Analysis Of Percy's 'The Loss Of The Creature'

Percy tells the story of a famous explorer, Garcia Lopez de Cardenas, who was astonished by his discovery of what is now known as the Grand Canyon. Percy briefly describes The Grand Canyon, and then he asks a question that might confuse readers at first. Percy asks, “Does not one see the same sight from the Bright Angel Lodge that Cárdenas saw” (Percy 1)? The anticipated answer that most readers would say is yes, but as one reads on, Percy argues otherwise. In following up on his question, he attempts to make his point clear by assigning the label “P” to Cardenas’ Grand Canyon experience. (Percy 1) He argues that when sharing the value of “P” with millions of sightseers, each person doesn’t receive the same experience of Cardenas, result in one-millionth of its worth. By using values to demonstrate worth, Percy says that experiences can be added to and taken from them. Next, Percy

In “the Loss of the Creature,” Walker Percy explains his ideas of education through examples. His examples included a family’s vacation to the Grand Canyon and a biology student and English major experiencing new things within the

Monster by Sanyika Shakur yields a firsthand insight on gang warfare, prison, and redemption. “There are no gang experts except participants (xiii)” says Kody Scott aka. Monster. Monster vicariously explains the roots of the epidemic of South Central Los Angeles between the Crips and the Bloods that the world eventually witnessed on April 29, 1992. As readers we learn to not necessarily give gangs grace but do achieve a better understanding of their disposition to their distinct perception in life.

In Percy’s chapter “Designing Suspense” he lays out three rules, not rules, that any writer should understand in the literary world. The first rule is Worst-Case Scenarios. This rule states that a writer should be able to know their end story before they begin. If a writer starts with a higher order goal they should be able to trace out different outcomes based on the worst-case scenario. The second rule is The Dance of the Flaming Chain Saws. This rule states every problem a character might have is a flaming chain saw and as the story progresses the chain saws spin faster until they are solved. The ability to keep up with them in a story will hint at a writer’s success. The third rule is Mapmaking. This rule states a writer should plan their

“The Loss of the Creature” is an anecdotal essay by the American Southern philosopher Walker Percy. Percy has a different view of life and expresses his views distinctively through his writing. Throughout the essay, he emphasized on the effects of having prepackaged or preconceived notions about the world and people around can determine how an individual sees the world. These notions, which can come from social or societal expectations, can lead to symbolic complexes in an individual’s mind, leading to the false appreciation and gratification. An overarching theme throughout the essay is that one’s pre-formed expectations and can lead to the loss of the essence behind it. In order to demonstrate his point; Percy uses hypothetical characters in theoretical situations to prove how people can truly experience something if they get rid of all social biases and prejudices, and neglecting what they heard about it.

Based on Percy's “loss of the creature”, one experience I have has that was not “authentic” would when I went to Yellowstone for a few weeks in the summer. It would be deemed as authentic because [there are trails, signs, and advertisements present in the park. This case flows the same trend as Percy states in the piece, when he speaks of how the Grand Canyon is not an authentic experience for visitors today. It is possible for someone to have an authentic experience of Yellowstone. It is quite easy to go backpacking through the wilderness, where there are few trails and no park rangers. In this way someone can experience what the area was before it became a national park; where there are natural herds of deer and elk, packs of wolfs, thousands

Along in with the author’s use of metaphors is the frequent use of imagery. In this reading, it is simple to envision the scenes as the different scenarios are explained and the audience can easily picture Staples in the places he is describing and also the people he comes across. Perhaps the most powerful and memorable imagery is provided in the author’s description of people’s different reactions and faces when they come into contact with him. Actions speak volumes and an immediate change of facial expression is possibly one of the

In his article “The Loss of The Creature,” Walker Percy presents the case that human or “creature’s” experiences are most often trivial because of our preconceived notions. Percy believes we can only truly enjoy these experiences if we leave the “beaten track.” Only then can we see the true beauty of the experience.

During this essay written by Walker Percy, it is clear that his overall opinion of experiencing new things is in the eye of the beholder and/or the hands of those around them and their social status. Percy uses many examples in his writing including that of an explorer, tourist, and local all seeing things for the first time either literally or in a new different light. In this essay, I will play on both sides of regaining experiences, seeing things on a different level then before or the first time. Regaining experiences is a valid argument brought up by Percy as it is achievable. While criticizing each side of the argument, I will also answer questions as to the validity of Percy's argument,

Most people would think that contraries only exist to dominate each other, making the other side appear less significant. However, the opposite of this is true. The beauty of a rose stands out more because of the thorns that it contains. Without the thorns, it would just be an average flower. A day wouldn’t be as bright if it wasn’t compared to the darkness of night. And “joy wouldn’t be so joyful, if it wasn’t for pain” (50 cent). Contrasts highlight movements in an element, by pointing out the differences that are shown by the opposite side. They in fact, bring out the good and bad features in anything. William Blake is known for his famous quote, “Without contraries there is no progression.” He continues to show contraries in many of his works, including “Marriage of Heaven and Hell”, and his poem written in 1794, “The Sick Rose,” Blake introduces the idea of contraries that are layered in the simplicity of these lines. At first, to the reader, it may only seem that he is writing about a simple dying rose, however there is more to it. He is also mentioning how this is benefiting the worm that decides to reside in it. The best interpretation that comes to mind, is the loss of virginity. The rose symbolizes a virgin, pure and untampered (a vagina). The “invisible worm” symbolizes the possibility of penetration (penis). This can be a feminist take on the idea of beauty and destruction.

But soon her drew me deep into his story of his adventure living in his cabin at Walden Pond. His book has the rhythm and flow of the changing seasons. And out of that pattern came his central symbol-rebirth and renewal, not only of the world around us, but of our own inner development.

Fictionally, the greatest-written villains in history possess attributes that give them cause for their behavior, with the most universal and essential of these core traits being a deep, personal backstory behind their acts. For instance, in classic stories like Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the Monster presents thorough reason to its Creator in terms of why it has turned to wickedness. The Monster does not kill purely for the sake of being evil, its actions are resulted from its desire to be loved by man, yet failing at every attempt to achieve it. Motivation behind monstrous acts is necessary in works of fiction because non-fictionally, people labeled as monsters by society possesses motivation behind their actions as well, whether it be

Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote this poem "Ozymandias" to express to us that possessions do not mean immortality. He used very strong imagery and irony to get his point across throughout the poem. In drawing these vivid and ironic pictures in our minds, Shelley was trying to explain that no one lives forever, and nor do their possessions. Shelley expresses this poem’s moral through a vivid and ironic picture. A shattered stone statue with only the legs and head remaining, standing in the desert, the face is proud and arrogant, "Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read"(lines, 4-6).

The main difference between the chapter from Being Wrong and “The Loss of the Creature” is that the latter has more of an emphasis on how we are to go about experiencing the world. The former is an analysis of both what constitutes valid evidence and how the human cognition compares to artificial intelligence. One idea that both authors touch upon, however is that of how we should allow the opinions of others to influence us. When discussing Percy in my essay, I wrote the following: “Some beauty is taken away from the discovery when it can either live up to, or fall short of the standard. It has been reduced to nothing more than a specimen. That’s why it is better to approach a new endeavor with little to no prior knowledge about it. That way, you can fully see the object in question with no symbolic complex attached to it....Obviously, [seeing things through a symbolic complex] impedes how you see the world, for when something has a symbolic complex attached to it, it becomes difficult to truly appreciate it; it causes you to view something as a specimen instead of questioning or exploring it. Therefore, when the symbolic complex is removed from the situation, and no one is there to tell you how to enjoy the thing or how you are to go about exploring it, you can truly understand it.” (Geiger, 2017)

My personal ability to maintain “a well-being” while engaged in coaching is to continue to remind myself why I am doing this job and why it is important. Like the passion and the love, I have for the sports and the goals that I set for my athletes that I will be coaching in the future. I will also do a monthly check in with myself and what I can do to better my coaching technique and skills. I will also do a survey with my athletes this will help me to see on areas I need to work on and improve.