Suggested time: approximately 45 to 60 minutes You have been provided with three texts on pages 1 to 4. In “ The Jackhammer Syndrome” by Al Purdy, the speaker recalls transcendent moments of elation as he walks about in his business suit. In the excerpt from The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean, Laroche is characterized as an individual who pursues his personal obsessions while maintaining an unconventional code of conduct. In Gilbert Garcin’s Diogenes or Lucidity, a man in an overcoat and business suit carries a light bulb. The Assignment
What do these texts suggest about the conflict between pursuing a personal desire and choosing to conform? Support your idea(s) with reference to one or more of the texts presented and to your previous knowledge and/or experience. In your writing, you must
• use a prose form
• connect one or more of the texts provided in this examination to your own ideas and impressions
Personal Response to Texts Assignment
Initial Planning
To which of the provided texts are you responding? What is the connection between the text(s) and your response? I am choosing to respond to the two following texts, “ The orchid thief” and Diogène ou la Lucidité, the picture provided. The connection between the picture and the story is that no matter what you choose to do with your life, as long as your living your dream as you see fit without acting on shame.
What idea do you intend to explore and how does it address the topic? I intend to explore the idea that one’s self should choose to live their life as one sees fit.
State your choice of prose form. Choose from prose forms that you have practiced in English Language Arts 30–1. You may respond using a personal, creative, or analytical perspective. Do NOT use a poetic form. An analytical perspective.
ANALYICAL ESSAY
What do these texts suggest about the conflict between pursuing a personal desire and choosing to conform? Support your idea(s) with reference to one or more of the texts presented and to your previous knowledge and/or experience.
One’s actions are responsible for the outcomes of their life.
The story starts of as a typical stereotype. As the text starts off the usual outcome is perceived from the beginning, it focuses on a boy who wants what he wants when he wants it. The relationships between the two texts being studied are that both characters are following their desires apposed to just choosing to conform. One’s own actions can only be responsible for the outcome of one’s life.
In the text, The Orchid Thief, a man chooses to follow the desires of his own creations’. It starts off as stereotypical outcome and perceives as one as the story continues, the man faces a lot of conflict with the decisions he chooses to make. While pursuing the devoted decisions the man has for him self he chooses to live out the norm and follow his own path. As one of the characters describes his nickname as “ A crazy old white man” he lives out this name derived for him by following his dreams. Thus following these dreams he get’s put into a lot of conflict he could have avoided if he just chose to follow the conform of life. If the man in the text did choose to follow to conform in life he would have just focused all of his enthusiastic drive to just one aspect in his life. As described by the man himself, he would have put all his time in effort in to becoming a famous brain sergeant, thus pursuing the norm everyone in life has their eyes set on. As for most people in life if one has their mind set on something one will pursue it. Some of the conflict most people face in life is that if they don’t pursue the conform in life then they wont succeed; thus it is not true. If one wants to follow their dreams no matter what the outcome could arise from it, they should pursue that dream to all their ability.
If all men lived with the simplicity as the man in the text, Diogène ou la Lucidité does then life would have its conflicts. As the picture perceives with a lot of carefree living comes quite a bit of intertwisted outcomes. As in the subtext below the picture, it describes the man being able to live without shame and also values the power of reasoning. The man clearly values the power of reasoning due to the fact that no matter what conflict he is being put through he can still live the life he wants. If the man decided to live life by following the common attribute to life then he wouldn’t be living the life he strives for. Hence if he was to live without extreme simplicity then he might have became a sacksful businessman, living life as being unhappy thus living life the norm everyone in life strives for.
Within the two texts both men live in extreme simplicity; although it surfaces an abundance of conflict for both men. In the first text the man strives for perfection within his own actions and so does the man in the second text; thus leaving them both with intertwisted conflict. If one did choose to conform within one’s life then that significant person would become unhappy with the outcome of their life. A person would be much happier and have a greater abundance outcome of their life if they chose to follow their aspirations.
The biggest regret most people in life have is the road that they chose not to take. If one follows the standard perspective on life then their outcome will either be indecisive or bleak. One’s own actions can only be responsible for the outcome of one’s life; a greater amount of bliss will be received. In both texts the men learn that they have to follow their own desires, although it will lead to complications, its better to be happier in life. If one was to look at the world one will see most people are miserable with the roads they decided not to follow.
