Tuesday, January 24, 2006

A shot at life

Two brothers look out at the green fields as the evening breeze caresses the ripe corns. The younger one has just lost his wife and is too numbed to talk. The elder brother, with moist eyes, ruminates:' I've followed every single rule, both man made and god made, all my life. And you've followed neither. But everyone loves you. My father, mother, the workers on this farm, even my wife. Why is it so?'

There's another story by Somerset maugham, 'The ant and the grasshopper', which addresses a similar issue. Two brothers---one, a god-fearing family man who leads a very ordinary life. The other, a charming rascal who enjoys life to the hilt and reaps success after success. In the end, the good guy turns out to be a bitter loser while the other fellow wins all the way to a great life.

The issue is not about being good or bad--- it's about being a confirmer or a rebel. Someone who plays it safe against another who takes all the risks. And fiction as well as life seems to favour the rebel. Fortune favours the brave. (I can hear someone running through his bible pages to bring up an apt quotation. I know the response already even if he doesn't post a comment here.) Maybe everyone wants to be a rebel--secretly. We would like to confirm to society and its norms and allow the status quo to remain but in the deepest regions of our hearts, we envy the rebels. We love to be like them. Our fantasies are full of their ventures.

By the way, Ash tagged me and because it's a small tag, i'll answer her in the next post. Ro had done it last month, and i'm yet to reply to her. Maybe next week.

The scene i mentioned above is from the movie,'Legends of the fall'. A beautiful movie with powerful characterisations and a rich atmosphere.

9 comments:

  1. I’m a risk taker—at least where people are concerned. That has gotten me hurt at times, but I’d much rather be injured from helping another human being than not reach out to someone in need.

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  2. LOL:)

    My Hero is a rebel too...and no prizes for guessing who He is :)

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  3. Hi, I wish to share something with you. I invite you to my blog to read the articles and poems.

    It is my dream that my blog should become a place of sharing knowledge, a place to discuss, to agree/disagree, and to obtain critiques on my work. I would like to have intellectuals, philosophers, poets, authors, thinkers and visionaries - but most of all - good humans beings visit.

    I ask that you honor me with your continued visits and that you comment on any/all of my work as you can make time. I will be frequently updating it with lessons I learn from life, and you are invited to visit as often as you wish, and to spend as much time as you wish in my blog.

    Thank you in advance for your time.
    :)


    P.S.: If you like my blog, do feel free to extend this invitation to any of your friends who may like to share.

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  4. Elisa...maybe the movie was inspired by the parable you mentioned. Things told through stories penetrate our consciousness more easily than dry theories do.

    Nick...yeah, you've taken risks with people, the latest of which i followed on your blog. Maybe the greatest risk we take is with relationships.

    Chez...believe me!!! I knew you'd say this as i was writing my post. You've made me a small time psychic, haven't you? Tell my hi to you Hero.

    Pradeep...So you're a wannabe writer and poet! I went through your blog and to be honest, found it okay.
    Just tell me one thing. Do you take yourself too seriously? One thing that hit me very hard as i browsed through your blog was a single alphabet. A very big 'I'.
    Hope you don't mind my wickedness.

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  5. My Hero loves you for what you are, the way you are and as you are!. His love knows no bounds!. Enjoy!

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  6. Ha ha ha ha ha ahaha ha........
    hey chez ..even i had a feeling u would day this reply while reading the post .......

    and vishwa .....mmmm well ... me thinks we can be a rebel in our own sphere too ...as in making small changes in attitude and surroundings ..
    and everybody does rebel sometime or the other ...the world isn't too happy a place with all its age old restrictions and all that ....

    cya ....
    will read somerset maugham
    tried Maugham's tales about the secret agent Ashenden? his sole detective venture in a novel form .....read it is different....

    cya ...
    Ash

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  7. Pradeep.... Forgot to add this. I've browsed through quite a number of blogs in the past 7 months. Most of them were a kind of personal journals shared with others without expecting anything in return. Some of them were just extraordinary because of the brilliant minds behind them. I believe the blogworld accomodates everyone--excellent writers, interesting ones like ash, mediocre ones like you and me, and really irritating ones like.... What we really need to do is just keep learning from the triumphs and mistakes of others and update our skills. We(i.e. you and me) have quite a long way to go before entering the hall of fame of excellent writers. Until then lets keep our heads down and enjoy the pleasure of writing and reading good posts.

    Chez...I talked to your Hero last night and He said the same--I love you for what you are....etc. He also said that a certain disciple of His was giving Him a bad name by taking His name too often. He said, He was kinda irritated!

    Ash...I want to read Maugham's 'Of human bondage'. Supposed to be fantastic.
    Yeah, you're a rebel, no doubt.
    Take care

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  8. of human bondage is a really good book ....i had read it a long time back ....
    vishwa why is that ppl i meet nowadays a into maugham ?
    and that to of human bondage...?

    good day
    Ash

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