Ideology In Tuesdays With Morrie

In Tuesdays with Morrie, Morrie firmly believes that people do not need to be so materialistic. For instance “You don’t need the latest sports car, you don't need the biggest house.”(Albom 126) In life, everyone thinks they need to show off what they have and gloat about how cool they are that they are because they have it. Morrie on the other hand,didn’t think this way. He didn’t need anything extravagant. Morrie said “Money is not a substitute for tenderness, and power is not a substitute

In today’s day and age money has become a god to our culture. The society in which we live in today has become a slave to things, vanity, and social standings. Living in this culture brings about emptiness inside people, causing them to just want more and more. In Tuesdays with Morrie, by Mitch Album, it is apparent that conforming to a money hungry society will only harm us by giving us a false sense of happiness and a never ending want for materialistic items; instead, we should focus on those we love and cherish. Money can’t bring you the happiness and fulfillment that the companionship that true friends and love can bring.

The human characteristics of greed and materialism are a disguise that provide an ephemeral distraction, which over time, creates dissatisfaction. If asked what a person’s overarching life’s objective is, most would answer to be happy and loved. Yet, the misconception that happiness and money are interchangeable is still widely felt.

It is easier now than ever to become lost in the cycle of life. Every day, we face a plethora of distractions: cell-phones, social media, jobs we hate, and time spent doing things that we do not want to. We spend so much time reminiscing about the “good ol’” days or dreading the future that we forget to live in the now. With all the noise that surrounds us—not to mention the looming threat of ill health and, eventually, death—how do we free ourselves from the chains of suffering and live in the moment? The Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, went in search of an answer to this question, and his answer is still relevant for modern society; we can avoid suffering if we follow the Middle Way.

Rogers, the yogis, and the Dalai Lama cannot seem that they disregard their own teachings; hypocrisy does not often convince. So another commonality is that they are practitioners of the simplicity that they see as religiously or culturally correct. Mr. Rogers showed the world the value of the simple pleasures in life. He had a nice house, and nice things, but he never flaunted a desire for wealth or fame. This simplicity is a bedrock ideal of Christianity; poverty and humility are tantamount to divinity throughout the New Testament. The yogis are closer to biblical simplicity than Mr. Rogers is though; they practice it as a way of connecting to the divine; they stay on the move to be unconnected to any one place, and they give up rich foods, and even their health, in an attempt to keep the complicated from getting in the way of holy simplicity. Standing apart from the others, the Dalai Lama does not live simply. But the Buddha did. And the Kundun makes a point of showing the Dalai Lama’s humble origins and the simple pleasures of the garden at his summer palace. All three films show people who do not crave wealth. All three religions see the complications of wealth and material goods as counter to reaching the

1). Robert Kennedy warned against the pursuit of more in a 1968 campaign speech, stating, “we will find neither national purpose or personal satisfaction in the mere continuation of economic progress, in endless amassing of worldly goods…The gross national product includes the destruction of the redwoods and the death of Lake Superior” (as cited in De Graaf, Wann, & Naylor, 2014, p. 128). The gross national product is a flawed way of measuring the success of the economy because it does not consider the harms and benefits of production; it measures growth for growth’s sake. In the same vein, the success of my personal life could not be measured by quantity alone. Endlessly seeking more stuff would actively impede me in many ways. It could put me in debt and hold me back from doing the things I truly want to do. It would also be detrimental to society. Overconsumption is not just an ill-advise way to seek fulfillment, it actively hurts others and the world we share. The authors of Affluenza advocate mindfulness in consumption, recommending we pay “full attention to the real benefits and costs of our purchases, remembering the best things in life aren’t things” (Graaf, Wann, & Naylor, 2014, p. 10). They a simpler life, devoid of too many unnecessary material products, has more benefits and less restraints than an elaborate and lavish lifestyle. Material

Morrie had people to look after him and people that cared about him very much. Morrie took into consideration that he could not get better. So he used his time to his advantage and helped others with their problems.

Buddhism aims at the demolition of the self, the creation of subtle mindfulness, bliss, great compassion and gentleness. To cultivate these passions and desires must subside allowing for reflection and a caring attitude to all life (Morrell, 2005). The Buddha’s response to suffering was a practical way of coping with the facts more than a theoretical attempt at explaining or justifying the presence of suffering in the world (Wright & Haines, 1991). The Buddhist religion strives for attaining selflessness by practicing extraordinary compassion and by putting the suffering of others before one’s own to develop the love and wisdom of Buddha. Real change and improvements are only possible when great effort is made at the rights tasks, efforts guided by the paths of Buddhism. He teaches his adherents to overcome suffering by following the four noble truth with the first truth entailing that suffering is a part of all live and that as Buddhist’s it is inevitable that they will experience disappointment, illness, death and conflict (Bratcher, n.d). The second noble truth explores the formation of suffering being a result of misconceived desire and ignorance leading us to feelings of greed and hatred. (Ryan & Goldburg, 2001). In life it is normal to not want people for whom you love to stay the same or to never die or be sick, however, the Buddha taught that we need to accept the presence of impermanence (Bratcher, n.d). People who desire many things in life may want more of it and will become greedy and because of this greedy people will lie, cheat and steal (Gladding, 2016). To overcome this, adherents are encouraged to follow the third noble truth, that freedom for suffering is capable. The Buddha taught his adherents about suffering’s existence not to deny any beauty or joy in life but rather to show them how to be happy in the moment that is and what comes after it (Bratcher, n.d). Adrienne Howley the author of The

Even though Morrie is dying from ALS, he will not give up on teaching. Mitch graduated from Brandeis university and promised Morrie he would keep in touch with him. Although Mitch didn't keep in touch with Morrie, once he found out he was dying, he traveled to West Newton, Massachusetts to visit him. Mitch continues to visit Morrie every Tuesday to listen to Morrie’s lesson on “The Meaning of Life”. Every week Mitch goes to see Morrie, his condition is worse than the previous week.

The obvious choice for Lao Tzu would be living in the decrepit room as he believes wealth and opulence lead to suffering and a disconnection with oneself and the supreme Dao. Lao Tzu explains, “the Sage is not acquisitive- has enough by doing for others, has even more by giving to others” (Addiss, Lombardo, 81). He believes that one should exist in a state of non-action, focusing inward and not on the mindless activities of the outside world. Lao Tzu advocates living like a baby, commenting, “I alone am passive, giving no sign, like an infant who has not yet smiled. Forlorn as if I had no home” (Addiss, Lombardo, 20). Acting like a baby leaves one with only basic needs that must be fulfilled, leaving more time for contemplation instead of continually striving to amass more goods, as most people do. The desolate dorm room mimics the mountain caves the Sages of the past lived in, the bareness giving time for reflection and connection instead of contention with others over goods. Lao Tzu claims this minimalistic lifestyle makes one happier, stating, “others have enough and more, I alone am left out” and that disengaging oneself in the race for more opulence leads to happiness as one is never bestowed the title of winner or loser, instead being transcendent over this whole

In this week’s readings, it was stated that Siddhartha, or better known as wish-fulfiller, had lived in a lap of luxury. The gods arranged for Siddhartha to be shown four sights. These sights consisted of a bent old man, a sick person, a dead person, and a monk seeking eternal pleasure. To Siddhartha this happening to him seemed to be what we would call a “wake up call”, because of this “wake up call” Siddhartha began to question his existence of wealth and luxury while so many others seemed to be suffering. At first I was somewhat confused when I thought about Buddha leaving his wife and his son behind to search for knowledge, but after reading about this I have learned that there are many cultures out there that do encourage this kind of

Through time many wealthy and influential individuals have had the idea that by having an immense amount of money is the way of being happy but this is not true. The author emphasizes “When people lack jobs, opportunity, and ownership of property they have little or no stake in their communities” (Jack Kemp). This quote tries to explain the fact the those who are materialistic suffer when all their riches and power are taken away do not stand a chance in a normal community. Mainly because they have only learned to love objects and never really love anything else because of the lack of people in their lives. Which leaves the question how can we avoid becoming so selfish and cold hearted when in today's society that is all there is? By treasuring what we have now as if it were to be taken away from us

Tuesdays with Morrie, is a story of relationship between a professor and a student. They have Tuesday discussion about life and the lessons that can be learned. Since Morrie has become ill, Mitch has returned to better understand his generation. And the problems that he faces each day. Each Tuesday they discuss different topics that have their own life lessons attached to them. These attachments can be related to the chapters of the textbook. They talk about relationships with others and how to manage certain situations in the best ways. Through this paper, I will be making connections between Tuesdays with Morrie and the REVEL textbook.

Buddhism is trying to explain how there is no correlation between one 's happiness and the excessive consumption or purse of wealth. Also it will be a mistake for one to have a misconception that Buddhism does

By implementing Buddhist perspectives on this issue, individuals may detach themselves and their respective mindsets from materialism and consumerism and, ultimately, from the religion of the market economy. It’s important to understand that through these attachmentments lies suffering. This concept is best illustrated in the Four Noble Truths of Buddhism. The first noble truth is that everything is suffering, the second is that the origin of suffering is desire, the third is that there exists an end to suffering, and the fourth is that there is a path that leads to that end to suffering. Fortunately for the crisis we now face, within Buddhism there is also a way to end suffering, represented by the third and fourth truths. Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh’s perspectives can help provide a traditional understanding of Buddhist teachings and practices in solving a modern day predicament. Nhat Hanh argued that, “We classify other animals and living beings as nature, acting as if we ourselves are not part of it. Then we