Existentialism
By nature human beings are forced to endure the trials of both the internal and the external world. An individual must battle with his or her conscience on a daily basis, and through both thoughts and actions he or she must continually strive for success in an absurd world. Every person must face choices every day of his or her life, but every individual places priorities in his or her own order. This sequence in which a person places his or her prerogative, with regards for the lives of others, determines the nobility of that individual. In "The Guest" by Albert Camus and "To Build A Fire" by Jack London, the nobility of the characters Daru (the noblest), the man (the second noblest), and Balducci (the poorest noble) are evident by the manner in which each man prioritizes his life. This is evident by examining to what extent he takes others into consideration before himself. The character of Daru in the story "The Guest", reveals an unselfish and fair disposition when he faces the delegation of turning the incarcerated Arab into prison. Daru's attitude reflects an existentialist tone when he encounters Balducci's orders for Daru to take the Arab to the prison, and Daru responds by stating, "That's not my job." This statement
A person of nobility possesses the qualities of humbleness, desires to put others before himself, and is not hesitant to act upon what he believes. Daru portrays a model character of nobility because he acts upon what he believes and says "no" to the orders given to him commanding him to escort the Arab to prison. He also humbles himself enough to submit his control over the Arab, and he does what he believes is right and lets the Arab choose his own consequences. The character of the man in "To Build a Fire" exemplifies a person who is contradictory. In one light the man is noble because he courageously ventures out to overcome the forces of nature in order to reach his destination. Also in a contrasting way, he is prideful because he allows his pride to restrict him from heeding the man from Sulphur Creek's cautions about the perils of traveling alone. Lastly, Balducci is an example of a character who is completely opposite of a man of nobility (Daru). He is selfish and desires only to fulfill his future plans according to his benefit, and he is reluctant to make a sacrifice in order to prevent himself from doing what he knows is not his job. (Aiding in taking the Arab to prison). A person of nobility must be willing to put others at the top of his or her priority-list because an individual's priority determines his or her actions, and a person's actions determine his or her nobility. In the story "To Build a Fire", the man is traveling alone in the freezing cold snow, and he responds ignorantly when a man from Sulphur Creek advises him to take precautions before travelling in severely cold weather. The man from Sulphur Creek admonishes t
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Approximate Word count = 1115
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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