"Let this stand as a direction from the experience of the most miserable of all conditions in this world, that we may always find in it something to comfort ourselves from, and to set in the description of good and evil, on the credit side of the account."
"Therefore it rested upon me with the greater force, that it must needs be that God had appointed all this to befall me; that I was brought to this miserable circumstance by His direction, He having the sole power, not of me only but of everything that happened in the world. Immediately it followed. Why has God done this to me? What have I done to be thus used? My conscience presently checked me in that inquiry, as if I had blasphemed. Methought it spoke to me like a voice: 'Wretch! Dost thou ask what thou hast done? Look back upon a dreadful misspent life, and ask thyself what thou hast not done. Ask why it is that thou wert not long ago destroyed.'"
--Robinson Crusoe, from the classic book Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe.
Showing posts with label literature. Show all posts
Showing posts with label literature. Show all posts
Monday, April 11, 2011
Saturday, April 9, 2011
John Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress": Christian and Hopeful's Views v. Ignorance's Views (Concerning Faith and Salvation)
In the book Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, the protagonist, a pilgrim named Christian and his traveling companion, Hopeful, meet a man named Ignorance, who has come from the country of Conceit. All three characters are on their way to the Celestial City, although they all hold varying beliefs as to how their passage there should be obtained. For Christian and Hopeful, they have placed their faith and trust in the Lord for their salvation; whereas, Ignorance is depending upon his own good works to save him. “I know my Lord’s will, and have been a good liver; I pay every man his own; I pray, fast, pay tithes, and give alms, and have left my country for whither I am going,” explains the self-righteous, deluded Ignorance to the other two.
Christian tries to persuade Ignorance that since Ignorance did not come in at the wicket gate, but instead came in “through that same crooked lane,” that he should strongly consider to where he truly is headed, though Ignorance chooses to live up to his name, and refuses Christian and Hopeful, saying, “Gentlemen, ye be utter strangers to me: I know you not: be content to follow the religion of your country, and I will follow the religion of mine.”
The two decide to part company with Ignorance, as they realize that Ignorance will not then take their counsel. Proverbs 26:12 gives the perfect definition of Ignorance when it says, “Do you see a person wise in their own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for them.” Later in the book, Ignorance still blinded by the fallacies that he has believed regarding faith and salvation, dies a lost man and is taken to Hell. Christian and Hopeful, still trusting in Jesus alone for their salvation, arrive at the Celestial City, and are taken inside, where they will live forevermore with the One who gave His life for them so that they may live.
Christian tries to persuade Ignorance that since Ignorance did not come in at the wicket gate, but instead came in “through that same crooked lane,” that he should strongly consider to where he truly is headed, though Ignorance chooses to live up to his name, and refuses Christian and Hopeful, saying, “Gentlemen, ye be utter strangers to me: I know you not: be content to follow the religion of your country, and I will follow the religion of mine.”
The two decide to part company with Ignorance, as they realize that Ignorance will not then take their counsel. Proverbs 26:12 gives the perfect definition of Ignorance when it says, “Do you see a person wise in their own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for them.” Later in the book, Ignorance still blinded by the fallacies that he has believed regarding faith and salvation, dies a lost man and is taken to Hell. Christian and Hopeful, still trusting in Jesus alone for their salvation, arrive at the Celestial City, and are taken inside, where they will live forevermore with the One who gave His life for them so that they may live.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
"The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" Essay: "Learning from Others' Mistakes"
First of all, yes. I really am posting this. All 918 glorious words of it!
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge is a story about an Ancient Mariner who attends a wedding and decides to relate to a guest there his experience of going out to sea, and killing an albatross and the consequences of his doing so. At first the guest obliges the man by listening to his story, but quickly becomes apprehensive of the mysterious Ancient Mariner, when the seaman related to him how he had escaped death, whilst the rest of his crew was killed. But after the Ancient Mariner finishes recalling his experience to the wedding guest, the wedding guest leaves a sadder and wiser man. The wedding guest reacted in this way, because he realized the sacredness of all life, the consequence of the Mariner’s actions, and the presence of God in this matter.
The Mariner began his story with explaining his ship’s voyage out to sea, and how they became caught in a storm that caused them to be taken in the direction of the South Pole. It was a frightening time, and their location at sea was lonely and desolate, with nothing but the snow fog and ice to look at. Amidst all of this, there came an Albatross that befriended the crew. They fed it, believing this creature to be a good omen. However, without any reason at all, the Mariner killed the innocent bird. This heartless action would soon be the catalyst for many serious consequences. Surely the guest realized that this was an obscene act that his present companion had committed, and thought it inexcusable to kill a blameless animal who was not threatening, by any means.
The wedding guest realized that every sin, no matter how seemingly small it may seem, will have a consequence to it. In this example, the Mariner’s fellow shipmates were angry with him, but soon excused it, not knowing that their indifference would cost them their very lives. One may pose the question: why did they not do something earlier, such as stopping the Mariner from doing such a cruel thing? Or, why did they not somehow take away certain privileges of this man who thought it not wrong to commit such an atrocity? However, they reacted the way that they did. The men later became cursed and soon fell dead on the ship’s deck. The Ancient Mariner would still be punished, though in a different way.
The wedding guest must have been wondering why the Mariner had not been killed, but instead, had lived to recount his tale. He was most likely wondering why God would allow the Mariner to live, whilst his crew had perished. Perhaps it was because the Mariner, although he still lived, struggled continually with the guilt of the blood that was on his hands. His act that he committed of killing the albatross, as well as the part that he had played in his former shipmates’ deaths, and the remorse that had come from survivor’s guilt alone would be more appropriate for him than death. One may also wonder if God did not use the Ancient Mariner’s story in a way that would impact people who would have done the same thing that the Ancient Mariner had done, but upon hearing the story, changed their mind. Much like the character of the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic work, The Scarlet Letter, the Ancient Mariner lived with the constant reminder of his sin, as well as the devastating impact that it had caused. However, earlier something had happened that had caused the curse to begin to dissipate, though not completely disappear altogether. When the Ancient Mariner was still on board the ship, accompanied by the corpses of his late crew, he decided to exchange his attitude of contempt that he had had towards the slimy creatures that lived in the sea, and instead decided to appreciate them for what they were. The Ancient Mariner recounted, “Oh happy living things! No tongue their beauty might declare. A spring of love gushed from my heart, And I blessed them unaware; Sure my kind saint took pity on me, And I blessed them unaware.” While this was surely some sort of reassurance for the Ancient Mariner, and perhaps a sign of the possible redemption to come, the he never fully lived in a state where he felt that the full depth of his guilt could ever be completely cleansed.
After his talk with the Ancient Mariner, the wedding guest “went like one that hath been stunned, And is of sense forlorn; A sadder and a wiser man, He rose the morrow morn.” Perhaps the wedding guest had been personally struggling with knowing what was right and wrong in his own life, and the Ancient Mariner’s story spoke to him in a way that would impact some of his own future decisions. He now grasped, perhaps more than ever before, the fact that life is sacred and should be protected, and saw, that, in light of the Mariner’s actions, how God continued to be present. In the conclusion of the story, the Ancient Mariner calls the wedding guest to action in this: “Farewell, farewell; but this I tell to thee, thou Wedding Guest! He prayeth well, who loveth well, both man and bird and beast.” The reader of this story can hope that the wedding guest heeded the Ancient Mariner’s advice, avoided destruction, and recounted the Ancient Mariner’s tale to others who needed to hear it, much like he did.
If you made it through all of this, I commend you, and hope that you obtained something useful from it! :)
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge is a story about an Ancient Mariner who attends a wedding and decides to relate to a guest there his experience of going out to sea, and killing an albatross and the consequences of his doing so. At first the guest obliges the man by listening to his story, but quickly becomes apprehensive of the mysterious Ancient Mariner, when the seaman related to him how he had escaped death, whilst the rest of his crew was killed. But after the Ancient Mariner finishes recalling his experience to the wedding guest, the wedding guest leaves a sadder and wiser man. The wedding guest reacted in this way, because he realized the sacredness of all life, the consequence of the Mariner’s actions, and the presence of God in this matter.
The Mariner began his story with explaining his ship’s voyage out to sea, and how they became caught in a storm that caused them to be taken in the direction of the South Pole. It was a frightening time, and their location at sea was lonely and desolate, with nothing but the snow fog and ice to look at. Amidst all of this, there came an Albatross that befriended the crew. They fed it, believing this creature to be a good omen. However, without any reason at all, the Mariner killed the innocent bird. This heartless action would soon be the catalyst for many serious consequences. Surely the guest realized that this was an obscene act that his present companion had committed, and thought it inexcusable to kill a blameless animal who was not threatening, by any means.
The wedding guest realized that every sin, no matter how seemingly small it may seem, will have a consequence to it. In this example, the Mariner’s fellow shipmates were angry with him, but soon excused it, not knowing that their indifference would cost them their very lives. One may pose the question: why did they not do something earlier, such as stopping the Mariner from doing such a cruel thing? Or, why did they not somehow take away certain privileges of this man who thought it not wrong to commit such an atrocity? However, they reacted the way that they did. The men later became cursed and soon fell dead on the ship’s deck. The Ancient Mariner would still be punished, though in a different way.
The wedding guest must have been wondering why the Mariner had not been killed, but instead, had lived to recount his tale. He was most likely wondering why God would allow the Mariner to live, whilst his crew had perished. Perhaps it was because the Mariner, although he still lived, struggled continually with the guilt of the blood that was on his hands. His act that he committed of killing the albatross, as well as the part that he had played in his former shipmates’ deaths, and the remorse that had come from survivor’s guilt alone would be more appropriate for him than death. One may also wonder if God did not use the Ancient Mariner’s story in a way that would impact people who would have done the same thing that the Ancient Mariner had done, but upon hearing the story, changed their mind. Much like the character of the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic work, The Scarlet Letter, the Ancient Mariner lived with the constant reminder of his sin, as well as the devastating impact that it had caused. However, earlier something had happened that had caused the curse to begin to dissipate, though not completely disappear altogether. When the Ancient Mariner was still on board the ship, accompanied by the corpses of his late crew, he decided to exchange his attitude of contempt that he had had towards the slimy creatures that lived in the sea, and instead decided to appreciate them for what they were. The Ancient Mariner recounted, “Oh happy living things! No tongue their beauty might declare. A spring of love gushed from my heart, And I blessed them unaware; Sure my kind saint took pity on me, And I blessed them unaware.” While this was surely some sort of reassurance for the Ancient Mariner, and perhaps a sign of the possible redemption to come, the he never fully lived in a state where he felt that the full depth of his guilt could ever be completely cleansed.
After his talk with the Ancient Mariner, the wedding guest “went like one that hath been stunned, And is of sense forlorn; A sadder and a wiser man, He rose the morrow morn.” Perhaps the wedding guest had been personally struggling with knowing what was right and wrong in his own life, and the Ancient Mariner’s story spoke to him in a way that would impact some of his own future decisions. He now grasped, perhaps more than ever before, the fact that life is sacred and should be protected, and saw, that, in light of the Mariner’s actions, how God continued to be present. In the conclusion of the story, the Ancient Mariner calls the wedding guest to action in this: “Farewell, farewell; but this I tell to thee, thou Wedding Guest! He prayeth well, who loveth well, both man and bird and beast.” The reader of this story can hope that the wedding guest heeded the Ancient Mariner’s advice, avoided destruction, and recounted the Ancient Mariner’s tale to others who needed to hear it, much like he did.
If you made it through all of this, I commend you, and hope that you obtained something useful from it! :)
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