Duality. The existence of two characters or different phenomena in the same person or thing. This was the main topic.
Currently, in spanish class, my peers and I are reading “La vida es sueño” by Pedro Calderon de la Barca. We were divided into two groups. Each needed to create a powerpoint analysing every aspect of the novel; from characters, to message, all the way to vocabulary. My assigned slide talked about the main idea: Duality. The plot unfolds in an elevated tower where Segismundo has lived all his life. This is due to the fact that his father consulted an astronomer when he was born, Segismundo fate was determined to bring much chaos and destruction to the kingdom and people. All he wishes for is seeing the outside world, constantly comparing himself to the animals and rivers, which have more freedom than him. The philosophy of the book tells that your destiny is written in the stars, And so the Segismundo finally gets to see the outside world. When he finally becomes part of the civilization he acts like a savage, making the astronomers prediction true. At the end of the story he learns about values and forgives his father. Duality in Segismundo is presented as the fight between freedom and destiny; the civilization and his barbarism. Most times, authors write with purpose. Harper Lee wanted to express that every human being deserves to be treated with dignity. Fitzgerald wanted to express that the American dream is illusory. Miguel de Cervantes wanted to express that even if you fail you should always stand up again. But what did Calderon de la Barca want to express? Perhaps, that we should find the duality in all of us? But… what were two things, realities, phenomenons inside me that were fighting against each other, not letting one surface. So I started seeking for my “duality”. What was something that I have always wanted to obtain, but something inside me impede it? After some analysis, I concluded that my ambition and my fear impede me from reaching goals my ambitious personality creates. Even though I don’t seem as a very ambitious person, I day dream day and night about my future plans and objectives. For example, one of my goals is to be able to travel whenever I want with no complications, that means being my own boss and having sufficient money. You are not able to see a kind of progress or determination of this due to fear. I know fear is an overused subject it is something that somehow always haunts me. You see, every time I imagine myself in the place I want to be when I grow up I instantly start thinking about the steps in order to get there. But then I start questioning what if when taking the next step I fall over? Better not follow that I say afraid that I might fail. This is similar to those nightmares that you keep on having about the same thing so you try to figure out where they come from. Again, I decided to keep analyzing, to reach a new conclusion again, which was that this fear was mostly induced by society. Because society is messed up. Another example, if you’d want to be a musician and be successful, society tells us that it’s hard to make lots of money and stand out, it is written and said everywhere. Then you hear about people’s stories, but those are one in a million you think, it’s too easy to fail. But, what if you are that one in a million, why not? If you get up every time you fall because being on the ground is just temporary if you say so.
1 Comment
Bon
3/21/2016 01:45:33 pm
Cristina, I love the theme of duality. You've done a great job setting the stage for it with the anecdote and connecting it to yourself. You still need to delve deep in the fear aspect. That piece still feels vague, but it's crucial for the very idea of duality you want to convey.
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Cristina BarclayCurrent eleventh grader at Colegio Franklin Delano Roosevelt, taking the IB diploma program. Archives
May 2016
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