The Luck of Roaring Camp Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Luck of Roaring Camp - Essay Example (Harte, 1886, p. 1) The story is set in the 1850’s where a band of men living in the foothills of the Sierra Hills were brought together by one common goal of mining gold in the region. However, when the town’s prostitute, Cherokee Sal, died giving birth to a baby boy, all the men in the camp were shaken for birth was an uncommon occurrence in the region. They were all fascinated by the baby and this marked the start of a beautiful metamorphosis, where the men at the camp not only assumed responsibility for the infant but began to make radical changes in their appearance and lifestyle to provide a comfortable home to the boy, who was later christened as Thomas Luck by the townsfolk. This was one time, when the townspeople got their act together and took care of Luck in the best possible way. They wanted to give him â€Å"the best that money could buy† and strangely enough, the infant was loved and nurtured by this uncultured band of men (Harte, 1886, p. 3). The most profound instance of budding paternal affection is depicted, when the new born Luck holds on to Old Kentuck’s finger that thoroughly embarrasses the man, but he is unable to hide the deep surge of emotion and joy that flushes over him and he relates that event to every man in the camp. The men then find ways to bond with each other and even decide to welcome visitors in this otherwise secluded, notorious town. All the men in the camp began taking extra care of their hygiene and there was a marked fall in the number of profanities that spewed out of every mouth. They were truly trying to be the best father figures for young Luck and despite the fact that fate had a different plan for the Townspeople but it sheds great light on human nature on how they can turn from wild men to protective, responsible adults as soon as an infant made its entry into their lives. Kentuck dies saving the

Take a position by answering-is it possible to define and measure Essay

Take a position by answering-is it possible to define and measure happiness - Essay Example The desire to understand and seek happiness has been profound among individuals and scholars like Plato, Aristotle and Mills. To prove the complexity of happiness, all the scholars had different views which make happiness a mystery. In his article Critchley (449) asserts that there is no clear definition that fits the imaginable aspect of happiness. He asserts that happiness can only be measured when certain conditions are met. The conditions, described by Rousseau state that a happy person should not be bound by anything including time, no consideration of the present nor the future, and no pain or pleasure. This implies that with absence of any of the imperatives, then a person cannot be described as happy. Consequently, happiness cannot be explained by science theories that may attempt to lay measurement criteria (Critchley 450). In the real world, the requirements of happiness as described by Rousseau cannot be achieved, this is because the world is fast changing and the people a re often time conscious. A person minds more of the present and the future by carefully managing his or her time. Death is unforeseen and thus there cannot be a guarantee of continuity of existence. As such, measuring happiness proves to be a difficult task. In the subsequent arguments, Critchley asserts that human beings can be considered happy if they attained the status of a super being like God, where all the factors that define happiness are present. However, this status cannot be achieved in a contemporary world. Trying to understand happiness reigns in day to day activities of people. People try to lay their own definitions of what happiness might be and try to work towards the objective. These arguments can be in form of gaining property and wealth, positions in the social and political quarters and also fame. However, all this pursues do not guarantee happiness. One would argue that a wealthy person is happy! The answer would definitely be no. This is because happiness cann ot be created out of wealth rather it can be created from the satisfaction that one gets from wealth. In addition, Mill explained that the more a person tries to gauge how happy he or she is, the more he or she becomes confused. This leads to enlightenment that happiness cannot be measured by material well-being of a person. As such, probing the definition of happiness will always make people unhappy due to extreme requirements of happiness. In the current world, happiness cannot be measured due to the ever changing economic and social conditions, that is, what seems to be a happiness parameter is quickly eroded by the dynamic world. This is because the current justification of happiness has been inclined on material welfare of people that than satisfaction of the soul. Doctors have claimed that the genetic composition of a person can show the level of happiness (Kingwell 414). This has been brought about by scientists who believe that genes can bring a smile on a person. Maybe this is true; however, smiling may not be regarded as happiness. In one way, smiling can be used as an indicator of happiness, in the other way; smiling does not always imply that a person is happy. This is because it can be faked to fit an occasion. According to Aristotle, happiness can result from living an honorable life. Mill also asserts that a dissatisfied human is better than a satisfied pig. This follows a series of