The Parable Of The Sower Essay

Nathan Drum is the type of person everybody should strive to be, and although he stumbles, he gets back up again soon after. Nathan reacts to Ariel’s death the calmest of the family members. Yet we hear him ask, “Why Ariel? Why not me? The sins are mine. Why Punish her? Or Ruth?” (191). Even when faced with the death of a loved one, he does not question his faith. He may ask why God did something as bad as taking his only daughter instead of himself, the one that committed the crimes of war, but will not denounce God. Nathan’s faith that everything is going to be alright in the end is incredible to me. The Sunday after Ariel’s death shows just how incredible God’s power is. Now even though Nathan did not give a sermon at every church, it took a lot of guts and immense trust for him to preach in one of these churches. After having the darkest moment in his life, he comes out and gives one of the best sermons I have ever seen.

The theoretical notion of personal resilience has been long explored. Charles Darwin a famous philosopher proclaims “It is not the strongest that survives, but the species that survives is the one that is able best to adapt and adjust to the changing environment in which it finds itself” (Megginson). Essentially, people are able to survive, if they adapt to the world around them. Octavia E. Butler creates this notion in her dystopian novel. In the year of 1993, Octavia E. Butler wrote the novel Parable of the Sower. Lauren Olamina, the main character in the novel, narrates the story through her viewpoint. Lauren describes the horrendous and corrupt world around her and notes of the population’s response to the violent acts. The year is 2025

Even though he will not let himself be beaten for no reason, if he has made an inadvertent mistake, he will try to correct it, as he does with his grandmother, after accidentally embarrassing in church. “Later, I convinced her that I had not wanted to hurt her and she immediately seized upon my concern for her feelings as an opportunity to have one more try at bringing me to god. She wept and pleaded with me to pray... I promised; after all, I felt that I owed her something for inadvertently making her ridiculous before the member of her church.” (Wright 119) And he follows through with that. He prays, daily, for an hour. That hour is torture, but he keeps his promise, abiding by his moral code. He is different from the boys and girls of his church congregation, and class: they have been indoctrinated and do as they are told, docilely. One boy walks up to Richard, prompted by the congregation, who think that Richard is doomed to burn in Hell, and tries to convert him; it is obvious that the boy has no real conviction in God of his own, rather, the belief in God has been forced upon him by his parents and community. “Though older than I, he had neither known nor felt anything of life for himself; he had been carefully reared by his mother and father and he had always been told what to feel.”(Wright 116) Meanwhile, Wright, in stark contrast, resists the attempts of his Grandmother and extended family to indoctrinate him into religion, instead deciding to

In “The Parable of the Sower”, author Octavia Butler realistically describes the dystopia of the U.S that is currently ruled by poverty, crime, and chaos. Lauren, the main protagonist, evolves and goes on a physical and emotional journey to create her own beliefs and prepare for life behind the wall. Lauren lives in the community of Robledo that is guarded by a wall that is meant to protect them from crime although it often fails to do so. Being the daughter of a Baptist, Lauren is challenged to conform and participate in the religious passivity of the community. Not having enough water, food, and safety prevents and angers Lauren to try to address her problematic reality immediately. Through the eyes and actions of Lauren it is clear she

Sophocles’ play “Antigone” illustrates the conflict between obeying human and divine law. The play opens after Oedipus’ two sons Eteocles and Polyneices have killed each other in a civil war for the throne of Thebes. Oedipus’ brother in law Creon then assumes the throne. He dictates that Eteocles shall receive a state funeral and honors, while Polyneices shall be left in the streets to rot away. Creon believes that Polyneices’ body shall be condemned to this because of his civil disobedience and treachery against the city. Polyneices’ sister, Antigone, upon hearing this exclaims that an improper burial for Polyneices would be an insult to the Gods. She vows that Polyneices’ body will be buried, and Creon declares that anyone who

This parable is very applicable to my daily life, as well as society. I can apply this parable to my life by knowing that I was a seed planted in the good soil. I need to remember to continue my course of action and beliefs, no matter how difficult it is. That way, I can live a life lead by the Lord, spread his message, and “bear fruit”.

Parable of the Sower hypothesizes around the ascent of a period of psychological oppression in America, a method of terrorism that inundates the quaint, generally more well off white-collar community. It additionally poses many dangers and consequences for those of wealthier classes. Parable of the Sower has is set in Los Angeles and California, in a near future in which human life is deteriorating and culture is plummeting to brutality. Almost every person in Parable of the Sower struggles to survive at some point in their lives; however, minorities do clearly suffer much more than the wealthier class, and Lauren Olamina takes notice

This Sophocles tragedy seemed to touch many readers. This tragedy has made many people in present and antiquity rethink their purpose in life. This story also intended to raise many questions. One question that I will discus is what means more to you, social acceptance or staying true to your beliefs? This classic tragedy that I am referring to is called Antigone. This fascinating story touches many subject of social and religious matter. I will discuss the tragic turmoil of Antigone, her surrounding family, and the social and religious dilemma that Antigone faces that will ultimately decide her fate.

A Grace Disguised written by Jerry Sittser, is one of the most heart felt and transparent books I have ever read. The idea that our purpose and who we are is shaped through our suffering and loss, puts one in perspective to understand that our pain lies a blessing, even at times we don't understand. Jerry Sittser, a husband, son, and father of four is a true witness to what its like to experience loss and even feel hopelessness in times of despair. In the fall of 1991, him and his families lives were changed forever. Driving back home from a Native American reservation in rural Idaho, an incoming car driving extremely reckless and fast, jumped its lane and smashed head-on into their families mini-van. Rescuing his daughter Catherine and two sons David and John, Jerry Sittser had to endure seeing the lives of his wife Lynda, mother Grace, and four year old daughter Diane flash before his eyes (Sittser, 1998 pg. 26). Three generations instantly gone without any signs or warnings. Letters of comfort that was sent by mail frequently asked Jerry the question, “Why did this have to happen to your family? Y'all were the ideal family to model. If bad things can happen to good people like the Sittser’s then we’re all in trouble (Sittser, 1998 pg. 30).” In this book Jerry Sittser highlights many different aspects of how to differentiate our view of loss from both a carnal and spiritual perspective. Yes, its no debate that loss is a terrifying and dreadful event to experience, but

She describes an experience where she and her son witness a man inflicting pain on an innocent animal and she is unable to stop him. During this distress of not being able to stop the abuse, she is reminded that Christ loves her. She is also reminded that even the main inflicting the pain on the dog is loved by Christ. She finds comfort in knowing that God’s love is not based on our behavior. Lamott tells her readers about the stones of faith that she sees in the path of her son. She talks about watching him work through different struggles as he finds his own path. She shares the understanding that things in life are temporary and it is the process of achieving them that is the true value. This idea is one of the stones she wants to pass onto her son to help him as he builds his path of

As Hope and her family fought cancer, their faith in God kept them grounded. Stuart and Shelby, Hope’s parents, would often ask God for signs that he was watching over her. Some of God’s signs were miraculous to say the least. When Stuart was in the mountains, he saw a huge billboard that read, “Hope Thou in God.” Additionally, when Shelby went to pray in the chapel at the hospital a stained glass window titled “The Hope Window” featured a picture of a young girl on crutches with God’s hands placed on her shoulder as he was healing her. God was certainly watching out for the Stout family.

The “Misfit’s” response to the Grandmother’s act of unexpected and profound compassion conveys O’Connor’s confidence in the belief that God’s grace and the power of faith are not only strong and omnipresent, but also adversative to a dependence on human reason alone. Even though the “Misfit” consistently rejects the “Chrustian” faith, based almost solely on a lack of factual evidence, he seems to desperately want to believe and enjoy an acceptance of the omnipotence and omnipresence of God’s grace and love. He understands that faith is a choice; he simply chooses to live by himself instead, standing by his own sense of independence and autonomy and saying that he’s “doing all right by [himself]”. As the “Misfit” is continually pressed by the Grandmother to pray, he is pushed farther into this rejection of faith, even seemingly connecting the Grandmother to a literal representation of Jesus as she experiences her spiritual transformation right before her death.

Individualism plays a key role in this story and shows how being an individualistic society can be the downfall to the strongest country in the world. This essay will discuss the struggle of man versus man, man versus nature, and the author's intent in Parable of the Sower. Butler talks about many aspects of life and the struggle to survive, and this essay will explore three main ideas that occurred in this book.

Starting with “The Wanderer,” the speaker begins his tale by reminiscing upon his trials and tribulations of which he has suffered a great deal and “longs for relief, the Almighty’s mercy” (118). He has lost his friends and no longer has anyone to confide in, forcing him to be alone with his thoughts: “So I must hold in the thoughts of my heart” (118). In the midst of his grieving, the Wanderer recalls a joyous occasions, such as when “his friend and lord helped him to the feast” (119), only to realize that what once was, is no longer. He finds comfort in his dreams, longing to be back with his “liege-lord again” only to awaken and have reality come shattering down upon him (119). However, he comes to the conclusion that through hardship and suffering, one matures, grows, learns his place in life and how “a good man holds his words back, tells his woes not too soon, baring his inner heart before knowing the best way” (120).

In The Parable of the Sower, author Octavia Butler realistically describes the dystopia of the U.S that is currently ruled by poverty, crime, and chaos. Lauren, the main protagonist, evolves and goes on a physical and emotional journey to create her own beliefs and prepare for life behind the wall. Lauren lives in the community of Robledo that is guarded by a wall that is meant to protect them from crime although it often fails to do so. Being the daughter of a Baptist, Lauren is challenged to conform and participate in the religious passivity of the community. Not having enough water, food, and safety prevents and angers Lauren to try to address her problematic reality immediately. Through the eyes and actions of Lauren it is clear she is