The Failure of Success

This is a research essay I wrote for my English Class. Success was my topic and I had to find sources of information pertaining to my topic (That is why I have citations within the essay). Anyway I found this writing experience beneficial and enlightening. There are also parallels in my previous blog post (The Value in a Flower) in this essay. I hope you enjoy it!  

         

         Success. The word with consistently inconsistent interpretations. There are the business driven people who boast about their bountiful amount of wealth. There are also the scholarly doctorate degree earning individuals who are devoted to developing their distinguished dignity. There are those who would favor forming a family in their future above anything else. The preceding examples are just a fraction of the various visions of success existent in the world, but can a commonality be found? Yes. Even though there are countless personal interpretations of achievement, an individual’s desire for success causes them to focus more on their own achievement than the people around them. That is where the issue is. While attempting to achieve success, it is pivotal to maintain positive virtues such as compassion, kindness and sincerity in order to induce beneficial outcomes on the world.

It would be best to begin by acknowledging the broad definition of success as achieving a goal that brings you fulfillment (Gladwell 150). In today’s society, it is a despicable, but a forgivable error, to associate success with the possession of large amounts of wealth or obtaining power. Think about it. When someone is elected “Most likely to become successful” in high school, their classmates imagine them obtaining success through the possession of wealth and power. Why aren't they chosen because they seem as though they will achieve their ideal form of happiness? Because even at an adolescent age we despicably accept the shallow and superficial societal definition of success that infects the minds of the whole population. The goal of obtaining an abundance of money isn’t necessarily horrible, however it is not the only goal existent. The large spectrum of success is like the world. On one end there are the heartless wealth and power seekers who are like the bitterly cold arctic. On the opposite end of the spectrum there are the morally influenced individuals who seek a positive change in the world, and they resemble the beautifully warm tropics. The two are completely opposite but they still exist in the same spectrum. We live to achieve success, and we all have our own personal goals, but it is important to remember that the unoriginal societal aim isn’t always the superior one.  

            There are various perceptions of success held around the world, but how do they affect each other? How do those who hold differing interpretations interact? Too often people whose definitions of success do not meet society’s requirements “are viewed as deficient” by the people who hold the common superficial vision of accomplishment (Ruigrok. Para 1). The large “blue-collar folk” social group are an example of those who are victimized by this unfair judgmental crime (Ruigrok. Para 1). They often work hard and productively in occupations such as plumbers, custodians, and construction workers, but they are unfairly viewed as less successful, because they typically lack what the world they live in requires. A college educational degree that will allow you to obtain a plentiful amount of wealth is deemed a necessity to live, and those who lack it are viewed as inferior. No one should be viewed worthless or inferior because their vision of success does not meet the criteria of the world. Artists, Businessmen, musicians, lawyers, the poor, the wealthy,  the “blue collars”, and the “white collars”- we all have the desire for prosperity, but our individual strives for success involves different combinations of vision, motive, and effort than the rest of our peers.  Maybe someone view’s success as doing what they enjoy rather than what society claims they should strive for. Maybe someone else is just interested in putting food on the table. Maybe someone has a dream they are determined to accomplish. The motives and visions vary. The point is prejudices towards visions of success are causing division, conflict, and problems among people in society. The only way to solve this issue is by having moral and wholesome intentions when it comes to human relationships. We need to acknowledge that no one is superior to another because of a specific classification of achievement. If we practice an accepting attitude toward success, we will start treating everyone with equal amount of respect and kindness which will counteract the negative problems the shallow societal interpretation of success has caused.   The social conflict and injustice caused by the single supreme perception of achievement is an evident problem in society, but there are also problems that are inconspicuously caused by the human need for success.   

            When an individual has a goal, they begin to focus a majority of their attention and efforts on achieving that particular aim. Our dedication towards personal fulfillment precipitates our distraction and selfishness towards others, because we become excessively focused on the needs of ourselves rather than of others. Humans are vulnerable to the disease of selfishness, and a source of infection is the personal desire for achievement.The side effects to the disease are carelessness and forgetfulness. What are they not caring for? What are they forgetting? The real question is who. Who are they not the caring for? Who are they forgetting? The answer is simple. The other seven billion individuals who exist in the world. Not caring about the welfare of others is a wrongly accepted side effect of the selfish desires for personal success. The value of hard work is wired into many people’s minds, but the idea behind hard work can often become misconstrued into one that demands a competitive edge. A common view involving any type of success requires us to believe that in order to reach any type of fulfillment we must triumph over others and become the best. By believing in this ideal we instigate others failure. If a job is wanted someone else who interviewed won’t get it. If a promotion is wanted someone else will lack that opportunity. Acceptance into a college is wanted, people will have to be disappointed and not let in. People simply don’t care about others misfortunes as long as it means their success. The careless aspect of success is excessively accepted in today’s society. Forgetting there are others who desire fulfillment is a another major issues triggered by the personal desire for achievement. There are many people in the world who lack a sufficient amount of help because of the forgetful actions caused by the selfish influences of individual success. We forget about the needs of others because our needs distract us. We forget to show kindness, compassion, and sincerity with one another. We forget that we can help a stranger. We forget we can donate to a charity. We forget that there's more to life than wealth and power. We forget loving each other should be the priority. We forget that we aren't the only ones in the world. We are simply forgetful because our personal desires hinder us from remembering. Now that an investigation has been completed and problems directly relating to an individual's desire for success have been discovered, a question remains. How can these problems be solved?

            Life is never simple. We don’t have a single vision of success that we dedicate our whole lives too. We live our lives with a series of goals, and we prioritize those aims into least important and most important classifications. The greater importance of the goal the greater influence it will have on our lives. I made a statement in the first paragraph of this essay claiming people who desire success will inevitably become focused on their own achievement rather than others prosperity. There is, however, an exception to that claim. It is an exception so valuable it should be classified as the most important vision of success in our lives. A vision so pure and genuine it will only influence beneficial outcomes. What is this exceptional vision? Moral success. An ideal inspiration that can change the world.

            Moral success champions maintaining “an element of hard work, diligence, honesty and all positive values” when attempting to achieve success (Otta para 6). Moral success makes acting kind, compassionate, lovingly, sincerely, and with care a priority. It is more than the limited kindness shown to the people we encounter every day. It is showing care and compassion to those unknown. Imagine a man who waits outside a busy Starbucks asking everyone and anyone to get him a coffee, and being repeatedly rejected and dismissed. An individual who revers moral success would purchase a venti coffee and a chocolate chip cookie and generously give it to him. An individual who values moral success doesn't fast forward, ignore, or complain about charity ads. They take the occurrence as an inspiration to help someone them may never meet. Someone with moral success would realize that the promotion or job doesn't mean as much to them as it could mean to someone else. Someone with the vision of moral success lives their life valuing the fulfillment of others. If we allow our morals become our primary influence in our lives, our achievement begins break the basic boundaries of benefit. Our success will not only benefit us, but it will also successfully benefit those around us. The personalized vision of success will become obsolete, and human selfishness will vanish. If we as humans who share a planet with 7 billion other people make moral success a necessity, wonderful, peaceful, and loving advancements in human relation and prosperity will finally form. Won’t that provide for a better world? Isn’t that something worth striving for?

The Value in a Flower

                 It’s peculiar how you can find a lesson in one simple conversational exchange. A conversation that barley lasted thirty seconds, but proved itself worthy of the position of inspiration. Inspiration for what? And opinion? An action? A blog post? Little events in life should be valued more than they presently are. There are lessons to be learned, advice to be found, and opinions that can be made from the simplest events.

                It was sixth hour, and I was working on my research project for English. We had to pick a controversial issue, form a stance regarding that issue, and research it. I asked my friend what his topic was and he replied with “gene therapy”.  I wasn’t exactly sure what that was, but I guess I had a confused look on my face because he explained what it exactly meant. It is a form of gene manipulation to change the physical capabilities of a person. For example, a person’s health, speed, and strength are all susceptible to genetic altering. I am sure there are many more, but I am not educated enough on the topic. When my friend mentioned people using artificial genetic alteration to change their speed and strength, I must have again had look of disapproval on my face because he asked me a question that would be the foundation of this blog post. “If you could make yourself stronger or faster, wouldn’t you?

                My answer was no, but even though his argument proved ineffective on my not athletic mind, I started to wonder, “If I could change something about myself automatically, what would it be?” My instinctive thought was my intelligence, but if I did have a chance I wouldn’t take it. Intelligence is such a superficial quality, and I am sort of ashamed that it was my initial thought. I would have rather have instinctively thought of kindness or sincerity as areas of self-improvement. However, I am human and I am improving gradually. Anyway there are many lessons or issues in my brief encounter with my friend. For instance I can elaborate on my stance towards gene therapy. What are the essential values of a human? How does what we value shape who we are? What does Jesus think?   There are many issues or questions that can be derived from a small portion of your life, and I hope this post demonstrates that idea.

                Many people value themselves differently, but it is easy to become trapped in unrealistic visions that cloud the realistic dreams in reach. If you are a jock and athletics is your main focus in your life, you most likely judge your self-worth by your athletic performance in a game, practice, etc. If you are at the total opposite of the social spectrum, and you are a total nerd (meant in a loving way), you assess yourself primarily on your ability to perform in a test or another class assignment. Neither of these simple interpretations of self-value are despicable or wrong.  Having visions of achievement like the jock and the nerd are common traits of our lives and can be beneficial, but they often have the effect of distracting us from other more profound standards and values that we should strive to obtain and maintain.

                There are more important aspects of life than the shallow values that plague our society. How pretty am I? How strong am I? How popular am I? How intelligent am I? How powerful am I?  How wealthy am I? The desire to judge and perfect is a common trait many humans share, but our own selves are most vulnerable to this constant need for perfection. What is perfection? That depends on your viewpoint and what qualities you value in yourself. 

                I guess my question is – why do we assess the value of ourselves on insincere qualities and don’t regard inner characteristics like kindness and compassion with a sufficient amount of importance? Humans are often selfish. We care more about our own strive towards success, rather than considering our impact on others. I think in today’s society we overemphasize the importance of “me me me” and not enough on “you, they, we”. The value of our lives and ourselves shouldn’t be measured by achievement of shallow successes, but by the way we treat each other.

                When Jesus preached he didn’t accentuate the need for intelligence, wealth, beauty, or physical strength. He stressed the importance of improvement in human relation, and positive and beautiful values worth striving for.  Yes I know Jesus mostly focused on human relationship with god. He even says the greatest commandments to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.” Mark 12: 30. But don’t forget! There is a second most important commandment that directly relates to human relations which is “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.”  Mark 12: 31.  

                Loving someone means more than just saying, “I love you”. It encompasses the actions love influences. When you love someone you care about them as much as you care about yourself if not more. You care about their well-being. You care about their happiness. You care about their fulfillment. Jesus wants us to humble ourselves and live our lives for the fulfillment of others. He wants us to be compassionate with each other. Be sincere with one another. Be kind to everyone. Be helpful to anyone. If everyone acted on the influences of love we would be living in a better world, but the loving actions that accompany love are scarce because love is scarce. We think offering love is a limited occurrence. Our love is the hottest party and only the select few on the exclusive guest list have access to it. “We can’t just love any! We must wait for them to prove they are worthy of our love.” Love is not supposed to be complicated. Love is an incredibly influential emotion, and if we limit the love in our life, we limit that positive influences that complement it. Love is like water. Without it our lives would be nothing. Just a dull dried up flower who does more harm to the world than good. However, if the wonderful water is present, a beautiful flower can blossom, and if the flower allows more water to enter, the flower will become brighter.

                When Jesus says to “Love your neighbor” he wants an abundance of water to exist in our lives in order to produce the brightest flower. He wants care, happiness, compassion, sincerity, and kindness to become the beaming petals that form the flower. Our self-worth shouldn’t be judged based on simple and superficial qualities such as strength and intelligence that were wrongly but forgivably promoted by my friend.  The value we find in ourselves should be influences by the radiance of our flower. 

Mom

I was looking through the updates for my blog and saw that I someone commented on one of my posts. I was supper excited, so I checked and it read “I love your blog JJ”. I looked to see who posted it and was someone named “Mom”. I bet it would be expected of me (a teenage girl) to be disappointed to see that the first comment I received on my blog to be from my Mom, but this wasn’t the case. It reminded me of what a great Mother I have. It showed me that she is my number one fan, and I often take that for granted. She is always so supportive of my decisions, goals, and achievements and I am so grateful that I have her as a Mother.

                My Mother often openly expresses her love for our family. Because my Mother never fails to tell me, my sisters, and my father that she loves us, she makes me feel supported, and thankful that I have such a great family. She always puts herself last, and works incredibly hard to make sure that the family is running smoothly. She also works a full time job, but she ALLWAYS puts the family first, and she makes sure that she has enough time to help us. I admire her effort and dedication, and someday I hope to be as great and selfless of a Mom as she is.

                What I am most grateful for is her strong faith and relationship with God. I honestly believe that I wouldn’t have the relationship I have with God today if it wasn’t for her strong faith and encouragement throughout my faith journey. I just want to let her know how grateful I am.

                I thank God every night that I have such a wonderful life, but I realize that a big reason why I have such a great life is because of my Mom and all she has done for me. So today I revise my prayer. I want to thank God for giving me such an amazing Mother. I can’t imagine my life if she wasn’t my Mom. Thank You.

                Thank You Mom for all you have given me. I am truly grateful. I know I don’t say this enough, but I love you.  Happy Mother’s Day. 

The Evolution of the Princes

This post isn't related to religion and the usual stuff I blog about. This is actually an essay I wrote for my English class, and I thought I might as well post it because (in my opinion) it isn't the boring analysis stuff you would normally find in an English essay. Well actually.... I enjoy analyzing things and I actually analyze in my essay, but I hope you find it interesting! I feel as though I got to experiment with having a voice in my writing which you infrequently get to experience in school essay writing. Anyway I want to thank my English teacher for providing the opportunity for our class to expand out writing abilities beyond traditional standards. Thank You!
WARNING: This essay is long. 

The bewilderingly beautiful women with a waist the width of a string bean. Hair that maintains its luscious and charismatic character despite the lack of hair care products. And the defining quality of it all is the devilishly handsome and unrealistically charming love interest. The man who swoops in to her life and steals her heart in a matter of a few short days. These are the ingredients for the delicious dish known as the Disney Princess Films.

The components of these classic films are consistent throughout the duration of the franchise. From 1937 when Disney produced the enchantingly romantic tale of Snow White up until the latest Oscar winning hit of 2013 Frozen, the tale of the young princess who finds her happily ever after is unfailing. So what makes these two movies – and all the other princess movies- different? If all of the movies are composed of the same two parts, the beautiful women who find the perfectly loving man, what makes them different? It is the required measurement of these ingredients that differs from recipe to recipe. To what extent are is the prince charming emphasized? What role does the beauty of the women play? Are there any extra spices added? There are different formulas for money making princess movies. There are also many different factors that affect the outcome of the recipe, but there is one predominantly influential aspect of a movie that affects its performance.  How does the beautiful princess conduct herself?

If the Disney movie franchise was a recipe book there would be a Disney princess section of the book, then how would they be divided any further? The division of Disney princesses is simple. Two groups who have the most distinct flavor would be the dependently inferior maiden and independent women.

                Women for thousands of years have been considered inferior to males. It is hard to say what exactly caused this rift between males and females but it is easy to see why it was upheld for so many years. The inferiority is caused by the common societal belief -held by males and more importantly females- that a women cannot survive in the world without a man. This belief entails that a women can never amount to anything more than a domestic servant due to the fact that her husband must be in control of their life outside them. Her only valued qualities are her beauty and her ability at child rearing. Her only purpose is the have children and to maintain the husbands standard of living.  This dependability has been exemplified throughout many Disney movies.

                The first Disney movie ever made told the tale of a princess who was the fairest of them all. The maiden whose defining quality is her face. Her beauty in the tale is the source of conflict, but also the source of success. The idea that beauty is an important quality that all women must have is demonstrated through the Evil Queens desire to be the prettiest, who is willing to commit murder to obtain unquestionable beauty. However, Snow White’s beauty is also the source of her triumph because the prince falls in love with her. In like a second... The emphasis of beauty is not only found in Snow White, but it can also been seen through another Disney Classic: Cinderella.

                Cinderella, along with most princesses, has a sympathetic nature about her. On the surface it is obvious why we feel bad. She is a servant to two ugly step sisters and step mother and is treated inhumanely. Have you ever considered why they characterized the step sisters as ugly? The beautiful girl being treated horribly and the ugly step sisters getting everything they want almost seems unnatural. It’s uncomforting. It needs to be set right. In the end Cinderella gets her happily ever after with the prince charming, and the ugly step sisters don’t.

If women are valued for their beauty, then do we only value someone because they are beautiful?

                Beauty is not the only quality Snow White and Cinderella have. They both, unsurprisingly, have an incredible gift for cleaning. When Snow White first arrives at the dwarfs’ home doesn’t she make sure everything is clean? Doesn’t she show an elevated knowledge on the subject? Isn’t this her emphasized impact on the dwarves? What about Cinderella? Doesn’t she also demonstrate advanced ability in domestic duties? Isn’t her role as a domestic servant fundamental to the plot line? The purpose of women only amounting to a domestic goddess is illustrated through the princesses defining qualities of domestic work.       

                What about Prince Charming? What role does he play in all of this? Ummm a major one. Even though both princes are not featured much in either film, but their role is essential to the story. If Snow White didn’t have her prince charming come and kiss her awake then she would have been asleep for eternity. If Cinderella never met her Prince Charming on the dance floor, he would never have tried to pursue her any father, and she would still be stuck as a servant for the rest of her life. The common theme through both of these films is happiness achieved through finding a man. Happiness you never could have achieved on your own. The dependent happiness.

                The glorified female qualities of beauty, tidiness, and dependency of Snow White and Cinderella reflects the inferior stance a women has compared to men. The great female potential is not accurately portrayed in the tales. These celebrated films are basically reinforcing the domestic females place in society, but no one was questioning it.

                Now that I have finished my rage on the subject of the underestimated and inferior female we can move on to a completely different type of princess, the independent woman.

                What about the princesses from the latest Disney hit, Frozen?  Anna and her sister Elsa are the newest additions and perhaps the most unique. Anna at first appears to undertake the role of your typical Disney princess. She is beautiful and so desperate for love she falls in love with a guy in one night. (Spoiler Alert: he tricks her) This is the first Disney princess movie that suggests that it takes more than one night to decide whether you can spend the rest of your life with someone, because the man she thought she could rely on was unreliable. The quality of female independence is cherished and recommended through this twist of stereotypical Disney princess film events.

As the story goes Anna’s personality develops beyond the stereotypical beautiful, needy, and ditzy girl she first appears to be. She shows incredible courage and strength which are qualities both Cinderella and Snow lack sufficiency in. Her love for her sister is shown when she embarks on an adventure on her own (until her other love interest reluctantly comes along) to find her sister that left her. A sister who has terrifying and uncontrollable powers does not frighten Anna. She is determined to make things right because of her love for her sister. Her perseverance reflects her independent nature due to her determination to achieve something other than the typical goal of women, marriage.

                Then there is the beautiful Queen Elsa. Throughout the movie, she displays no love interest. Peculiar right? A princess that does not have a love interest? Elsa is the most dynamic character in the movie because she goes from being completely reserved to utterly open. How does she overcome the obstacle of isolation? Is it through the help of a man? Or is it her loving sister that is not willing to give up on her?

                Think back to Cinderella. She also lives a life of isolation. But how does she overcome it? By finding the prince whom she can marry. Cinderella was oppressed by her sisters whereas Elsa was saved by hers. What?! A women not a man saving the day! That is unheard of!

                Why? Why is there such a difference between the tales of a Disney Princess? Any genre of movie is reflective of the beliefs during the time period. Does the same go for the Princess franchise?

                The movie Snow White first came out in 1937. Seventy six years before Frozen. What has changed since then?  If we go back in time 76 years it is safe to say life was different. So what aspect of life influences the Disney Princess franchise? Simple, the role of women.

                Back in 1937 women were primarily associated with being mothers. They were also expected to never achieve anything great outside of marriage and domestic life. If you look at the role of women in today’s society (in America at least: REMEMBER Disney is an American Company) you see the opportunity for women broaden. Why? Well there are many different factors but the question I am presently concerned with is how does this change affect the making of a Disney Princess movie?

                These directors are made to seem honorable and fair, because they convey ideas of female independence and potential. However, movies are made to appeal to the audience. They are based off of what the audience desires. What the audience values. What the audience won’t oppose. What the audience won’t question. Then who really is the most influential person in movie making? Is it the cook or the consumer? The cook only wants to please the consumer in order to make a profit. But what does the consumer want to taste? 

Prompt- Light Bulbs

My peculiar prompt driven title might seem strange and maybe even symbolic in a way, but I regret to inform you that the meaning is pretty bland. My little sister and I were hanging out in my room and I wanted something to write about so I asked her to give me a prompt or inspiration for my next post and she, out of convenience looked up at the ceiling and saw my light, so she ingeniously suggested my inspiration should be light bulbs.

                So there it is. My title. I read a passage the other night regarding light so I decided to expand on that topic, because light and light bulbs are pretty similar. Jesus said, ‘“I am the light of the world,” he said. “Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness”’ John 8:12.

                Light and dark are universal opposites. Everyone can relate to the safe and secure sensation that accompanies light. I am also sure many can relate to the ominous and frightening character of the dark. Jesus claims that he is the light of the world. What does he mean? One may never know exactly what Jesus means, but I do have an interpretation of his word. I think he is trying to portray the idea of himself being of greater value than he appears to have. He is pretty important.

Light has certain qualities, and I think Jesus is a symbolic representation of light and all of its character traits. He brings hope, security, peace, happiness, and love. Aren’t people generally happier when it is a bright sunny day with bright blue skies? Jesus further explains his statement of being the mystical “light of the world” when he says that his followers will be blessed with a light like life. He also says that his people have nothing to fear because they “will never walk in darkness”. In this verse Jesus doesn’t blatantly come out and say that if you don’t follow him you will have a life of darkness. He guarantees a dark free life for his followers. In his simple proclamation he outlines the life for his people.

                On the surface of this statement it appears redundant, but it is significant. Jesus’ first guarantee is his people “will have the light of life”. This is pretty self-explanatory right? So why is the second part guaranteeing they “will never walk in darkness” necessary? It can be inferred if you are going to lead a bright life, your life won’t be dark. Both of these statements virtually mean the same thing so why both? 

                Light and dark are universal opposites right? What other opposites are there? Day and Night. High and low. What about hope and fear? Two of the most powerful and influential human emotions in existence. Jesus indirectly addresses these pivotal human emotions in his outline of the life for his people. Jesus gives bright hope to overcome a dark fear. The simplified version of Jesus’ promise for his people are as follows: a) his people will have a good life and b) his people won’t have a bad life (the definitions for a good and bad life are debatable and inconsistent). In scenario (a) he gives his people hope for a promising life, but in choice (b) he achieves hope in a different way. By claiming that they won’t have a bad life he is giving hope through the guarantee that there is nothing to fear.

                So how does this relate to everyday life?  I really didn’t mean to get all analytical on this statement. Going off on a tangent for a moment, I think that is an amazing thing about writing. You learn as you go. You come to realizations that you didn’t know when you first started writing. When I first looked at this verse I didn’t realize the depth in which I perceived it. But anyway, back on topic!

                My analysis did help me understand what I believe he is trying to say. Jesus wants us to trust and have faith in him. There is nothing to fear if you have the strength of God with you.

Imagine a world where fear is nonexistent and hope is like an insuperable infectious disease. Optimism being virtually unavoidable. A world where trouble is unfortunately existent, but the suffering never reaches the stage where people lose their hope to fear. I think that is the life Jesus envisions in John 8:12.

Trust is the foundation of any relationship, and I think Jesus wants his people to build a relationship with him. Through trusting someone we begin to have faith in them. Having faith in God is just beautiful. God reveals his love for us through the strength of our faith in him. He gives us encouragement, hope, joy, peace, and love and so much more that cannot be put into words. Yes our lives won’t be perfect. It might not even be fair, but through the faith and love of our Lord our lives will be fulfilled.