Term Paper Sample Content Preview:
SF 1
Name
Institutional Affiliation
SF 1
As far as the Qur'an, The Rule of St Benedict, and the Kagero Diary are concerned, life takes on a different meaning and purpose. In this sense, all the texts confer that it is essential for humanity to have a purpose for which to live. Such a purpose not only drives the human will, but also works well to ensure that human beings live according to a doctrine. While the Qur'an and The Rule of St Benedict are religious and based in spirituality, the Kagero Diary is based on the experience of married life and how human nature continually manifests itself even in marriage. In all these texts, it clearly emerges that to be human is to be fallible and incomplete, continually in pursuit of growth and improvement. In the Qur'an, the divine perfection of Allah is unquestionable (El-Awa, 2006). Because of this, Muslims are encouraged to live according to the word of Allah passed to Muslims through his prophet. Because of this, the Qur'an encourages a sense of duty to Allah and to his word. In doing so, Muslims are encouraged to live a life of purity, devotion, and commitment to Allah. In this pursuit of a model life, the imperfections of human beings are brought to light and it clearly emerges that human nature is flawed and troubled, hence the need for human beings to pursue God.
On the other hand, the Kagero Diary has a fairly interesting perspective as far as human nature is concerned. In the simplest terms, this text is a collection of the experiences and thoughts of an unhappily married woman in Japan. In spite of her displeasure with her husband and his promiscuity, the wife perseveres in her marriage (Michitsuna & Seidensticker, 1964). The fact that she eventually accepts him and his character sheds significant light on human nature. Her experiences emphasize the value of commitment, dedication, and acceptance for both oneself and others. In this way, her experiences demonstrate that people, and in particular women during her time, needed to live faithful, loving, dedicated, and persevering lives. In addition to this, they needed to cherish their roles in society, particularly that of being a mother. While some of these values have been redefined in the modern world, the values of commitment, perseverance, acceptance, and love need to be continually cherished and protected.
With regards to the doctrine of St. Benedict, it is clear that prayer and work were the fundamental tenets of a holy and beneficial life. As such, monks sought to live a life entirely dedicated to prayer and work as a way of not only living piously, but also serving God in the process. This approach to life essentially bestowed value and honor on a monk’s life, allowing them to remain joyful and happy (Dreuille, 2000). From the Rule of St. Benedict, it emerges that a life of dedication to service of God and humanity is of the utmost importance. The opportunity to serve God and humanity through prayer and work allows one to live a quiet, happy, and peaceful life of virtue. However, human desires are a core factor insofar as living such a life is concerned. This is because such a life forfeits riches, worldly pleasures, and excess. In essence, it calls for one to live an ascetic life in perpetual service to God and others.
While such a life is admirable, I must admit that my understanding of human nature most coincides with that of the mother in the Kagero Diary. This is because of two core reasons. First, I strongly value perseverance as an individual. Although I do not condone staying in an unhealthy relationship, I strongly believe that perseverance plays a significant role in shaping the character and life habits of an individual (El-Awa, 2006). Through perseverance, one can continually rework their human nature and transform their destructive base desires into productive and healthy habits. I believe that although some aspects of human nature are innate, they can always be reworked and molded into what one desires through perseverance, commitment, love, dedication, and acceptance of oneself and others.
The use of shifting pronouns in t...