaviors of wild bears is exemplified in the documentary Grizzly Man, by German film-maker Werner Herzog. The documentary analyzes the life and death of Timothy Treadwell, a want-to-be filmmaker, who spent the later years of his life living amongst wild bears while compiling footage of wild bears that aimed at educating the public about bears and how to preserve bears and their habitat. Unfortunately, Treadwell and his girlfriend are later mauled to death by the bears he was attempting to protect. In the film, it is immediately evident that Treadwell’s perspective on wild bears is abnormal; he treats the bears as if they were harmless animals by petting them, turning his back, reading to them, and giving each bear a nickname. However, throughout the film it is apparent Treadwell is fighting with an inner struggle, shown by baby-talking to the wild bears, yelling at them when they get too close, and then immediately apologizing for yelling and professes his love of the bear. In an interview Treadwell states that bears are misunderstood, and that people should not harm wild bears. In one scene, Treadwell films himself in his tent, cuddling with his favorite teddy bear, so it is apparent that the concept of virtual bears has clouded his beliefs about wild bears. In For the Love of Nature: Documenting Life, Death, and Animality in Grizzly Man and March of the Penguins, Jennifer Ladino describes Treadwell’s view on nature, “The fact that he frequently occupies the frame alongside the bears undermines the tendency of the wildlife film to draw a stark line between animals and humanity” (Ladino, 75). While Herzog conveys the message that wild nature is indifferent to humans, Treadwell is
walking on two legs, and soon at the very end of the story, the men and the
It was said once that while hunting, Roosevelt came upon a bear cub. Despite the demands of his hunting partners, Roosevelt refused to kill the cub. This story touched the heart of millions. Soon cartoon strips, newspape...
Many people think that reading more can help them to think and develop before writing something. Others might think that they don’t need to read and or write that it can really help them to brainstorm things a lot quicker and to develop their own ideas immediately (right away). The author’s purpose of Stephen King’s essay, Reading to Write, is to understand the concepts, strategies and understandings of how to always read first and then start something. The importance of this essay is to understand and comprehend our reading and writing skills by brainstorming our ideas and thoughts a lot quicker. In other words, we must always try to read first before we can brainstorm some ideas and to think before we write something. There are many reasons why I chose Stephen King’s essay, Reading to Write, by many ways that reading can help you to comprehend, writing, can help you to evaluate and summarize things after reading a passage, if you read, it can help you to write things better and as you read, it can help you to think and evaluate of what to write about.
Fear in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Fear is an important force in the novel because it is the cause of most people's actions. The main theme in the book is a result of fear. such as the Tom Robinson case and Boo Radley. Ignorance breeds fear which in turn breeds prejudice. Fear is infectious, and each character.
In conclusion, Brother shows his self-interest in how he treats his younger brother. He treats his younger brother, Doodle, as something to ‘fix’ and he cannot accept his brother as he is. When Doodle finally learns to walk, Brother’s selfish need for a more ‘ideal’ little brother is not satisfied for long. Soon he demands a little brother who can run, jump, climb, swim, swing on vines, and row a boat. When he gives Doodle lessons for these activities, he does not do so for concern about Doodle wanting to be able to do them, but because he wants Doodle to be able to be a ‘normal’ brother.
Throughout the story, "Killing the Bear," the reader is given a number of side notes about bears and the woman's experience with them.
Throughout one’s life, he or she will experience many situations where a lesson is learned, or a fear is amassed. One person may be able to deal with such terrors easily, while another will suffer because of the dread and panic that now haunts them. The poem ‘My Fear’ by Lawrence Raab discusses the haunting situation of fear following someone, and the personification, imagery, and tone of the speaker all provide depth to this seemingly innocent poem and allow one to truly appreciate how fear and troubles affect him or her.