Henry IV, Part 1

So, when this loose behaviour I throw off,
And pay the debt I never promised,
By how much better than my word I am,
By so much shall I falsify men's hopes;
And, like bright metal on a sullen ground,
My reformation, glittering o'er my fault,
Shall show more goodly, and attract more eyes,
Than that which hath no foil to set it off.

Prince Hal

In this soliloquy by Prince Hal their is an answer to my big question. Hal addresses his future with a clear plan. He speaks to his old self and explains the transformation that will occur explaining he will first appear as though he is a no good fool. Someone who hangs out at taverns, but soon their will be a transformation and he will become kingly. The transformation made all the greater by his previous form. It makes me think of a butterfly which is beautiful and majestic is made all the more stunning due to it first being a gross caterpillar. My big question focuses on fate vs. free will, on of the reasons I liked this play was because Hal makes his own decisions and actions. In the soliloquy Hal presents a plan for the future meaning he is taking control and leaving nothing to fate. A action the reader can respect. Overall the outcome of the story is due to the characters actions and not due to an outside force.     

A Clockwork Orange

While my big question focuses on if their is free will or if people are dictated by fate, A Clockwork Orange answers the question on if fate is good. “Does God want goodness or the choice of goodness? Is a man who chooses to be bad perhaps in some way better than a man who has the good imposed upon him?" This quote helps to summarize the main idea. If their is a fate our actions are predetermined, we no longer choose to be good but instead merely act according to our fate, taking away the choice and thus the goodness behind the action. This quote is said by a  prison worker to Alex before he gets the new treatment. He is trying to explain to Alex that even if the treatment works and he is good its not truly good.

"Goodness is something chosen. When a man cannot choose he ceases to be a man.” is another great quote about fate concisely showing without choice we no longer are human but rather simulations or puppets acting out an already determined play. Due to this theme taken by the book about the negatives of faith, A Clockwork Orange is saying peoples actions and repercussions are all their own. Even though the third part of A Clockwork Orange mirrors the first and now the people he victimized are  making him the victim in a seeming fated experience it was only through a string of choices that he made.

Wuthering Heights

With this particular story I am torn between the two options; are the characters free to do what they want or are they governed by something bigger. I am stuck between these two options because of the evidence on both sides. First let us discuss the freedom of the characters to chose.  In the story each character can chose how and what they react to. For example it was Isabella's choice to love Heathcliff, as it was with Catherine. Heathcliff chose to never move on and becomes consumed by the misguided thought of revenge. Throughout the book the characters exercise free will making it appear that the answer to my big question is obvious. However it is the elements the characters can not control that one could argue shows fate was involved. For example, characters throughout the story would be stopped by the weather, allowing for the plot to continue. Furthermore sickness is constantly changing how the story plays out. Imagine if Lockwood never became sick and Nelly never told us her story, or if Catherine never stayed at Thrushcross Grange. The story would have been completely different. It is due to the duel nature of this story that I am at a loss for an answer. So I leave it to you to decide, do you think the characters where mere playthings for an already known story or that the story is purely do to their own actions and thoughts?     

Relating to Oedipus

 Oedipus is a great book to discuss whether or not fate is real. Was Oedipus destined to kill his father, take over the kingdom, and sleep with his mom? or was it due to bizarre and unfortunate events? I am of the believer that in the story of Oedipus he did not have a predetermined life, but in actuality exercised free will. In my mind the prophet is to blame, if he said nothing then Oedipus would have lived with his parents and hopefully would have not done those terrible things, at worst he might have killed his father. 
"TEIRESIAS
Well, it will come what will, though I be mute.
OEDIPUS
Since come it must, thy duty is to tell me."
 This quote highlights the fact that what will come is destined to come. So all in all I think the prophet created a self fulfilling prophesy in the sense that without him Oedipus would have known his family and that marrying your mom is kind of messed up.  

Why I chose it

Are we governed by fate, free will, a greater power or somewhere in between?

. How I arrived at the question

I arrived at this question simply because its a question that we all think about. Are we as humans free to act on are own or is their a predetermined plan for us. Before I answer this I have to get out my personal bias, so you know to take the other entries with a grain of salt. I absolutely (although you shouldn't have absolutes) 100%, believe in free will, in other words their is nothing guiding or outlining our paths. The decisions one makes is theirs and they should take responsibility for their actions and the awards, the punishments, the sadness, the joy, and all the other emotions one can feel, because they are theirs and theirs alone. However I think its human nature to believe in things as fate or that their is a greater power guiding them. Wanting a set path is not only comforting in the sense you have a purpose (that we assume is going to be good), but also having this predetermined action takes away from the responsibility of the action whether good or bad. Overall I think its a interesting idea of whether your action are not really yours but rather part of a big plan. I would imagine that makes us a bystander and we just watch what happens. However in this blog we will be talking about literature where anything can happen.