I was very intrigued with Johnson's "The History of Rasselas". I also found our conversation in class last Tuesday regarding this text very interesting as well. So, is this really a story where nothing happens? Are the characters in exactly the same frame of mind at the end of the text as they were at the beginning? Possibly. But I have the feeling that there's much going on underneath the surface of this rich text.
I think Johnson is dealing with very visceral, primal human qualities. I think he realized that humans have a basic tendency to always be longing for something more. We achieve so much and yet we still want so much. I can definitely apply this logic to myself. And I could certainly say that it applies to many people I know, if not most.
We could get into a very lenghty, heated debate about whether or not all there is to life is a relentless pursuit of dreams that will never be achieved. Personally, I choose not to believe that. I don't view dreams as silly or whimsical, in fact I would say that we all have a basic desire to pursue a dream, or to at least reach some other plateau. But that is strictly my own personal belief.
I have a friend who tends to be rather morose and doomy. I've gotten to a point where I am quite used to it. Our personalities are so wildly different in that respect that sometimes I honestly wonder how we are still friends. But I don't try to understand such things. Sometimes there really is no explanation. All I know is, despite our wildly varying personalities, we still "click", for want of a better term. I see dreaming as critical, whereas I feel that my friend tends to view it as futile and a waste of time. So be it. That's his belief. I have my own.
I have always been of the belief that having the dream is ultimately more important than achieving the dream. I think goals, or anything that teases us and won't let go can be very frightening things, yet to ignore them is even more frightening. One of my favorite lines I've ever heard in a song is in the track "Lemon" by U2. The line goes "Man dreams of leaving so he always stays behind". I think there is a profound truth to that.
When I was 17, I saw a 15 minute film that changed my life. It was an interview with Maritime poet Alden Nowlen, which I think was shot not too long before his death. He said things in this film that completely effected my views of life. He spoke of death (I think we touched upon this a little bit in class last Tuesday). It is easy to misconstrue such ramblings as depressing or morose, but I don't think that's the case. I am paraphrasing, but he said something along the lines of "I think it is very important that everyone thinks about death for at least 10 minutes every day. I don't mean to sound morbid, but I think if we all really sat down and thought about the fragility of life, how short our time on this Earth is, I think that would have a profoundly positive impact on us all and make us really appreciate out lives so much more". No truer words have I ever heard.
Anyway, to make a long story short, and getting back to "Rasselas", one thing I took from this text is something that I always believed in anyway: I strongly think happiness is entirely a choice. Life really is what you make it. To my friend, he feels that life is full of dead ends and desparation, but I choose not to see it that way. I have too much I want to do. :)
I think Johnson is dealing with very visceral, primal human qualities. I think he realized that humans have a basic tendency to always be longing for something more. We achieve so much and yet we still want so much. I can definitely apply this logic to myself. And I could certainly say that it applies to many people I know, if not most.
We could get into a very lenghty, heated debate about whether or not all there is to life is a relentless pursuit of dreams that will never be achieved. Personally, I choose not to believe that. I don't view dreams as silly or whimsical, in fact I would say that we all have a basic desire to pursue a dream, or to at least reach some other plateau. But that is strictly my own personal belief.
I have a friend who tends to be rather morose and doomy. I've gotten to a point where I am quite used to it. Our personalities are so wildly different in that respect that sometimes I honestly wonder how we are still friends. But I don't try to understand such things. Sometimes there really is no explanation. All I know is, despite our wildly varying personalities, we still "click", for want of a better term. I see dreaming as critical, whereas I feel that my friend tends to view it as futile and a waste of time. So be it. That's his belief. I have my own.
I have always been of the belief that having the dream is ultimately more important than achieving the dream. I think goals, or anything that teases us and won't let go can be very frightening things, yet to ignore them is even more frightening. One of my favorite lines I've ever heard in a song is in the track "Lemon" by U2. The line goes "Man dreams of leaving so he always stays behind". I think there is a profound truth to that.
When I was 17, I saw a 15 minute film that changed my life. It was an interview with Maritime poet Alden Nowlen, which I think was shot not too long before his death. He said things in this film that completely effected my views of life. He spoke of death (I think we touched upon this a little bit in class last Tuesday). It is easy to misconstrue such ramblings as depressing or morose, but I don't think that's the case. I am paraphrasing, but he said something along the lines of "I think it is very important that everyone thinks about death for at least 10 minutes every day. I don't mean to sound morbid, but I think if we all really sat down and thought about the fragility of life, how short our time on this Earth is, I think that would have a profoundly positive impact on us all and make us really appreciate out lives so much more". No truer words have I ever heard.
Anyway, to make a long story short, and getting back to "Rasselas", one thing I took from this text is something that I always believed in anyway: I strongly think happiness is entirely a choice. Life really is what you make it. To my friend, he feels that life is full of dead ends and desparation, but I choose not to see it that way. I have too much I want to do. :)
posted by Gary F at 7:35 PM
2 Comments:
Gary I agree with you. There is too much in this world to be grateful for and we shouldn't be so negative. People who are seeking happiness do not have to look too far; they only have to glance into a mirror and they will see what can make them truly happy. Happiness is a state of mind and it can be found anywhere.
Glad to hear your friend has not been able to lure you over to the dark side. He is lucky to have a friend like you to balance everything out for him.
I think that we, as humans, constantly long for something more because there is so much more. There is an infinant amount of happiness just floating all around us and if we know how to think, we will all achieve it. I agree with everything you have said Gary. I too believe that happiness is what you make it and am thankful for the people in my life who are pessimistic and those who have hurt me. I am not thankful that they have hurt me, but those who negatively impact your life play just as large a role as those who positively impact your life. I am thankful for these people because they have made me into the person I am today. I too think that having a dream is so much more important that achieving a dream, just the action of wanting is so fullfilling.
Anyhow, I kind of read Rassalas the same way you did. I think they ended the story with a lot more knowledge than they had when they began.
Great Post Gary!
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