The businessman Waite Phillips once said “Some people never learn the art of compromise. Everything is either black or white. They do not recognize, or will not concede, that the equally important color gray is a mixture of black and white.” People that do not learn how to compromise or have moderate views will inevitably waste their time. Moderation is akin to compromise, and can also include having a flexible mindset. However, the characters Holden and Antigone exhibit little of those qualities. Both Salinger’s Holden from Catcher in the Rye and Sophocles’ Antigone from Antigone possess rigid and extreme views of the world that eventually lead to their downfall, thus illustrating that moderation is essential.
Sophocles uses Antigone to …show more content…
When Ismene tries to convince Antigone to abandon her plans to bury Polyneices, she says “You ought to realize we are only women/ not meant in nature to fight against men/ and that we are ruled, by those who are stronger” (Ant. 66-73). Antigone knows her position in Thebes as a woman with little power, but the fact that she chooses to ignore it ties in with her extreme mentality. Antigone’s attitude toward burying her brother reveals a prideful and stubborn personality along with an unwillingness to compromise. This attitude shows the rigidity of Antigone’s ideals and shows that one must have a willingness to listen, and the moderation, to accept what cannot be done. In addition, as Antigone is led off to the cave to die, she finally understands the consequences of her actions and says, “What law of God have I broken?/Why should I still look to the gods in my misery?/Whom should I summon as an ally? For indeed/because of piety I was called impious./If this proceeding is good in the gods ' eyes/I shall know my sin, once I have suffered./But if Creon and his people are the wrongdoers/let their suffering be no worse than the injustice/ they are meting out to me" …show more content…
When Holden discovers the “f-ck you’s” on the wall, he demonstrates his one-sided nature by saying, “Somebody 'd written 'Fuck you ' on the wall. It drove me damn near crazy. I thought how Phoebe and all the other kids would see it, and how they 'd wonder what the hell it meant" (Salinger 201). Holden is horrified when he sees the “f-ck you’s” because he wants to prevent the kids from being exposed to the corruption around them; to protect their innocence. However, the real culprit behind the vandalism was a child who probably learned the word from an adult, which reveals the symbolic meaning behind the “f-ck you’s:” adult corruption that has spread to children. Instead of accepting the truth that it was a child who wrote the obscenity, Holden blames the profanity on adults, illustrating his idealistic mindset that children are always innocent and adults are always corrupt. This mindset prevents him from maturing and becoming a successful adult, which also demonstrates that an individual needs moderation and the ability to compromise to understand the world around them. Later on, when Holden takes Phoebe to the carrousel, he realizes the flaws in his ideals and says, “All the kids tried to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe, and I was sort of afraid she 'd fall off the goddam horse, but I didn 't say or do
Sophocles uses Antigone to …show more content…
When Ismene tries to convince Antigone to abandon her plans to bury Polyneices, she says “You ought to realize we are only women/ not meant in nature to fight against men/ and that we are ruled, by those who are stronger” (Ant. 66-73). Antigone knows her position in Thebes as a woman with little power, but the fact that she chooses to ignore it ties in with her extreme mentality. Antigone’s attitude toward burying her brother reveals a prideful and stubborn personality along with an unwillingness to compromise. This attitude shows the rigidity of Antigone’s ideals and shows that one must have a willingness to listen, and the moderation, to accept what cannot be done. In addition, as Antigone is led off to the cave to die, she finally understands the consequences of her actions and says, “What law of God have I broken?/Why should I still look to the gods in my misery?/Whom should I summon as an ally? For indeed/because of piety I was called impious./If this proceeding is good in the gods ' eyes/I shall know my sin, once I have suffered./But if Creon and his people are the wrongdoers/let their suffering be no worse than the injustice/ they are meting out to me" …show more content…
When Holden discovers the “f-ck you’s” on the wall, he demonstrates his one-sided nature by saying, “Somebody 'd written 'Fuck you ' on the wall. It drove me damn near crazy. I thought how Phoebe and all the other kids would see it, and how they 'd wonder what the hell it meant" (Salinger 201). Holden is horrified when he sees the “f-ck you’s” because he wants to prevent the kids from being exposed to the corruption around them; to protect their innocence. However, the real culprit behind the vandalism was a child who probably learned the word from an adult, which reveals the symbolic meaning behind the “f-ck you’s:” adult corruption that has spread to children. Instead of accepting the truth that it was a child who wrote the obscenity, Holden blames the profanity on adults, illustrating his idealistic mindset that children are always innocent and adults are always corrupt. This mindset prevents him from maturing and becoming a successful adult, which also demonstrates that an individual needs moderation and the ability to compromise to understand the world around them. Later on, when Holden takes Phoebe to the carrousel, he realizes the flaws in his ideals and says, “All the kids tried to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe, and I was sort of afraid she 'd fall off the goddam horse, but I didn 't say or do