During fearful events, we tend to find ourselves in situations which require quick thinking. We have to decide what to do at a moment's notice. Fight or Flight. However, when you only have one moment to make a decision, it can lead to rash actions. We don’t have the time to deeply analyze the circumstances around us, because of the little time we are given, so we have to make a critical decision with only surface level information, which we gather from the appearances, the words, and the actions of the people involved in the situation. Problems arise when the surface level information is not accurate information. When the accuracy of the details that we have is questionable, we can’t make a wise or well-informed decision. While the choice we
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Drioli, the main character of the short story, is a miserable, old man who, in the past, was a talented and happy tattoo artist. We first meet him in war-torn Paris in the winter of 1946. He is poor and homeless and desperate. Drioli is wandering the streets until he stumbles upon an art gallery, in which, he recognizes some of the art as belonging to a protege of his before World War I. We are then taken through Drioli’s memories. We see the interactions between Drioli, Soutine (his young protege), and Drioli’s wife, Josie. Drioli reveals that Soutine tattooed a breath-taking portrait of Josie onto Drioli’s back. Realizing that he has something to share with the people in the art gallery, Drioli enters. He is quickly asked to leave and shunned by the gallery owner and the people visiting the gallery. Wanting desperately to be accepted by the people in the gallery, he rips off his shirt, exposing the tattoo. The people are in awe, then the gallery owner begins to attempt to buy the tattoo from Drioli, which would require a risky surgery. Drioli is being backed against a wall--trapped by people surrounding him, until another man enters the scene who seems to be Drioli’s savior. He presents another, more enticing option--to live in the lap of luxury on a warm cruise ship with all the food he could possibly …show more content…
These forced, quick decisions can lead to dangerous repercussions, because of our inability to fully evaluate the situation at hand. Furthermore in Drioli’s situation, the gallery owner first kicked Drioli out of the gallery and treated him poorly, before he tried to get Drioli to agree to the surgery. The article “Fear, Rhetoric, and the ‘Other’” by Royal asserts that, “Cognitive science research tells us that once one story is activated in a human being’s mind, it is very difficult to shift paths” (408). For Drioli, the first “story” in his mind regarding the gallery owner was that he was cruel and shunned him from the gallery of his protege. The gallery owner treated him like dirt, so when he offered him money as payment for the surgical removal of the tattoo, Drioli couldn’t separate that offer from his original impression of the cruel encounter. On the other hand, Drioli’s first experience with the other man was that he came and gave Drioli a second, more-appealing option of escape. His first “story” with the second man was one of compassion and kindness. In addition, the man also offered Drioli everything that he could possibly want--making it easier for Drioli to believe his offer. In Drioli’s mind, there was no previous “story” that would cause him to question the second man’s
Drioli, the main character of the short story, is a miserable, old man who, in the past, was a talented and happy tattoo artist. We first meet him in war-torn Paris in the winter of 1946. He is poor and homeless and desperate. Drioli is wandering the streets until he stumbles upon an art gallery, in which, he recognizes some of the art as belonging to a protege of his before World War I. We are then taken through Drioli’s memories. We see the interactions between Drioli, Soutine (his young protege), and Drioli’s wife, Josie. Drioli reveals that Soutine tattooed a breath-taking portrait of Josie onto Drioli’s back. Realizing that he has something to share with the people in the art gallery, Drioli enters. He is quickly asked to leave and shunned by the gallery owner and the people visiting the gallery. Wanting desperately to be accepted by the people in the gallery, he rips off his shirt, exposing the tattoo. The people are in awe, then the gallery owner begins to attempt to buy the tattoo from Drioli, which would require a risky surgery. Drioli is being backed against a wall--trapped by people surrounding him, until another man enters the scene who seems to be Drioli’s savior. He presents another, more enticing option--to live in the lap of luxury on a warm cruise ship with all the food he could possibly …show more content…
These forced, quick decisions can lead to dangerous repercussions, because of our inability to fully evaluate the situation at hand. Furthermore in Drioli’s situation, the gallery owner first kicked Drioli out of the gallery and treated him poorly, before he tried to get Drioli to agree to the surgery. The article “Fear, Rhetoric, and the ‘Other’” by Royal asserts that, “Cognitive science research tells us that once one story is activated in a human being’s mind, it is very difficult to shift paths” (408). For Drioli, the first “story” in his mind regarding the gallery owner was that he was cruel and shunned him from the gallery of his protege. The gallery owner treated him like dirt, so when he offered him money as payment for the surgical removal of the tattoo, Drioli couldn’t separate that offer from his original impression of the cruel encounter. On the other hand, Drioli’s first experience with the other man was that he came and gave Drioli a second, more-appealing option of escape. His first “story” with the second man was one of compassion and kindness. In addition, the man also offered Drioli everything that he could possibly want--making it easier for Drioli to believe his offer. In Drioli’s mind, there was no previous “story” that would cause him to question the second man’s