Me Before You, By Jojo Moyes

Mae West, an American actress and screenwriter, once said that “you only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough”. However, people have different philosophies of what the “right” way to live life is. Priorities and routines differ for most people and some believe that because the way that they live works for them, they should encourage other to live in a similar way, like Thomas Jefferson, Machiavelli, and Pema Chodron. While Jefferson and Machiavelli exhibit strong arguments through their use of argumentative strategies, Chodron’s document “Start Where You Are” is the most effective of the three in terms of evidence-usage, connecting to the audience, and overall

“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.” I try to live by this quote by Charles R. Swindoll every day. I feel that this is a strong quote with a lot of meaning behind it and, it can be interpreted in many ways. In my opinion, we should see things in a positive way all the time. We also should do what we love every day because you never know how close you are to the end.

Throughout generations in literature, “to live deliberately” has been the goal and purpose of life. As Alexander Supertramp (aka Chris McCandless) said, “The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun” (57).

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” -Albert Einstein. Life should be viewed as a positive because everyone is only given one lifetime to do what they would like to. Although few people interpret life as a positive aspect such as Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple, there is also other ways people see the value of life. Including Hamlet from William Shakespeare’s book Hamlet, he views life as a complication, and Amanda Ripley, who views life in a financial point of view. When faced with the perspective of life, many people see the value of life in a black or white manner but there is also a financial perspective as well. All of these views offer an interesting perspective regarding the value of life.

Author of “Before They’re Gone”, Michael Lanza is a freelance writer and wildlife photographer. He is an avid cyclist, backpacker and climber. He is an award winning author and public speaker. “The Big Outside” is Lanza’s online blog, where he talks about adventures with his family. He also an editor of “Backpacker Magazine”. He is very aware of climate change and its effects on our environment. He has seen these affects first hand as well, he has traveled to New Zealand. Norway, Spain, Himalaya, Iceland and Patagonia. United States National Parks are one of his favorite subjects to explore and enjoy with his family.

	Living is about making choices. The choices people make shape their lives for better or worse. Even the decision not to choose has its effects, often not wanted. But the individual who chooses to make positive choices and to act accordingly is more likely to see his or her life reflect his or her beliefs and desires. Usually the individual who chooses to take action is also willing to face the risks and obstacles that such choices involve.

William Faulkner’s novel, As I Lay Dying, tells the story of a family that journeys cross-country with the intentions to find a proper resting place for their mother, Addie Bundren. After reading for only a short time, it becomes clear that two of her sons, Jewel and Darl, play a much larger role in the story than the other siblings. One could find many good points to support either character being labeled as the protagonist of the story, such as the various tensions that can clearly be seen between them. That being said, Darl is, without a doubt, the best possible choice. He is forced to overcome more obstacles, including alienation from his entire family, than any other character, and is truly a changed person by the end of the novel.

An example of this is when Johnny is dying in the hospital from burns and he is talking with the Greasers. “‘I don’t want to die now. It ain’t long enough. Sixteen years ain’t long enough’”(Hinton 122). This teaches many students that they should value their life because they only have one.

After finishing Albert Camus’ The Stranger, it is easy to see that I have read something similar to this work previously. I found myself able to correctly predict exactly what was going to happen to Meursault. This phenomenon is easily explained in Thomas Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor. In Chapter 5 of Foster’s work, he discusses how the majority of literature really builds off other works of literature. The tale of someone that has a mediocre live goes through a redemption with himself is very similar to the tale of Buddha.

“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”- Jackie Robinson

This may sound depressing but it doesn’t have to be. You don’t have to do anything in life, it is yours to live. You aren’t destined to do great things,there are no secrets about you,you are you and nothing more.That means there is no path set out for you.So anything you accomplish anything you become will truly be your own. "As if that blind rage has washed me clean, rid me of hope; for the first time, I that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much life myself - so like a brother, really - I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again. For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate.(122)” This is where Camus’s message shows the most and summarizes what he is trying to convey. Life owes you nothing but you also owe nothing to life. All the confines of our lives are imaginary and although we do not feel free, nothing is holding us back but ourselves. This book has helped me discover that the meaning of life is truly what you want it to

“Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?” This quote from the play “Our Town” points out that many people do not potentially live life to the fullest. People always say “don’t wish your life away” because before you know it, it’s already gone. In the play “Our Town” there are many little life lessons that can be learned.

American poet, Ralph Emerson once said that the importance of life “is not length of life, but depth of life” meaning that life is not measured by how long we live on this Earth but rather what we do with the time that we have on this Earth ("Ralph…Emerson."). The quote by Emerson is very similar to the ideology of French Renaissance philosopher Michel de Montaigne. Although the two men were from two different times, like Emerson, Montaigne also preached that life need not be measured by length but rather by use. No man knows when he is going to die therefore we need not concentrate on our death but rather we need to concentrate on the time we have living and achieve and accomplish as much as we can with the time we are granted. A great example

Just like this quote has impacted my life and many others, many more quotes will impact the lives of everyone. Whether it be good or bad, it is up to us to decide what we accept to influence us. As we as seniors, move onto the next steps in our lives, it is important that we all have at least one great quote, which will stay with us

Life is a complicated twist of suffering, laughing, and learning all merging to tell a great story - or great many stories. Based on this view, "it is not the end goal or outcome of life that gives life meaning but rather the quality of the story, the quality with which one lives out and develops his or her role."