Till We Have Faces Character Analysis

Conflict will always exist in the modern world. One of the biggest motivators in the approach to conflict is fear. Conflict shapes the formation and intensity of fear. Fear can bring about ideas or actions that one normally would not ever think or implement.As fear builds up people will often go to extremes to try as much as possible to mitigate their fear. Eventually fear grows so large that it may consume all of one’s thoughts. This will motivate someone to resort to desperate plans to try and assuage their fear. The fear caused by war can do many things to the human body mentally and physically. In “ All The Light We Cannot See”, Anthony Doerr proves in times of conflict, fear becomes one of the motivating factors.

“Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.” says the writer C.S lewis. Indeed this is evident in Sophocles’ Oedipus The King. The rather disturbing events that takes place during the play. The pride of Oedipus, the tragic hero of the play, sets off a chain reaction of events that could have been avoided if Oedipus kept his pride in check. However, he can not and his ego inflates to the point his persona can only be described as a mental disorder. Through analyzing Oedipus’ behaviour and his interactions with the other characters in the play, it can be concluded that he suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

Jimmy knows too well the agonies of abandonment. First, when his mother, Cecilia, ran away with Richard to pursue a better lifestyle. Then, due to his father’s, Damacio Baca, alcoholisms and violent behavior; he also had to leave Jimmy behind. In spite of the drawbacks from abandonment to being a maximum security prisoner in Arizona State Prison, Jimmy preserver’s the darkness of prison by overcoming his illiteracy. However Cecilia and Damacio is not as fortunate as their child; Cecilia is shot by Richard after confronting him for a divorce and Damacio chokes to death after he is released from the detox center(Baca 263). Therefore the most significant event in this section of the memoir, A Place to Stand by Jimmy Santiago Baca is the death of Jimmy’s parents.

In the eyes of today’s society, heroes are viewed as citizens who have accomplished what seems to be the impossible. Whether imaginary or not, heroes are looked at with awe and congratulated for what they have done for the society. However, there is a much simpler way to be a hero. A hero does not have to be able to climb walls, fly over the city, or even save someone from a burning building right before it crumbles down. A hero is simply someone who goes out of the way to give help to those around them that need it. This hero does not need recognition in what he or she does, but takes pride in what they have accomplished for others. In the novel Till We Have Faces by C. S. Lewis, Bardia, the King’s lead guard, acts as the hero for Orual

I was pleased to have attended a lecture cosponsored by the Ethics Center, the Fresno State office of the president, the Fresno Bee and Valley PBS. The lecture began with Dr. Castro recognizing a few leaders on campus, including a past Fresno State president, Dr. John D. Welty and campus volunteer Mary Castro. Dr. Castro then mentioned a few things about Mr. Brooks stating that he is a columnist for the New York Times and an analyst for the PBS “News Hour” and NPR’s “All Things Considered.” Dr. Brooks also teaches at Yale University, one the finest university in the country. Dr. Castro continued by saying that he learned that Mr. Brooks office hours are from 9am to 1pm and how “cool” it sounded to him. I was surprised how many people attended the event. I was fortunate to find a seat. David Brooks mentioned how he has some remote roots in the Central Valley because his father grew in Chowchilla, CA but Mr. Brooks grew in New York.

Though Orual did not agree with her beloved sister being sacrificed, it was something the Priest decided that would ultimately benefit the kingdom. She demanded to go with Psyche to say her last goodbyes, “....I was determined to go with Psyche to the Mountain and the holy Tree, unless they bound me with chains (77).” Psyche was willing to be sacrificed when she knew she would help everyone she loved, even when she felt miserable, “‘...my arms were as heavy as lead (106).’” Even when she was being tied to the tree, “‘...and they were fastening me to the Tree with iron round my waist (107).’” she wasn’t focused on herself and her own pain. When being tied to the Tree, Psyche explained how many animals surrounded her, “‘And they came nearer and nearer in a great circle, but never very near, and mooed at me (109).’” Once Psyche was set free, she described the great wind around her, “‘And then the wind was

Orual first takes her sister for mad, but eventually is convinced the perhaps she should leave Psyche to her new found joy, to the love of her husband. But her jealousy and obsessive love step in , grudging Psyche her happiness, her love. Orual is unable to comprehend, much less approve, of any love for Psyche that usurps her own. Orual, predictably, resents the gods for the gulf now so plainly separating her from Psyche. "…the world had broken in pieces and Psyche and I were not in the same piece. Seas, mountains, madness, death itself, could not have removed her from me to such a hopeless distance. Gods, and again gods, and always gods…they had stolen her." (TWHF, pg.120-121)

Human beings have many flaws and negative qualities that make living the best possible life a challenge. Almost every book discussed this year displayed characters with prominent flaws in their attitude. In Oedipus Rex, Oedipus is the charismatic, well-liked king of Thebes who is facing a terrible plague in his city. The only way to stop the plague is by finding whoever murdered King Laϊos but Tiresias already knows who had done this. Oedipus displays his tragic flaw of hubris when talking to Tiresias because he denies him and his words of wisdom. Another character that displays hubris is Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart. Okonkwo is, much like Oedipus, well-respected but whenever faced with a situation involving head versus heart, he always makes decisions from his head and doesn’t ever follow his heart for he is too prideful. Okonkwo also possesses the negative trait of fear because he is afraid that people will lose respect for him if he appears “womanly” or weak. This fear really gets in the way of his life because it ends up controlling everything that he does. In addition to hubris and fear, humans also dehumanize others in painful situations as to make hurting them an easier task. Dehumanization is very negatively impactful because it is the epitome of preventing people from being able to live the

<br>Oedipus, in Oedipus, the King, and the prisoner, in "Allegory of the Cave," both fight internal battles to arrive at enlightenment—truth. However, their commonality not only lies in this. It is also within their similarity in thinking, particularly in their initial refusal to acknowledge that there is only one truth and that they have allowed themselves to become infected with the thought patterns of their public. And consequently, have voluntarily revoked their right to think and make decisions on their own, until those beings

In Till We Have Faces, by C.S. Lewis we are introduced to the protagonist Orual and her sister Psyche. Orual and Psyches once strong relationship develops into a very destructive relationship that throughout the book quickly spirals downward. As the story goes on Orual comes out of the situation realizing how she devoured many lives. She now understands her faults and conquers what she struggles with most, seeing her true self more clearly. The relationship between Orual and Psyche seemed to have three phases, the first being a strong happy relationship, second being the start of their feud and the third being their completely broken relationship.

Sophocles’ tragedy, Oedipus the King, stresses the idea of who is blind and who can see by demonstrating that one cannot simply just run away from their mistakes and issues. As the story unfolds, each character makes several attempts to hide from the truth. Though the foul truths may seem to be masked within the darkness, they are eventually brought into the light, shining over the devious lies placed before it. Nevertheless, the real question lies within whether or not the person receiving the truth can endure it. By coping with the truth, one sees, but by denying it, one stays blind. One way or another, however, problems arise, secrets come out, and chaos ensues because one cannot stay blinded from the truth forever.

In the story “Till We Have Faces,” CS Lewis retells the myth of Cupid and Psyche through the eyes of Psyche's older sister, Orual. Using the viewpoint of Orual gives a different view into the story since her relationship with the gods is nonexistent in the beginning. The gods have taken the only one she loves, Psyche, and Orual, ultimately, uses the book as a complaint aimed towards the gods because she is jealous. Throughout the story, there are many glimpses into the jealous nature of Orual. When we first see Orual, it seems that her jealousy is stemming from wanting to be as beautiful as Psyche and blaming the gods for her ugliness, however later on, after Psyche is taken from the gods, her jealousy seems to stem from Psyche no longer needing

In “Oedipus,” Sophocles writes about a man who is hunted down by his cruel fate, and whose life is ruined in attempt to run away from it. The ancient Greek perspective reflects on the matter of the story and how the god’s highly influence the lives of humans. This viewpoint basically shows the unbounded power the Greek gods have; by being the gods of destiny, and leaving man at a helpless position. Fate plays a massive role in the lives of humans and as was believed by the ancient Greeks, their lives were simply directed by a decision of gods and goddesses. Oedipus knew his fate set by a curse cast on him; however, even when being aware it is impossible to escape fate, he still attempted to run away from it. As the play progresses Oedipus begins to understand the unbearable truth as he states “I’ve called down a dreadful curse upon myself,” followed by a response “I simply didn’t know!” (1103). It is the will of the man to realize what is inevitable and what choice is. In the Ancient Greece, Gods were praised and worshiped and any command stated by them is the undecided future. Oedipus acting as a blinded man who did not know of such fact led him to his fate and ironically is what later led him to blind himself (Gould). When Oedipus stabs his eyes out with the

Talking about God or the gods can be a very confusing and frustrating subject. Some people find that they can connect with God and “hear his voice”, but for most of us it just has not happened. Throughout the story, Orual struggles with trying to communicate to the gods, and they never answer her. She keeps asking them for a sign, and when she least expects it, they communicate with her. The gods will only communicate to her on their terms, but she has the attitude that they need to speak with her on her terms. This attitude has affected her actions and choices throughout the story. The struggle to communicate with a higher being is very difficult for some people; sometimes we just need a “sign”.

views Oedipus as one who " does not unselfishly seek out the truth even though he knows it will be painful