A Human Race

“Life here is so orderly, so predictable-so painless. It's what they've chosen” (Lowry 103). Imagine a world with no control over who you marry, what your job is, what you wear, or what you get to eat for every meal. This is what it’s like in The Giver by Lois Lowry. The people live in a community that is severely more controlled than ours. We have the freedom to have a pet, have as many kids as you want, and say what you want. The people in The Giver do not have those freedoms. The people in the community don’t even know what love is. In our world love is each individual’s choice, but not in The Giver. In other words, they don’t get to experience the precious parts of life, such has having a wedding and giving birth to your child. No society is perfect, but citizens of every community have an

Especially within a society such as ours, which distorts love into lust, the ability to recognize and display the gift of love is essential. Selfish love, which is so inherent to humanity, inhibits God from acting in our lives, blinding us from experiencing His presence and eternal joy. It is so easy to look for pleasure and love in self satisfaction. However, the path to lasting happiness is not found through instant gratifications, but in the grueling practice of living a life full of

For instance, giving money to the National Federation of the Blind because I have an eye condition or volunteering at an animal shelter because I love animals. While these acts are definitely commendable, I’ve learned that they aren’t what effective altruism is about. These acts would be considered “misguided grounds for giving” (86). Effective altruism is about doing the most good by helping the most people who need the most help. Singer raises an interesting point that I hadn’t thought of before; aiding poverty in third world countries will have more of an impact than aiding poverty in America because poverty in America is still relatively more affluent than poverty in third world countries. Which is challenging because as I’ve said before, part of human nature is to want to help the people and causes that you have a bond with. If you choose to be an effective altruist, you need to have perspective on what will do the most good. You must see the world objectively and intellectually. For example, “not to donate a kidney to someone in need is to value one’s own life at four thousand times that of a stranger” (87). However, my own sense of community still stands strong. I grew up in a small town on a small island where traits like empathy and passion were held above objectivity and intellect. Therefore, while this book raises logical points about how we should view the world,

Men and women throughout the ages have desired to love others the way the greatest commandment instructs us to. However, due to our sinful nature, overshadowed by the fear of death and our limited physical and emotional vulnerabilities, the love we should have for one another turns into controlling one another, so that we have power and are in control. Instead of giving, we want. Instead of serving, we demand our rights. And scriptures like Matthew 5:48, “Be perfect, as your Father in heaven in perfect” can be frustrating

In today’s society, family is often attempted to be organized within a social structure. Within this structure family typically is consisted of mom, dad, daughter, and son. However, many families do not fit into this configuration. These families may include same sex couples, separated or divorced families, extended families, or even blended families. Even though these families may be happy and healthy, to many they are not considered real families. Going along with the topic of imperfect families, both Barbara Kingsolver and Richard Rodriguez try to break down the traditional family structure through their writing. While Kingsolver’s “Stone Soup” and Rodriguez’s “Family Values” explore the ideas of different family structures and traditional American values, “Stone Soup” breaks down what an actual family is like while “Family Values” expresses the value of family in different cultures.

At a very young age I started my life in the United States, I do remember being the only child living in a very rough neighborhood. At that time, I remember my parents working hard to give me a better tomorrow. Being born into a Hispanic family, we tend not to show our love for each other. I really never understood the reason on why we don’t show our love for each other. The only reason I seemed to come up with might be because that’s probably how both my parents were raised. Throughout the passage I will discuss how love was influenced into me and how I managed to understand and love someone.

bell hooks in “Love as the Practice of Freedom” explains thoroughly as to how love is the form to be liberated. Without any love society is blind and continues to practice systems of domination without being aware. However the community should look out for one another not just when a problem impacts an individual. Everyone must be aware of the systems of domination- imperialism,sexism,racism, and classism to create change. When radical love is comprehended it allows the destruction of oppression,exploitation and there is liberation

Love has gone from something beautiful and desirable to becoming a weapon utilized against people instead of for. Love is something God has designed to be freely given, with nothing in return and yet today, love comes at a price. You might “love” someone, but to do so involves a risk and sometimes the cost is more than you can bear, therefore the word “love” continues to be manipulated and distorted and abused.

“Love begins at home and it is not how much we do… but how much love we put into that action.” This quote from Mother Teresa is telling us we need to show love towards our families. Sometimes our lives can be so busy and confusing. It can be unclear what comes first, but Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick shows a clear path. One of the big ideas is that nothing lasts forever, so some things need to be a priority.

If society was a person in itself, it would be a criminal. It has deceived human beings into believing that love is supposed to be something that is always beautiful, euphoric and extremely powerful. It pressures individuals into commitment, passion and desire while simultaneously reminding them that an excess of one thing is not good. Society need to make up its mind. As the world knows, love is not simply defined as a group of words; rather, it is many things that are rooted to deep affection. Love presents itself in different shapes, forms and sizes, but what happens to this endearment when it is one-sided? The sole attribute that every individual seek has the potential to destroy most. Unrequited love poisons the character

“‘Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all” (Miriam-Webster 253). This quote has been used for centuries as both persuasion in favor of loving and also as comfort in times of heartbreak and loss. However, is this statement completely true, or does it offer false hope to anguishing lovers? In fact, are the rules and costs of loving and being loved so great that in fact it is actually better to never have loved at all? When pondering these questions, one must first consider the rules of loving and being loved to determine the physical, emotional, and psychological costs they entail. In order to do so, one could use Andreas Capellanus’ The Art of Courtly Love as a guideline for the rules of love.

The ability to love is possibly one of the most recurring aspects of humanity. Everyday people fall in and out of love with each other 's personalities, opinions and lifestyle choices. In his novel 1984, George Orwell depicts a dystopian, loveless society. The technology, newspeak, and doublethink force conformity on Oceania, the setting of the book. The lack of diversity in people creates a world, where there isn’t any reason to love anyone else. Family relationships that were formerly built with love, support, and loyalty are ripped away and replaced with distrust, anxiety and hostility. Sexual relationships no longer have love or pleasure, which makes them mean virtually nothing, except the hope of

In troubled times, it is simple for one to abandon all the aspects that make them human: compassion, self worth, and humor. If the goal is to make life temporarily more withstandable, then it can be easy to cast away all of one’s ideals. Yet, when love is present it helps push us on the path consistent with our values. Such love is present in the relationship between the

Trying to find a selfless form of love may prove impossible. One does not have to try to find meaning in ife but to just live

The love story is one of the oldest and most cherished traditions in any world culture. The prevalence of romantic works throughout history, whether Greek myths, Jane Austen’s dramatic narratives, or today’s dime-a-dozen romantic novels, ultimately encourages us to believe in the power of true love. We identify with the archetypal star-crossed lovers, who combat established convention in order to assert their romance, because we too yearn for our own “happily-ever-afters.” When used in conjunction with reason, love is the highest form of compassion – without it, we could not possibly interact productively with one another or develop as individuals. But when we take a new perspective and examine love as an independent,