The Idea of Happiness in “I Served the King of England” by Bohumil Hrabal Essay Example for Free

The Idea of Happiness in â€Å"I Served the King of England† by Bohumil Hrabal Essay I Served the King of England by Bohumil Hrabal is a tragicomic novel, a first-person account by Dite, a teenage busboy starting his career in a rural hotel in Czechia. The plot progresses gradually as Dite becomes a waiter and than an owner of a hotel, eventually losing everything except wisdom. The book is structured as a series of picturesque episodes demonstrating people whom Dite meets and situations he gets into during the pre-war period, Nazi occupation of the country and eventually under the communist regime. In this paper I am going to concentrate on one psychological aspect of the novel, namely on the idea of happiness as Dite sees it. At first sight, Dite sees happiness in money and insists on his desire to become a millionaire, however, I will attempt to prove that the actual incentive for Dite’s conduct is desire of respect and recognition. He does not want the entire world to admire him, rather striving to respect of the people whom he himself respects. It is not easy to say whether Dite eventually achieved his purpose, but at the end he at least comes to reconciliation with the surrounding world. In order to prove this point I will refer to the particular parts of the texts as well as to the general plot and spirit of the book. Dite obviously suffers from inferiority complex. He is adulterate, poor and short, so, suffering from all the disadvantages of such situation, he decides to become rich and respected. However, his conduct is often impulsive and determined by his up-to-minute desires. The book can be viewed as a confession of an aged man who analyses his life journey. The language of the book progresses from a naà ¯ve story-telling by a young boy to a considered narrative depicted by older Dite. His priorities can be clearly indicated in every stage of his life. Dite hardly thinks of happiness as itself, for most of his life he rather strives to tread in the steps of the people he meets and whom he deems to be successful. He is â€Å"amazed at how rich people could sit around for the whole evening talking about how just outside the town was a footbridge and right beside the footbridge, thirty years back there was a popular tree and they they’d really get going†[1]. He starts to realize the need of happiness as such at the very late stage of his life, while all his previous existence is a mimicry. Dite’s love for money reveals already in the first scenes of the book. As a busboy he swindles money out of his customers and pretends to be an orphan to get more cash from compassionate passengers on the railroad station. At that he seems to be a cynical person with little moral principles. However, he also has no good example before his eyes, as he has to communicate with drunken customers, heartless master of the hotel and roguish colleagues. So, very early he comes to idea that money rules the world, and in order to be recognized one needs to be rich. He is therefore very proud of â€Å"having money of my own, a couple of hundred a month, and once I even got handed a thousand-crown note†[2]. In this period of Ditie’s life money is an opportunity of self-esteem for him. Very soon it can be observed that money as itself is not a purpose for Dite. He has little idea of how capitals are made and he is not interested in power given by money. What he wants is a luxurious life like that of which he hears from his older pals and like that he finds in Prague. The lavish and careless lifestyle of the pre-war Czech capital becomes his ideal, and he merely wants to enjoy this life in a company of the same playboys. He â€Å"wanted to be surrounded by millionaires†[3]. Being a rather fussy person, Dite becomes lofty when he has an opportunity to remind that â€Å"he is a waiter who served the King of England†. It was not actually the King of England, but an emperor of Ethiopia whom Dite served, but he does not lose an opportunity to brag a little, because this is a moment of his greatest glory. This moment is so important, that Hrabal used it as a name of the book. The narrative is told in the name of old and wise Dite, who, perhaps, realizes the meaninglessness of his claim, so the name is a sharp self-irony. On the other hand, Dite really has nothing more to boast, because serving the King was a point if his highest social recognition, which was so important for young Dite and which is so unimportant for older Dite. Whether consciously or not, Dite attempts to imitate the habits of his neighborhood, and works hard to make enough money to visit a local bordello, of which he hears so much. Further throughout the story relationship with women and sexual intercourses remain to be a strong incentive for him, although his marriage ends with tragedy and disgrace, bringing his to jail, social condemnation and exile. Women are a kind of fatal temptation for Dite, another tool for his self-affirmation and another source of his disappointment. Hrabal uses the story of Dite’s relationships with women as a notable symbol of hic character’s frustration. Dite has a strong desire for women, although this is also rather an attempt to be similar to someone, than his natural need. As an teenage boy he is kin on having at least some woman, yet intercourses with local prostitutes do not satisfy him. Later in Prague he seems to be close to the goal of his life as he marries Lise and makes plans to open his own hotel. This dream would be innocent, in case Lise was not a German activist, and the plot would not develop right before and right after the Munich treaty. German occupation is a turning point in Dite’s life. This is actually the period when his awakening begins. Humiliation by the German authorities, work in the Nazi research institute, and finally Lise’s death during the air raid makes Dite see an another kind of example in the people around him. He really never â€Å"finds the head†[4], and it is somehow his own head. Dite is in fact a â€Å"weathercock†. He hardly cares of the fact that he collaborates with the occupants of his homeland. For him the Germans are just those who are currently on top, and another opportunity to become successful under a new regime. And if he has to prove that he is a â€Å"pure Aryan breed†, and if he has to work on production of even better â€Å"Aryan breed†, and if he is able to make money by selling the precious things confiscated from murdered Jews, so why not? Further events are a sort of punishment for his vagrancies. He loses his wife, he loses hope for luxurious and easy-going life, and he loses even those crumbs of social recognition which he previously enjoyed[5]. Dite’s entire world is ruined, and there is no hope on rebirth. At the second part of the novel Dite becomes that what he was at the beginning – nothing. The illusions of happiness dispel bringing him to the beginning of a new way. Perhaps the entire story is Dite’s attempt of self-analysis. He revisits the situations of his life, trying to imagine how he would have acted in case he would have acted differently. There is no longer opportunity for changing those circumstances, and there is no way back, so the only resort he can afford is fatalistic wisdom in his new calm life in a frontier village, far from all what he previously so estimated. Eventually, he does become a millionaire, at least the name of the book’s last chapter hints this. Yet it is an another kind of richness. His material wealth at the end is a small house, a cat and a goat, but he feels himself richer than he could ever imagine. The unbelievable that came true stayed with me, and I believed in the unbelievable, in the star that had followed me through life, and with its gleam constantly before my eyes I began to believe in it more and more†¦Now that I had been brought to my knees, I realized that my star was brighter than ever, that only now would I be able to see its true brightness, because my eyes had been weakened by everything I had lived through, weakened so that they could see more and know more.[6] It is in this passage where the real nature of happiness in Dite’s view reveals. Having no idea of actual happiness he tries many surrogates, before all of them are ruined and he can smile ironically looking back at his life of a â€Å"person who served the King of England† and here he can just take compassion on that older Dite, who spared his life hunting for delusive mirages. He was just to eager to become successful, too eager to be rich, too eager to be pleased, while happiness was something different. Works Cited: 1. Hrabal, Bohumil. I Served the King of England. Vintage, 1990.

Hawthornes Characters: Pride Of Intellect :: essays research papers

Hawthorne's Characters: Pride of Intellect Many of Hawthorne's characters wrap themselves in a pride of intellect. The characters become victims of their pride and consequently suffer. Goodman Brown, from "Young Goodman Brown" and Hooper, from "The Minister's Black Veil" are two characters that suffer from a pride of intellect. Their pride causes them similar problems and they end up living similar lives, although they came from different backgrounds. Hooper and Goodman Brown both become isolated from society. Hooper had a revelation, and he feels that he truly understands human nature and sin. However, he believes that he is above everybody else because he has this understanding. This is what causes the major separation between Hooper and society. After Hooper dawns the veil he can no longer function or act as a normal person, because of this feeling of superiority. His perception of an ultimate human isolation leaves him the man most isolated in what Hawthorne describes as that saddest of all prisons, his own heart . . . "(The Minister's Black Veil,228). The veil affects all parts of his life, his fiance leaves him and he can no longer relate to his congregation the same way. "As a result of wearing the veil, Hooper becomes a man apart, isolated from love and sympathy, suspected and even feared by his congregation"(Minister's Black Veil, 228). Goodman Brown suffers the same fate because he also has a feeling of superiority over the rest of the village. He attains this feeling after he sees all the people that he though were good and pure participating in satanic rituals in the forest. He looses all faith in the community and feels as though he is above them because he was able to resist the devil. The lack or trust trusting that Goodman Brown had separated him from the community because he was a strong Puritan and felt as though he could not associate devil worshipers. "Brown, despairing and embittered, belongs neither to the Devil's party nor to the only other life-sustaining cause he knows--that of the Puritan faith and the Puritan community"(Levy,119). Hooper and Goodman Brown's pride of intellect cause them to loose a loved one and their kind and loving nature. Hooper drives his fiance Elizabeth away by wearing the veil. Elizabeth sees how Hooper is separating himself and it scares her away from their purposed marriage. "Hooper's fiancee, seems at first unawed by the veil. To her it is merely a cloth that hides the face she most delights to see. But, like a sudden twilight in the air, Elizabeth suddenly senses the unapproachable inner isolation of the man who wears it, and its'

Reign Over Me Evaluation Essay

Depression affects all people. Reign Over Me is a movie that deals with a character in a grave state of depression. In Charlie Fineman’s (Adam Sandler) case depression hits hard and leads to a major behavioral change. Fineman blocks out major parts of his life including his college roommate, Alan Johnson (Don Cheadle). After running into him on the street, it takes a while for this encounter to jog his memory of his best friend. We learn later that this depression is due the death of his three daughters and wife in a plane crash. The news devastates Fineman. He cannot function in society the same and loses purpose in life, as well as belief in himself. Instead of letting this distress out and working to recuperate, Fineman shuts everybody out and tries to hide from the truth. This can be a serious problem in today’s society. Many people are embarrassed or too hurt to try to move on and they let what happened dictate their individual future. In this film, directed by Mik e Binder and produced by Jack Binder and Michael Rottenberg, the message of depression and its effects is relayed quite clearly. This movie relates to the real world very well; it also helps open up the eyes of many who do not understand what depression can do. Reign Over Me deals with a character who has the biggest part of his life taken from him in an instant. While others cannot tell how much Fineman is suffering by his actions, the loss of his family crushes him. Instead of mourning he falls into a deep state of denial where he almost forgets their existence. An important theme throughout is Fineman trying to fix the wrongs he did to his family, like snapping at his wife about kitchen remodeling or not taking his shoes off. Although they are just little things he makes sure nobody comes in his house with their shoes on and remodels the kitchen several times. These small acts show that he still remembers. There is a scene in the movie where Fineman opens up to Alan, his former roommate. Although he would not open up to the therapist, he tells Alan all about what happened. It was in brief but in this scene you get to see how much recalling his past hurts. Just saying his daughters’ names makes him cry. This scene demonstrates how hard it is for Fineman to talk about his life. Throughout the film, we learn little by little the events  that took place. Outsiders and even his in-laws think that he is disrespecting his deceased loved ones. They do not understand why he does not carry a picture of his family with him or even have one in his house. They take it to the point of wanting to have him committed until he finally talks to them and explains how hard it is to live each day and how hard it is to see them or anybody because he sees his family everywhere. There are many critics and naysayer to this movie as well as supporters. Most of the reviews I read really concentrated on the part played by Adam Sandler. Adam Sandler shoulders a very dramatic character in this movie and this side of him is underappreciated. He is notoriously known for his funny facial expressions and antics. This leads people to believe he can’t play a serious role but in Reign Over Me he hits a home run. The same reviews were not so critical about Don Cheadle. He played a part he is used to playing combing a normal act with the occasional funny quote or joke to keep the viewers on board. The actors play out a very realistic scenario. The ir parts are down to earth and don’t undermine or take away from the message of the movie. From my own personal judgment the movie Reign Over Me takes the viewer into a world many people don’t or won’t ever see. It combines excellent acting with a reasonable story-line that relays a meaningful message. They story is not far-fetched and is very comparable to the realities of many people today. As far as the acting is concerned, both actors play a side the viewer is not accustomed to seeing compared to other movies Adam Sandler and Don Cheadle are known for. Other movies like, Billy Madison (Adam Sandler) or Brooklyn’s Finest (Don Cheadle), these actors have very different parts. This movie shows the talent in each of the individual actors. Both actors play off each other during the movie which takes much skill and created a wholesome and tasteful production. Many scenes are not verbatim and the skill of the actors to improvise makes for an entertaining movie watching experience for the audience. I personally recommend this film to anybody from young adults to the elderly and all of the above. Reign Over Me doesn’t only tell a story but will also tug the heart of the audience in a serious and dramatic rollercoaster ride. The movie may have many critics but I think both actors did a wonderful job throughout the film keeping the audience entertained for the entire two hours and forty minute movie. The debate is on! Go watch the movie today  and take into consideration the many sides and create your own opinion. Works Cited Internet Source – O., Scott. â€Å"Who Else but an Old Buddy Can Tell How Lost You Are?.† New York Times 23 Mar 2007. 1. 2/9/11 . Movie – Reign Over Me. DVD. Sony Pictures UK, 2007.

We Are the Product of Nurture versus Nature - 2853 Words

Social Psychology is the scientific study of how peoples feelings, thoughts and behaviors are influenced. It also perceives the way we think, influence people and relate to others. Our behavior is a product of Nature vs. nurture. The environment and are genes play a dynamic role, in who we are and why we behave the way we do. There are some basic aspects of social behavior that play a large role in our actions and how we see ourselves. This research paper is going to cover a wide array of different topics related to social psychology everywhere from discovering ones self to Group Dynamics. Self-concept is the image we have of ourselves. It is heavily influenced by the people that we interact with. At first ones self-concept is very general and changeable. As we mature, these perceptions become more organized, specific and detailed. (Pastorino Doyle-Portillo, 2013) Some of the factors that affect ones self-concept is self-esteem. 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