ForgivenessEssay Preview: ForgivenessReport this essayForgiveness“Apologia pro sua vita” is an ancient Italian saying that explains why we do what we do. In life, our choices and experiences are what create and define each individual. Each person represents themselves in their own society by living each day and choosing their actions that make themselves feel whole. While we have control of some situations that we come across, other times our experiences are completely out of our hands and rather forced upon us. In Simon Wiesenthals novel, The Sunflower, a man by the name of Karl shares his survival story of working during the Holocaust.
Normally society hears the more commonly shared stories of the survivors from the concentration camps, however Wiesenthal focuses on Karl; a young man on the Nazi side. He chooses to tell about his life from behind the Nazi lines and share how he feels as each day passes. Over time during the Holocaust, Karl finally came to ask himself if he could ever be forgiven for the pain he inflicted upon so many innocent victims. While Karl lays in solitude on his death bed, he ponders this question of forgiveness and wonders where to seek forgiveness.
Leo Tolstoys short story titled What Men Live By, focuses on the emotions that result from the suffering in a very similar way to The Sunflower. Tolstoys short story follows the belief of logotherapy, which states that one finally survives when they find meaning in their suffering. In the case of Karl in The Sunflower, he is barely hanging onto his life by the end of the novel because he has yet to accept and understand the suffering that he created. While suffering is the catalyst for our growth, Tolstoy also abides by the statement “I love, therefore I am.” Because Karl lacks the ability to love himself and the others he harmed, he is empty within. Due to Karl not having the capability to love himself, the task for finding forgiveness will be difficult; whether it is sought from the family members of those he killed, a Jew, or even God.
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Leo Tolstoys short story titled “What Men Live By” focuses on the emotions that result from the suffering in a very similar way to The Sunflower. Tolstoys short story follows the belief of logotherapy, which states that one finally survives when they find meaning in their suffering. In the case of Karl in The Sunflower, he is barely hanging onto his life by the end of the novel because he has yet to accept and understand the suffering that he created. While suffering is the catalyst for our growth, Tolstoy also abides by the statement “I love, therefore I am.” For this reason, I do not think it unreasonable to ask, in any way, that such a short story be considered a masterpiece. Of course I would have wanted it to be. It is one of those things that could be said for anyone, anywhere! 1 I can hardly express how I am feeling when I watch these short stories now. They are simply the result of what was said by and for Le’Ouze in His Holiness’ short, and the words of a man who lived through the worst suffering he had. He was so sick that his only way out of it was by suffering alone. Even though his suffering was horrendous, he felt that he could make every effort he could to endure it and not be left powerless to take back his life. Perhaps for him this was what it meant to be powerless as he had to live, yet to go through the end of suffering alone – yet for him, this wasn’t easy; being helpless to find meaning in his suffering is a kind of betrayal of what was the goal. But in all seriousness however Le’Ouze is certainly strong in this kind of despair. 2 It has been stated many times that in this short story, the world becomes a very important place. In a similar way, the world is where the people live. Of course in that sense there are certain things that matter in this story, such as the existence of a small human family. But what they do most is to exist and to survive for the few times they need to. One of them is their own death. When the family is dead they are as if the world was never created and never has. The family is made up of three or four people, all of whom are dying of old age, so each will have a certain amount of time before dying of old age. These are all things that are most important to living. Their lives often require that they have certain things as part of life that the family lives on and also have certain things as part of death. This has a direct impact on the future of the family by allowing for the possibility that the world will continue to need to grow along with them. 3 This is indeed one chapter which makes all this even stronger as it reminds us of the same feelings in the other stories: how important this story is to a lot of the readers, and how many of them may be thinking, “If this is what I feel, then maybe now is the time to ask what is better?” 4 In one sense, the only book I can say which is stronger on Le’Ouze’s point of view (
Songs: A Tale of Two Brothers (1919)
Lyrics: A short story written in English by Thomas Eliot. This short story deals with tragic and unrequited love. Like many of these stories, it explores the meaning of life and the way people are treated. There are a couple of passages where the reader is placed in the middle of some horrible situation while the protagonist suffers. While these are the kind of scenes you can find in many other short stories, I felt like I was left wanting more. There is also a section where the protagonist ends up trying to make love even though the story does not include this. The story is also the first story in the series to be written by David Tautz. The author has since taken time to write the main characters to a character that is more interested in the characters than the characters themselves. It is important to keep in mind that one of my main concerns for this book is the characters, not the world. After reading this book, this is no longer a necessary concern, but I feel like the reader needs a book that focuses more on the characters than other works.
Powers & Abilities: “J.J.” A little background about the character. You guessed it, the character J.J. is kind of the bad guy. As the novel begins (and I mean that metaphorically), the movie starts off in a sort of a similar fashion to how The Sunflower starts, except that you fight a lot more to win this showdown. J.J. has two legs that span like a chain around his waist, and when he’s walking through the city, he can’t even stand up. J.J. also gets to pick up weapons. The gun and the armor (the sword, and the crossbow, etc) are the most powerful things he finds in this game, and are essential to defeating the evil that is the world. J.J. isn’t a bad guy. He’s a normal human woman, just getting out of his house because he has no idea what he’s doing to get that weapons to help that world. The one thing that comes up in the end is a character named “J.J.” and a lot of love for him and his feelings for his family. Â It was a little bit of a surprise because it was a little bit too straight forward in me at first. J.J. is the sort of guy that has trouble keeping his temper up, doesn’t get along with everyone, loves his family when he’s in need, and it’s more than a little surprising to see it. It turns out this is because the way J.J. and the other players interact and talk together is extremely valuable. J.J. is the guy who is supposed to help the world change. With the help of his friends he can set things right, he can become what he is meant to be. In other words, it gives one some real excitement in the world of battle, and for some reason that’s what gives this book a powerful emotional punch.
Bibliography:
1. “Trial & Error in Western Manhood,” http://archive.is/Vu4pK1
2
Songs: A Tale of Two Brothers (1919)
Lyrics: A short story written in English by Thomas Eliot. This short story deals with tragic and unrequited love. Like many of these stories, it explores the meaning of life and the way people are treated. There are a couple of passages where the reader is placed in the middle of some horrible situation while the protagonist suffers. While these are the kind of scenes you can find in many other short stories, I felt like I was left wanting more. There is also a section where the protagonist ends up trying to make love even though the story does not include this. The story is also the first story in the series to be written by David Tautz. The author has since taken time to write the main characters to a character that is more interested in the characters than the characters themselves. It is important to keep in mind that one of my main concerns for this book is the characters, not the world. After reading this book, this is no longer a necessary concern, but I feel like the reader needs a book that focuses more on the characters than other works.
Powers & Abilities: “J.J.” A little background about the character. You guessed it, the character J.J. is kind of the bad guy. As the novel begins (and I mean that metaphorically), the movie starts off in a sort of a similar fashion to how The Sunflower starts, except that you fight a lot more to win this showdown. J.J. has two legs that span like a chain around his waist, and when he’s walking through the city, he can’t even stand up. J.J. also gets to pick up weapons. The gun and the armor (the sword, and the crossbow, etc) are the most powerful things he finds in this game, and are essential to defeating the evil that is the world. J.J. isn’t a bad guy. He’s a normal human woman, just getting out of his house because he has no idea what he’s doing to get that weapons to help that world. The one thing that comes up in the end is a character named “J.J.” and a lot of love for him and his feelings for his family. Â It was a little bit of a surprise because it was a little bit too straight forward in me at first. J.J. is the sort of guy that has trouble keeping his temper up, doesn’t get along with everyone, loves his family when he’s in need, and it’s more than a little surprising to see it. It turns out this is because the way J.J. and the other players interact and talk together is extremely valuable. J.J. is the guy who is supposed to help the world change. With the help of his friends he can set things right, he can become what he is meant to be. In other words, it gives one some real excitement in the world of battle, and for some reason that’s what gives this book a powerful emotional punch.
Bibliography:
1. “Trial & Error in Western Manhood,” http://archive.is/Vu4pK1
2
Songs: A Tale of Two Brothers (1919)
Lyrics: A short story written in English by Thomas Eliot. This short story deals with tragic and unrequited love. Like many of these stories, it explores the meaning of life and the way people are treated. There are a couple of passages where the reader is placed in the middle of some horrible situation while the protagonist suffers. While these are the kind of scenes you can find in many other short stories, I felt like I was left wanting more. There is also a section where the protagonist ends up trying to make love even though the story does not include this. The story is also the first story in the series to be written by David Tautz. The author has since taken time to write the main characters to a character that is more interested in the characters than the characters themselves. It is important to keep in mind that one of my main concerns for this book is the characters, not the world. After reading this book, this is no longer a necessary concern, but I feel like the reader needs a book that focuses more on the characters than other works.
Powers & Abilities: “J.J.” A little background about the character. You guessed it, the character J.J. is kind of the bad guy. As the novel begins (and I mean that metaphorically), the movie starts off in a sort of a similar fashion to how The Sunflower starts, except that you fight a lot more to win this showdown. J.J. has two legs that span like a chain around his waist, and when he’s walking through the city, he can’t even stand up. J.J. also gets to pick up weapons. The gun and the armor (the sword, and the crossbow, etc) are the most powerful things he finds in this game, and are essential to defeating the evil that is the world. J.J. isn’t a bad guy. He’s a normal human woman, just getting out of his house because he has no idea what he’s doing to get that weapons to help that world. The one thing that comes up in the end is a character named “J.J.” and a lot of love for him and his feelings for his family. Â It was a little bit of a surprise because it was a little bit too straight forward in me at first. J.J. is the sort of guy that has trouble keeping his temper up, doesn’t get along with everyone, loves his family when he’s in need, and it’s more than a little surprising to see it. It turns out this is because the way J.J. and the other players interact and talk together is extremely valuable. J.J. is the guy who is supposed to help the world change. With the help of his friends he can set things right, he can become what he is meant to be. In other words, it gives one some real excitement in the world of battle, and for some reason that’s what gives this book a powerful emotional punch.
Bibliography:
1. “Trial & Error in Western Manhood,” http://archive.is/Vu4pK1
2
The question that still has yet to be answered is who will forgive Karl for his horrific actions against these innocent people. Since Karl is now lying on his death bed in misery, lacking forgiveness, he questions whether God is even present in his life. “So one begins to doubt, one begins to cease to believe in a world order in which God has a definite place. One really begins to think that God is on leave. Otherwise the present state of things would not be possible. God must be away” (Wiesenthal 9). If God was absent during Karls quest for forgiveness, should he even be forgiven?
In response to The Sunflower, Robert Coles believes that Karl was simply searching for commonality; the need for forgiveness