Essential Question: When confronted with life’s challenges, how do we hold onto ourselves so that we can self-evolve and become the leaders of our own journeys?
Everyday, we face challenges that affect our lives to some degree, whether large or not. The way we react to these hardships tells us who we really are. We can either choose to hold onto ourselves or change to fit society’s expectations. The ones who choose to hold onto themselves when confronted with life’s challenges are able to self-evolve and become leaders of their own journeys. This concept is demonstrated in the books’ To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Lord of the Flies by William Golding. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, one character who was able to hold onto …show more content…
From when she was young, Scout was unlike any of the girls her age. Rather than wearing dresses and learning how to become a lady, she wore overalls and learned how to climb trees. Scout had an extremely innocent view of the world. Unfortunately, that view was challenged when she came into contact with racial prejudice. Because her father was representing Tom Robinson, the resentment that the people of Maycomb felt toward her father was extended the her and her brother to some degree as well. At the beginning of the novel, Scout expressed how she was embarrassed about Atticus because he was older and not into outdoor activities such as hunting like the other men of Maycomb. Scout had to choose whether she agreed with the people of Maycomb or Atticus in regards to the robinson trial. When faced with this challenge, Scout chose to stay true to herself and held on the the values that Atticus taught her when she was growing up. Rather than allow herself to be broken by the evil that she witnesses at a young age, Scout decided to take Atticus’s philosophy- that humanity has a great capacity for evil, but a great capacity for good as well- to heart. She decided that she would maintain her conscience whenever faced with something, without falling prey to prejudice or stereotypes. As a result of putting herself in this mindset, she enabled …show more content…
When the boys were marooned on the island due to their plane being shot down, Ralph was chosen to be the leader. Although there were no adult around to tell him what to do, he still tried to do what he thought was right by attempting to rebuild some part of civilization. He organized a group to hunt, attempted to built huts for shelter, and thought of ways to signal ships or plans to rescue them. However, he was not able to hold on to himself the entire time he was on the island. During one incident, he participated in a hunt and was exhilarated by the bloodlust and violence. He was in such a frenzy that he participated in the murder of Simon, another boy on the island. Only afterward did Ralph realize how much of a savage he became. He went back to his senses, but was depressed by the fact that somewhere in him enjoyed what he had done. By realizing his wrongdoing, Ralph was able to regain his bearings and his humanity. In the end of the novel, Ralph evolved, but not in the way that Scout Finch had. Rather than change for the better, he changed for the worst. Despite the fact that he was saved, he still had to live with the fact that humans, children, were capable of barbaric things when there is no civilization or rules to keep them in line. Nonetheless, he became the leader of his own journey by choosing to suppress his savage
Everyday, we face challenges that affect our lives to some degree, whether large or not. The way we react to these hardships tells us who we really are. We can either choose to hold onto ourselves or change to fit society’s expectations. The ones who choose to hold onto themselves when confronted with life’s challenges are able to self-evolve and become leaders of their own journeys. This concept is demonstrated in the books’ To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Lord of the Flies by William Golding. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, one character who was able to hold onto …show more content…
From when she was young, Scout was unlike any of the girls her age. Rather than wearing dresses and learning how to become a lady, she wore overalls and learned how to climb trees. Scout had an extremely innocent view of the world. Unfortunately, that view was challenged when she came into contact with racial prejudice. Because her father was representing Tom Robinson, the resentment that the people of Maycomb felt toward her father was extended the her and her brother to some degree as well. At the beginning of the novel, Scout expressed how she was embarrassed about Atticus because he was older and not into outdoor activities such as hunting like the other men of Maycomb. Scout had to choose whether she agreed with the people of Maycomb or Atticus in regards to the robinson trial. When faced with this challenge, Scout chose to stay true to herself and held on the the values that Atticus taught her when she was growing up. Rather than allow herself to be broken by the evil that she witnesses at a young age, Scout decided to take Atticus’s philosophy- that humanity has a great capacity for evil, but a great capacity for good as well- to heart. She decided that she would maintain her conscience whenever faced with something, without falling prey to prejudice or stereotypes. As a result of putting herself in this mindset, she enabled …show more content…
When the boys were marooned on the island due to their plane being shot down, Ralph was chosen to be the leader. Although there were no adult around to tell him what to do, he still tried to do what he thought was right by attempting to rebuild some part of civilization. He organized a group to hunt, attempted to built huts for shelter, and thought of ways to signal ships or plans to rescue them. However, he was not able to hold on to himself the entire time he was on the island. During one incident, he participated in a hunt and was exhilarated by the bloodlust and violence. He was in such a frenzy that he participated in the murder of Simon, another boy on the island. Only afterward did Ralph realize how much of a savage he became. He went back to his senses, but was depressed by the fact that somewhere in him enjoyed what he had done. By realizing his wrongdoing, Ralph was able to regain his bearings and his humanity. In the end of the novel, Ralph evolved, but not in the way that Scout Finch had. Rather than change for the better, he changed for the worst. Despite the fact that he was saved, he still had to live with the fact that humans, children, were capable of barbaric things when there is no civilization or rules to keep them in line. Nonetheless, he became the leader of his own journey by choosing to suppress his savage