In America today, when the name of honor is often adulterated by glaring headlines proclaiming the guilt of an immoral politician or the fall of a disgraced executive, it is easy to forget that the country was founded for the pursuit of truth, for only in truth can people find real happiness. Thomas Jefferson famously included the pursuit happiness as an unalienable right in the Declaration of Independence, but in an intimate letter to William Roscoe, a British historian, Jefferson wrote, “This institution will be based on the illimitable freedom of the human mind. For here we are not afraid to follow truth wherever it may lead.” In his flagship novel, All the King’s Men, Robert Penn Warren embraces the Founding Father’s principles with his characterization of both Willie Stark and Jack Burden. Warren’s novel is an American classic because it traces the lives of two lost men as each man follows his personalized compass pointing towards complete understanding. After elevating him to unprecedented heights, Willie’s interpretation of truth returns to drag him down to the Underworld. Only when Jack learns that not even Willie can be omnipotent does he stop trying to understand everything. Willie Stark and Jack Burden embody the essence of Thomas Jefferson’s words because, in a sense, they both attain freedom through their pursuit of truth.
At heart, Willie Stark is a good man with good intentions, but his philanthropic nature clashes with his burning desire for success. Cousin Willie’s political career was conceived out of his search for truth. After the schoolhouse incident, Willie is proclaimed an “honest man” and is thrust into the governor’s race (Warren 97). But Willie is heartbroken when Sadie Burke cruelly informs him, “You a...
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... also come to the conclusion that complete understanding is not only impossible but also undesirable. As a result, Jack agrees with Ellis Burden who reasons that “Separateness [from God] is identity,” and since only God knows everything, ignorance is a quality all humans share (Warren 659). It is ironic that the world seems clearer to Jack when he realizes that men are naturally ignorant than when he sought to understand everything. Jack’s progress lies in his ability to “distinguish the pursuit of knowledge from Complete Knowledge itself” (Wolf). Jack realizes that it is only human have the freedom to pursue knowledge, while the possession of Complete Knowledge destroys the purpose of life. Jack’s epiphanies occur at the expense of others, namely Judge Irwin, Willie, and Adam, but it is necessary for Jack to learn that freedom comes from the realization of truth.
It has been 42 years since the Nixon presidency was brought to an end by the Watergate scandal. All the President's Men, the movie depicting the Watergate Scandal, accurately portrays the events surrounding President Nixon and the taping of the Democratic
Several characters through the course of Steinbeck's novel East of Eden demonstrate a lack of self-knowledge or corruption of the soul. A gap is created between some the character's actions and their true essence as a person. The disparity between a character's conduct and their identity as a human being is often a demonstration of the fight between good and evil within the character's own soul. Caleb, one of Adam Trask's twin boys embodies this struggle vividly throughout his life. This search for self-identity plays into a key theme of the novel, which is that of free will. Despite the fact that there is a variance in the way a character wants to act or the person who they truly are at heart and the way that they actually carry out their lives, free will offers hope. Steinbeck pushes the idea that a person's life and fate is never out of their control and that it is never too late to change the road that you are on. It can be argued either way that this break up of fundamental identity, expression and self-knowledge is the nature of man or simply provoked by the events in the character's lives. It becomes apparent through Caleb's life that the nurture of the individual seems to be the larger factor in causing this separation. Caleb Trask's character demonstrates how the struggle between good and evil within an individual can affect one's self-knowledge, which is catalyzed mainly by the nurture of the character and, ultimately, is amendable through free will.
In Eric Foner’s book, The Story of American Freedom, he writes a historical monograph about how liberty came to be. In the book, his argument does not focus on one fixed definition of freedom like others are tempted to do. Unlike others, Foner describes liberty as an ever changing entity; its definition is fluid and does not change in a linear progress. While others portray liberty as a pre-determined concept and gradually getting better, Foner argues the very history of liberty is constantly reshaping the definition of liberty, itself. Essentially, the multiple and conflicting views on liberty has always been a “terrain of conflict” and has changed in time (Foner xv).
Thomas Jefferson, an educated, well respected career man, served as governor of Virginia, secretary of state, and president of the United States. The Revolutionary era, during the 1770's, proved to be one of America's most victorious times. Despite the casualties the American colonies suffered, they proved to be stronger than their ruling land, Britain, and won the right to be a free land, becoming the United States of America. Living through this difficult turning point in history inspired Jefferson to write "The Declaration of Independence." Once again, nearly two hundred years later, America faced yet another turning point in history. Watching America struggle through racial integration in the 1960's, King was outraged by how Blacks were being treated, not only by citizens, but by law enforcement. Police brutality became increasingly prevalent, especially in the South, during riots and protests. As a revered clergyman, civil rights leader, and Nobel Prize winner, King's writings sprung from a passion to help America become the land Jefferson, among many people, had promised it to be. ...
America is a nation that is often glorified in textbooks as a nation of freedom, yet history shows a different, more radical viewpoint. In Howard Zinn’s A People's History of the United States, we take a look at American history through a different lens, one that is not focused on over glorifying our history, but giving us history through the eyes of the people. “This is a nation of inconsistencies”, as so eloquently put by Mary Elizabeth Lease highlights a nation of people who exploited and sought to keep down those who they saw as inferior, reminding us of more than just one view on a nation’s history, especially from people and a gender who have not had an easy ride.
... questioning the virtue of vapid judgment, and the merit and efficaciousness of abeyance. This paper has specifically examined his reaction to accusations of civil disobedience, extremism, and admonitions favoring quietism, and the impact his retaliations had on the goal of equality in America. While misrepresentation turns out to be the opposition’s most formidable tool, history, logic and rhetoric serve as King’s strongest allies, allowing him to turn the tenuous arguments of his critics into a formidable bulwark. The letter’s greatest impact on the audience is King’s disambiguation of fact and myth. The fact that his letter was widely publicized proved invaluable to the cause as well. But beyond this, King’s rhetoric allows no room for opposition, only for defense, leaving those in disharmony with his words on the side of immorality, injustice, and villainy.
The death of Willie Starks and the circumstances force Jack to rethink the way he thinks. He rethinks a belief that no one can ever be responsible for the evil actions of another individual over time. In a way Jack feels responsible for Willie’s death. Jack eventually marries Anne Stanton and he feels orthodox about his decision to marry her. Jack restarts his long lost hobby of working on a book about Cass Mastern.
America is one word that brings the hope of freedom to many people around the world. Since the United States’ humble beginnings freedom has remained at the core of its ideologies and philosophies. People of all races, nations, and tongues have found refuge in America. The National Anthem proclaims, “…land of the free, and home of the brave” (Key, 1814). But has America been consistently a land of the free? Unfortunately freedom has not always reigned. There is a constant struggle to overcome fear and prejudice in order to provide a true land of freedom. In times of heightened tension, the masses of common people seek to find a scapegoat. Often, this scapegoat is a minority with ties to current negative events. As fear uncontrollably grows, it can cause people to allow and commit unspeakable atrocities.
Both Thoreau and Emerson argue that asserting one’s opinions is crucial to attaining a better society. Emerson decries the danger of societal conformity and challenges the reader to “speak what you think now in hard words” in order to remedy it (Emerson 367). Likewise, Thoreau speculates that if “every man make known what kind of government would command his respect” it would be “one step toward obtaining it” (Thoreau 381). With these remarkably similar statements, both transcendentalists appeal to the reader’s patriotism by using language evocative of the agitated and outraged colonial Americans who demanded the people’s voice be heard in government. Although published roughly a half century later, “Self-Reliance” and “Civil Disobedience” mirror the sentiments of famous Revolution-era leaders such as Thomas Paine and Patrick Henry.
To Kill a Mockingbird, the novel by Harper Lee embodies a work of Southern literature, set in the 1930s in a small town in Alabama. The book’s genre exemplifies a coming-of-age historical fiction story. The narrator, a young girl named Scout Finch, describes the lessons she and her brother Jem learn when their father, a lawyer named Atticus, defends an African American man who stands accused of raping a white woman. The novel’s premise revolves around the efforts of a father raising his children and guiding them in their moral development. Along the way, the book deals with the themes of courage, prejudice and maturity. These three concepts are defined differently by Atticus than by most of the other people in the town where he lives. According to Atticus, courage means doing what remains as right and resisting what remains as wrong, even if other people oppose you. In contrast to the prejudice of the townspeople, Atticus believes it important to treat everyone equally. Maturity, in Atticus’ view, refers to having a sense of conscience and seeking to protect those who remain innocent. As these definitions show, Atticus Finch displays a strong sense of ethics. His goal as a parent remains to pass his values on to his children. This paper will argue that Scout and Jem learn the true meanings of courage, prejudice and maturity through the influence of their father and the example he sets for them.
The Book of Proverbs states that “He who commits adultery lacks sense; he who does it destroys himself” (Proverbs 6.32). This is evident in the lives of three of the novel’s main characters. Willie Stark is a larger than life politician dominating the state as a cunning and perceptive governor. Willie is a moral relativist, and tolerates corruption, as he believes it to be necessary to success. He is married to Lucy Stark and has a son named Tom. Willie also engages in sexual sin by having several affairs in the novel, deeming him an adulterous man. Willie’s secretary Sadie Burke is one of his most preferred mistresses. However, one of the most scandalous affairs that Willie partakes in is with Anne Stanton. Anne is the daughter of an ex-Governor. Her public reputation makes the affair with Willie one of the most outrageous events in the South. When Sadie informs Adam Stanton, Anne’s brother, of the affair, Adam proceeds to assassinate Willie. Willie’s sexual sin is what brings upon his own destruction. His constant sinning is what infuriates Sadie enough to tell Adam, and provoke Adam to murder him. As another example, Judge Irwin’s sinful past of adultery ultimately leads to his own destruction. Judge Irwin is a
Although Thoreau and King both correspondingly address these topics of morality and justice throughout their essays, their essays are in no way similar in writing styles, tones, and/or goals. King speaks to his readers about the injustice that is being served to African Americans specifically. He uses an emotional appeal as he pleads his readers to take action to end segregation. This emotional appeal combined with his optimism for freedom sets him and his writing different from that of Thoreau’s. Thoreau’s essay on the other hand, is largely critical of the unfair American Government. Unlike King, Thoreau worriedly speaks to his readers in a distressed, aggravated tone as he reprimands them for following unjust laws. Thoreau’s essay is also different from King’s because he presents more than one goal. Not only does he describe the government’s unfair laws, but he also teaches his readers how and why to revolt, and tells them to bring an end to the ongoing M...
Throughout the ages, men and women have been at the heart of myths and legends, evolving into tragic heroes in large part due to the embellishment bestowed upon them over the ages. From Odysseus and Achilles to Brutus, Hamlet, and King Lear, epic poems have revolved around the tragic hero. Pat Tillman was a man of many aptitudes and virtues, never satisfied by the mediocre, striving for more adventure, more meaning, in his tragically short time on Earth, and personifying the phrase carpe diem. Even Pat Tillman had tragic flaws; his unwillingness to be typical, his undying loyalty to family and country, and his curiously concrete set of morals amalgamated to set in motion Tillman’s eventual death. These, whatever the outcome might have been, are not by any means, the archetypical tragic flaws. They are, as Jon Krakauer later described, “tragic virtues.” Where Men Win Glory is not solely a tribute to Pat Tillman. What makes it truly unique is its exhaustively comprehensive history preceding Tillman’s death, and equally essential, the events that transpired following his death, including the cover-ups, scandals, corruption, falsified documents, indignities, and lies that facilitated, also, in emphasizing the core themes, of which Tillman was the epitome. Tillman’s fidelity and devotion to the people whom he loved, the use of misinformation and cants surrounding his death, and others’ responses to what Tillman considered paramount in his life all played a key role in the tragedy of a man who won glory.
Throughout time society has been tested many a time. The tests of society are those which show the development of a society’s culture, morals and value system. The recent events of Maycomb have shown it has not developed or flourished but that with the death of my dear husband, Tom, it has failed miserably. Justice, although bittersweet, is the pie that society has been given the duty to serve. The once-solid pillars of fairness and humanity upon which our society was built are crumbling. The trials and tribulations of Tom Robinson have not only led me to lose faith in justice, fairness and humanity but removed my veil of ignorance and shown me the ignorant “whites” have the power to kill even the sweetest of mockingbirds.
Huey Long came from a humble background. His father, Huey Pierce Long, Sr. was a “livestock farmer” from Winn Parish, one of the “poorest parishes in a very poor state” (Hueylong.com). Willie Stark also hailed from a modest background. Penn describes Willie as a “red-faced and red-necked farm boy” demonstrating humble roots similar to those of Huey Long (7, Warren). Willie also comes from a low class family, which enables him to identify with the common man of society. For example, during his impromptu speech in front of the convenient store, Willie uses Germanic diction and speaks to the “folks” in the town of his being called to “come home” and the importance of roots (16-17). Huey and Willie’s upbringings are clearly a connection between the two men and directly impact their personalities and decisions that they make throughout their lives.