Selfishness: An Inescapable Plague
As humans, we are inconsiderate, egoistic, greedy animals who proceed down the most revolting and corrupt path in order to achieve our desired goals. Gone are our ethical values when our hunger for success and power is unleashed. Unconcerned with the wellbeing of others, our lethal daggers plunge into our vulnerable prey. Why is it that even with many witnesses, no one dares to take a step forward to save the victim? Many may feed you the generic response of “it is a problematic question with an equally challenging answer”. That would be an ambiguous answer to mask the shameful truth. With sordid rawness, we, the human race, are selfishly disgusting. We are unable to face our own selfishness, so instead, we choose to suffocate and hide the reality of its existence. When reading literature, we are exposed to this demoralising flaw within ourselves. In literature, characters mirror our society’s struggle with selfishness. However, the question is to what extent does reading literature shock us out of our own selfishness? How are we, the readers, reminded of our selfishness, and how effectively do we respond? Through the text, the characters evolve by battling an internal or external conflict, and selfishness remains to be a factor in the problem. We read about their egoistic choices, and, consequently, we are forced to reflect on our own similar selfish decisions. Instead of running away from our problem, we are taught to face it head on. In my opinion, literature to a considerable extent is a stepping stone for us readers to begin our journey on curing selfishness, but, like a deadly poison, finding the antidote for this overwhelming selfish plague is difficult, if not impossible. Through the usage of textual strategies, authors are able to clearly describe every gruesome detail of a story. As an avid reader, this valuable technique enables me to both sympathize and empathize with the conflicts in the fictional world. Lawrence Hill, in The Book of Negroes, employs this tactic effectively when describing the horrific conditions African slaves experience, “Everywhere I turned, men were lying naked, chained to each other and to their sleeping boards, groaning, and crying. Waste and blood streamed along the floorboards, covering my toes” (Hill 63). Such a nauseating description created by imagery forces readers to sympathize for the unfortunate captives. It causes us to feel sorry for those who must face these conditions, but, we also feel a sense of gratitude that we are not in their positions. When gratitude walks hand in hand with relief, a question occurs – how can we allow ourselves to feel relieved that other people are suffering while we are thriving in safety? The answer lies in our blood; it is in our human nature to be selfish. As humans, the concern for our well-being exceeds the well-being of others. As seen in World War II, when Jews sought refuge in Cuba, America, and Canada, they were firmly denied. For selfish reasons such as lack of jobs, risk of bringing in diseases or criminals, and fear of Hitler’s retaliation, thousands of Jews were sent to their graves. By reading literature, readers gain a perspective of what the victims experience which in return, reveals the cruelty of humans to blatantly ignore cries of help. Comparing the experiences of characters in literature and the real world to our own first world problems, we can truly realize our difficulties are but a speck of the challenges others endure. In this way, readers are able to finally acknowledge our selfish traits through literature. However, despite our awareness of selfishness, we are unsuccessful in our endeavor of overcoming our greed. Without fail, we tend to choose the decision that benefits us the most. Aminata, a supposedly selfless character, concedes when she describes her …show more content…
Under the influence of literature, readers, to a great degree , become aware of this undermined selfish catastrophe. It unlocks the potential of correcting our mistakes, but the journey to complete selflessness is far beyond human capacity. Our awareness of selfishness may reduce the severity and quantity of it, but to completely eradicate this selfish plague is impossible. Greed will poison its preys , and even a strong antidote like literature is only capable of slowing the
As humans, we are inconsiderate, egoistic, greedy animals who proceed down the most revolting and corrupt path in order to achieve our desired goals. Gone are our ethical values when our hunger for success and power is unleashed. Unconcerned with the wellbeing of others, our lethal daggers plunge into our vulnerable prey. Why is it that even with many witnesses, no one dares to take a step forward to save the victim? Many may feed you the generic response of “it is a problematic question with an equally challenging answer”. That would be an ambiguous answer to mask the shameful truth. With sordid rawness, we, the human race, are selfishly disgusting. We are unable to face our own selfishness, so instead, we choose to suffocate and hide the reality of its existence. When reading literature, we are exposed to this demoralising flaw within ourselves. In literature, characters mirror our society’s struggle with selfishness. However, the question is to what extent does reading literature shock us out of our own selfishness? How are we, the readers, reminded of our selfishness, and how effectively do we respond? Through the text, the characters evolve by battling an internal or external conflict, and selfishness remains to be a factor in the problem. We read about their egoistic choices, and, consequently, we are forced to reflect on our own similar selfish decisions. Instead of running away from our problem, we are taught to face it head on. In my opinion, literature to a considerable extent is a stepping stone for us readers to begin our journey on curing selfishness, but, like a deadly poison, finding the antidote for this overwhelming selfish plague is difficult, if not impossible. Through the usage of textual strategies, authors are able to clearly describe every gruesome detail of a story. As an avid reader, this valuable technique enables me to both sympathize and empathize with the conflicts in the fictional world. Lawrence Hill, in The Book of Negroes, employs this tactic effectively when describing the horrific conditions African slaves experience, “Everywhere I turned, men were lying naked, chained to each other and to their sleeping boards, groaning, and crying. Waste and blood streamed along the floorboards, covering my toes” (Hill 63). Such a nauseating description created by imagery forces readers to sympathize for the unfortunate captives. It causes us to feel sorry for those who must face these conditions, but, we also feel a sense of gratitude that we are not in their positions. When gratitude walks hand in hand with relief, a question occurs – how can we allow ourselves to feel relieved that other people are suffering while we are thriving in safety? The answer lies in our blood; it is in our human nature to be selfish. As humans, the concern for our well-being exceeds the well-being of others. As seen in World War II, when Jews sought refuge in Cuba, America, and Canada, they were firmly denied. For selfish reasons such as lack of jobs, risk of bringing in diseases or criminals, and fear of Hitler’s retaliation, thousands of Jews were sent to their graves. By reading literature, readers gain a perspective of what the victims experience which in return, reveals the cruelty of humans to blatantly ignore cries of help. Comparing the experiences of characters in literature and the real world to our own first world problems, we can truly realize our difficulties are but a speck of the challenges others endure. In this way, readers are able to finally acknowledge our selfish traits through literature. However, despite our awareness of selfishness, we are unsuccessful in our endeavor of overcoming our greed. Without fail, we tend to choose the decision that benefits us the most. Aminata, a supposedly selfless character, concedes when she describes her …show more content…
Under the influence of literature, readers, to a great degree , become aware of this undermined selfish catastrophe. It unlocks the potential of correcting our mistakes, but the journey to complete selflessness is far beyond human capacity. Our awareness of selfishness may reduce the severity and quantity of it, but to completely eradicate this selfish plague is impossible. Greed will poison its preys , and even a strong antidote like literature is only capable of slowing the