Existentialism According to Two Philosophers Essay

Existentialism According to Two Philosophers - Essay Example   The reader realizes immediately that what is important about this character is not his actions, so much as his thoughts. Actions - if any - are the result of a decision, a choice. Even when he hands ‘the prisoner’ a glass of tea, or takes a pot of ink from a drawer, Daru does so not as a reflexive action, or one taken automatically or without consideration, but as a deliberately thought-out deed over which he seems to have some control. This is a kind of irony that comes from the pen of Albert Camus, an existentialist (although he denied it) writer whose philosophy was one born of the belief that life offers no clarity or meaning (Camus 1991). He places Daru in a spot, literally and metaphorically. From this place, this man cannot emerge unless it is through a deliberate deed. True, he did not ask Balducci to arrive with the prisoner, yet even in the introduction during the blizzard, Camus injects an atmosphere of anticipation and expectation. He seems to tell the reader that life - even if it does take place in a desert; emotional, philosophical, or otherwise - has a habit of presenting one with predicaments and obligations that require accountability (Camus 1991). Daru, in his dead-end job, had to dole out grain to the families of his students, something over which he seemed to have doubts. He is suddenly given the responsibility of taking an Arab prisoner to the prison at Tinguit: a dilemma which is at once perso nal, official and philosophical. Camus does this to illustrate his concept of inescapability: if you are alive, you will encounter this kind of problem that requires some sort of choice. Not making a choice is not an option that life offers. Even doing nothing is a default choice. In his Myth of Sisyphus, he shows this through the absurdity of life’s meaningless tasks, that are repetitive and devoid of meaning, and gives them to Daru to show there are no escaping life’s quandaries.

Poems Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Poems - Coursework Example In as much the poem was almost balanced in three perspective of senses, the sense of smell was least explored. The central message and theme in this poem revolve around change. The persona is an elderly person that re-think on the gone days with nostalgia and admire the days that he was young with strength. The poet has used parallels of the age of persona and the changes in weather where the persona is think his youthful days in terms of spring, when the ice was braking of ice and the summer time when the persona was gaming in hot sun. The changes in weather and climatic condition have been mirrored in the life of the persona who think that he is re-living the gone days. To that effect, the poet wanted to give message on change, how things and event recur but the only thing that change is doing the things that one did in youthful life with the vitality and energy at the elderly age. The change in age is not limited to the setting of the poem but universal though the imagery and parallel are limited to the setting of poem. Stanza one explains the stubborn exploration of human being on earth in a cyclic manner one after the other. There is logging and deforestation that is ongoing where human being re-settle on lands that had earlier been settled on. Stanza two ostensibly explain the exploration and the rational. There is preparation for the season where ploughing is ongoing to plant new crops. The main message on this stanza is that the land was previously owned by someone who sold it. In stanza three, it shows the remnants of machines used to explore the earth that have been rendered useless. They are waiting for the reselling or auction by willing buyers. This emphasizes the cyclic nature of earth exploration. Stanza four is indicative of the claimants who once owned the land but now they are bereaved of their ownership. The â€Å"three lived and played† around the land that is under new ownership. In entirety the owners of the land