The Alchemist
"What we are." -- A phrase that causes a number of thoughts to cross my mind. What makes us who we are? From the light of events of Kokoro by Natsume Soseki, I did some research to find an answer to this question. One aspect of all human behaviors is egotism. In Kokoro, events take place primarily around the relationship of Sensei and "I". Sensei and "I" are both attracted to each other for they share some common characteristics. We, in human nature, all do things that will improve our lives, even if that means becoming egotistical. Sensei and "I" both fall into this black hole of egotism from which they will never return. They are egotistical just like us. Although they both graduated from the prestigious University of Tokyo, they are not satisfied with their sophistication. They attempt desperately to convince others that they are the righteous. When they encounter a belief that they do not accept or understand, they become paranoid for they fear that they are wrong. In Sensei's case, he becomes very insecure when K contradicts Sensei's explanation of his denial about love to an opposite sex. He fears that K is more sophisticated than him. This causes him to believe that he
This story's major theme, egoism, is directly connected to us. We all are egotistical as Sensei and "I" are. Since childhood, we are all trained to rise above another in order to succeed. In school, we are trained everyday on how can we get a better grade than others. This concept does not halt after childhood, but it continues on throughout one's entire life. When we apply for jobs, we try to make ourselves as impressive as possible. The practice to rise above another feeds our egoism to its maximum strength. We do whatever we feel in order to give good impression to others. I feel strongly against to this idea, for I believe in virtue. I feel that everybody would be happier if we just showed a little more care for each other. will not be able convince K that his feeling to Ojosan go against his own belief about manhood. "I" on the other hand struggles, for he cannot fully understand why Sensei acts in the way he does until he receives Sensei's testament. "I" did not understand why Sensei acted the way he did, for he did not know the truth about the events that had taken place in Sensei's life. He had questioned Sensei a number of times, trying to convince him that he was wrong. He, too, had a similar struggle as Sensei did in his college years; a struggle with the inability to convince others with his rationalization. One of the questions that "I" had was about Sensei's quarrel with his wife. Since "I" was inexperienced with relationships with women, he couldn't accept the fact that they were not g
Some common words found in the essay are:
Okusan Sensei, Natsume Soseki's, University Tokyo, Ojosan Sensei, Sensei Sensei, Natsume Soseki, Kokoro Natsume, kokoro natsume soseki, sensei sensei, understand sensei, idea love, egotistical sensei, answer question, sensei college, natsume soseki, ojosan sensei, kokoro natsume,
Approximate Word count = 1031
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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