One Man's Journey

Throughout his entire journey back to his camp, the man would show ignorance when he didn't understand how cold the weather really was. He would continually think to himself how it’s just a little bit of cold. It'll only cause some pain and discomfort. Nothing too dangerous or life-threatening. Due to his inexperience in this freezing weather, mixed in with his ignorance, the man’s death was certain. “Once in a while the thought repeated itself that

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step,” by Lao Tzu. While both of these journeys were epic, Santiago’s circular journey back home is less significant than Odysseus’s linear journey home to his wife and child. Santiago’s purpose was to validate his personal legend in finding treasure. The old woman wanted to know more about his dream. She then gave her interpretation: “[Santiago] must go to the Pyramids in Egypt. [She has] never heard of them, but, if it was a child who

The story “To Build a Fire” written by Jack London has two nearly identical versions published in 1902 and 1908 respectively. The latter is better-known and more thought-provoking because of the protagonist’s death. To begin with, the journey takes place on a cold winter day in Klondike, consists of a man and his dog. The man is ignorant of the extreme coldness and feels confident about travelling alone at fifty degrees below zero. However, he breaks through a thin skin of ice unexpectedly and wets

Nature overcomes man. Jack London, the author of To Build a Fire, depicts this theme in his short story. In To Build a Fire London’s character who has no given name travels Yukon with no one but his Husky to meet some of his friends. Despite warning to not travel alone in such frigid temperatures, he makes the journey anyways and finds himself at the mercy of mother nature. In such cold circumstances and having stepped in water, the man attempts to build a fire. Having failed to start a fire to thaw

to the 8th century. In the Greek epic poem, Homer tells the story of the main character Odysseus’ journey home from the Trojan War. Many themes relating to the human condition are prevalent in the various adventures faced by Odysseus, his men, and his family over the ten year journey. Homer uses symbolism as well to portray these themes of wits trumping strength, man’s weakness to temptation, man’s desire to seek revenge, and loyalty among characters.

W.H. Auden’s The Average and Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken mutually explore fate and how decisions affect it. Auden considers this through a young man’s journey towards the future while Frost conveys it through a reflection on a past choice. The parents of Auden’s protagonist metaphorically ‘killed themselves with toil’ granting him the opportunity to seek a profession that symbolically ‘encourages shallow breathing’ placing pressure on the speaker to ensure their efforts were not futile. In

W.H. Auden’s The Average and Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken both consider the choices that determine the rest of one’s life. Auden explores this concept through a young man’s search for a better future while Frost conversely shows it through a reflection on a past decision. The parents of Auden’s protagonist ‘killed themselves with toil’ in order to grant him the opportunity to discover a profession that ‘encourages shallow breathing’ which puts immense pressure on the speaker to find a career

Hubris is like a coin, having two sides representing different perspectives and stories. This concept is explored throughout Homer’s epic The Odyssey, where the eponymous king of Ithaca embarks on a journey home following the decade-long Trojan war. After the departure from Troy, Odysseus and his men reach the island of the Cyclops, encounter the sorceress Circe, and take a voyage to the land of the dead to seek directions home from the ghost of a prophet, Tiresias. The guidance from the diviner

John with a plea for him to submit to God’s power, and warns that a complete submission will secure the fact that man will remain “Safe in the hand of one disposing Power” (Pope, line 287). Lastly, he points out that “One truth is clear, Whatever is, is right” (Pope, line 294). He believes whatever circumstances someone endures is what they are meant to endure, and that there is no other possible outcome for their life. Voltaire’s Candide

Reflection of “Man’s Search for Meaning,” by Viktor Frankl John R. Miller Edinboro University   Reflection of “Man’s Search for Meaning,” by Viktor Frankl Viktor Frankl (2006), describes the purpose of a man’s journey of survival as he lives in four concentration camps within a 3-year period and having the journey continue after being liberated. Frankl was a psychiatrist and neurologist who worked in Rothschild Hospital during 1940, which at the time was one of the few hospitals to allow Jews to