A block
12/7/11
Oedipus and Antigone Test
1.) I strongly believe that fate is what decides our future for us, and although everyone has free will to make their own decisions, fate is what plans out the series of events in our lives. Although I believe that there is a set life for each person, the power of free will has the ability to change or alter these plans. The choices we make in life everyday continually change, and the decisions made by the people around us could most deffinatley take our fate in a whole new direction. Fate is nothing but every ones free will intertwining.
No matter what anyone says, fate truly does exist, you cannot live your life based on free will. This would mean every decision is made by you, and you are responsible for everything that happens in your future. This is not realistic because there are many things that will happen in your life that you cannot control no matter how hard you try. For instance whether you were born a boy or a girl is solely based on the power of fate. It is your parents free will to decide whether you are born into this world or not, but they have no control over what gender you are going to be, it is all in the control of fate. I believe that both fate and free will play a role in having the parents that I have. It was their decision on whether to meet and bring me into this world, but it was all in fates hands that I became their child.
It is hard to say whether our lives are shaped by our own decisions, or they were decided for us. Or perhaps our lives were decided by the people around us, sometimes we have no control until we are old enough to make our own decisions. There are many events in my life where I have made my own choices, and whether I regretted them or not it was still my free will to do so. There are also many times where fate has decided events in my life for me. For instance, none of us chose to get sick, or get hurt, we don’t want bad things to happen but they do. Its not our free will to make things like that occur, but that is fates way of happening. Although fate can also be a good thing, it is very unpredictable and you never know what life’s going to give you. I believe that some things happen for a reason, and that the choices you make also effect where you stand. If you asked me what I believe in more, fate or free will, I wont have a set in stone answer. I believe that I stand in the middle of fate and free will.
2.) A lie is a false statement with deliberate intent to decieve. It is something that can be so missunderstood, and it can also be very scary. No I dont think it's ever okay to lie, but I do, everyone does. If you told me that you've never lied in your life, then you would be lying to yourself. People get lied to on a daily bases, sometimes without even knowing it. It doesn't always have to be bad, many people lie to prevent hurt feelings. Some people even lie to themselves to avoid the truth because they dont want to face it. The truth can sometimes be hurtful, but in my opinion i'd rather know the truth then be lied to, because it's going to hurt even more in the end if you find out the truth. When were little our parents lie to us all the time. We get told that santas real, and that the easter bunny lays eggs, or that we're really going to become a princess when we're older. Those are all just lies, but we were to young and naive to understand it then. Now that we're older we know these things, but if you think about it, I didn't mind being lied to because it gave me a childhood, imagination, and the ability to believe in anything.
Sometimes you have to intentionally lie to someone because it's for their own good. Everyone has gotten lied to for some reason or another, and it will continue to happen our whole lives. I sometimes feel bad for little kids, because i feel like they get lied to the most. Most little girls love ponies, i'd be amazed to find one that didn't, but i have never seen one child so in love with something more than a little girl named Emily was with a pony named monkey. She rode monkey every week, and thats all she ever talked about. It was the cutest thing to watch the two together. Monkey was pretty old and often got sick and ended up passing away one day. My riding instructor could never tell Emily the truth, it would break her heart. So she told her that Monkey went to a pasture with a bunch of grass so that he could be happy for retirement. Although my trainer told a lie, it was in Emily's best interest for her not to know the truth, she was too young and all the truth would have done was make her upset. She wasn't mature and stable enough to understand.
I am old enough to know that i have gotten lied to many times, some instances where I have found out or caught someone in a lie, and some that i probably still do not know the truth. I was once told by a family member that they were going to stop abusing drugs. it turns out that they didnt, and I was lied to.I know it can be very hard, but I would have rather known the truth so that I could have helped, or been there for them. Not only me, but many people find it hard to trust because of lies. Trust is also one of those powerful things, and many peoples trust is destroyed by lies. I believe that the truth should always be told unless it is something that will not hurt us. Although I don't believe that the truth sets us free, I believe that it gives us some sort of closure. It helps us move on from what we don't want to remember. Fact or fiction, the truth or a lie, no matter how you put it, it's still the same meaning. It can determine happiness or sadness, trust, and most importantly your life.
3.) Sigmund Freud's Oedipus complex is the childhood desire to sleep with the mother, and to kill the father. As the son gets older he falls in love with his mother and has the desire to sleep with her. He evys the father and becomes jealous of their father so the son kills him. In Oedipus Rex, Oedipus kills his father, the king so that he can marry the queen, Jocasta.
I believe that in some circummstances Freuds theory could be true and hold some valid points, but I think some aspects of it are pretty ridiculous. now a days many children do not think in that manner, and most of it is just acts of innocence. I believe that boys do go through these stages, but they do not have a desire to want their mother for more than just that. Young children always want their mother because women are naturally more caring and nurturing then men, and they carry their child around for nine months. it's just what a child is used to, it does not mean they want to have sexual relations with their mom.
I do support the oedipus complex in the fact that as you get older and reach different ages, you do go through different stages of life. You can reach certain points where you have different feelings and your body is changing .Also that it is a sons job to take his fathers place to look after his mother, but not in that manner, and not by killing him off. I do not believe the father is ever hated in the father and son realtionship unless he is out of the picture, or has done something to have hatred upon himself. Many boys look up to their fathers for guidence, and they want to be just like them. in many circumstances a father and sons realtionship is stronger than that of a mother and son.
4.) Antigone was a strong willed and courageous women who risked death penelty to give her brother a proper burial. She risked her life to do what she wanted, and what she felt was the right thing. Antigone didn't let anyone get in her way and she did not care about the consequences. She wanted her brother to be buried in peace and comfort, and im sure she wanted to let him know how strong she was for him. Antigone believed that the burial rituals are the unwritten rules of the Gods, and must be obeyed, so she stuck to her belief and did what she had to. I think that she got the courage because she knew thats what the Gods wanted her to do.
There are so many rules and laws that half of the time you don't even know what you should or shouldn't be doing. Some rules I follow, some I bend, and then there are some that I break. I believe that it is always important to follow any rule/ law that has to do with safety or staying out of trouble. I will always follow laws such as drinking and driving, drugs, stealing, and acts of violence. Theres a few people that think its okay to break these laws, but all you're doing is hurting yourself, and sometimes others around you, which is unfair. You can end up killing yourself, innocent people, or end up in jail maybe even for the rest of your life. There are some rules that aren't as serious and are a bit bendable. For instance in school, many kids bend a lot of the rules. I know im guilty for making detours to the bathroom, doing homework in class, and probably a few other things, but i wont get in any serious trouble for it, and its not a hazard to anything. I believe its okay to sometimes bend the rules when it doesn't appear as a big deal. There are also some rules that many people do not follow at all, including me. I'll admit that i always use my cell phone in school when its appropriate, or that download music from lime wire. Many laws are very important and should be followed, while others are not so important as to where it effects anyone.
A law is a system of rules and guidelines enforced through social institutions. Some being fair, while others are not. There were many unfair laws in the times before I was born. we learn in history class about slavery, colored people not being allowed, and horrible events such as the holocaust that all happened because of unfair laws. Most have changed over time, but still some exist. The fair laws are what protect our community as a whole, and what keeps each person safe. Believe it or not the more you follow the rules you should, you will have successful life. It is important to stand up for what you believe, but also to know the difference between right and wrong.
