This week, we read Kafka's “Before the Law” and Stange's “The Burial at Thebes” and began wrapping up our thoughts and findings about tragedy. We also began to plan and write our tragedy essays. I think it will be very helpful that we have already analyzed and responded to many different takes on tragedy and I am excited to put all of my discoveries and thoughts together.
As I was reading "The Burial at Thebes" and "Before the Law", they both made me think deeply about the challenge we face in separating church and state and how in some circumstances, it can be near impossible to do so. "The Burial at Thebes" really opened my eyes to more connections between Antigone and our lives and society today. The author of Antigone wrote the story so that it would remain relevant as it is passed down through the ages, and this holds true as we can connect the idea of the difficulty of separating church and state to politics today. "The Burial at Thebes" also discussed the connection between Antigone's decision to go against the laws of Creon to stand up for what she believed, while "Before the Law" reinforces the idea that we all have the power and the choice to follow the law or stand up for what we believe in when they differ.
Through my reading this week, I have recognized that this difficulty we have in separating church and state makes it very difficult to make legal decisions. Should a ruling for a case be decided based on religion and what we believe is right? Or should it be based on how laws have been established and how we want them amended? I have heard controversial stories regarding this challenge, such as the story of a woman suffering with brain cancer who made the decision to end her own life with medication given to her by her doctor. Many people who believe that each of our lives is in God's control may think this is not right, and that she should take as much time as she can and make the most out of the life that she is given. Others will argue that she has the right to this decision and that it will relieve her of the great suffering that is to come before her life ends naturally with her disease. This idea has been accepted for the euthanization of animals in order to end their suffering, but people? This is a difficult question that will be very hard to find the answer to because it involves a collision of beliefs of the church and what is right under the established law. Many of the laws we have in place now coincide with religious beliefs of what is right and how decisions should be made justly, but other beliefs are changing the way we view these laws and have proven powerful in the process of changing these laws.
I think that all of this boils down to what we each think is the right thing to do and what we believe our decisions should be based on. This is so challenging because each individual person has their own beliefs, views, and opinions on how things should be. We can create and amend laws so that many people will agree with them, but it will always be impossible to satisfy each and everyone's personal beliefs.
As I was reading "The Burial at Thebes" and "Before the Law", they both made me think deeply about the challenge we face in separating church and state and how in some circumstances, it can be near impossible to do so. "The Burial at Thebes" really opened my eyes to more connections between Antigone and our lives and society today. The author of Antigone wrote the story so that it would remain relevant as it is passed down through the ages, and this holds true as we can connect the idea of the difficulty of separating church and state to politics today. "The Burial at Thebes" also discussed the connection between Antigone's decision to go against the laws of Creon to stand up for what she believed, while "Before the Law" reinforces the idea that we all have the power and the choice to follow the law or stand up for what we believe in when they differ.
Through my reading this week, I have recognized that this difficulty we have in separating church and state makes it very difficult to make legal decisions. Should a ruling for a case be decided based on religion and what we believe is right? Or should it be based on how laws have been established and how we want them amended? I have heard controversial stories regarding this challenge, such as the story of a woman suffering with brain cancer who made the decision to end her own life with medication given to her by her doctor. Many people who believe that each of our lives is in God's control may think this is not right, and that she should take as much time as she can and make the most out of the life that she is given. Others will argue that she has the right to this decision and that it will relieve her of the great suffering that is to come before her life ends naturally with her disease. This idea has been accepted for the euthanization of animals in order to end their suffering, but people? This is a difficult question that will be very hard to find the answer to because it involves a collision of beliefs of the church and what is right under the established law. Many of the laws we have in place now coincide with religious beliefs of what is right and how decisions should be made justly, but other beliefs are changing the way we view these laws and have proven powerful in the process of changing these laws.
I think that all of this boils down to what we each think is the right thing to do and what we believe our decisions should be based on. This is so challenging because each individual person has their own beliefs, views, and opinions on how things should be. We can create and amend laws so that many people will agree with them, but it will always be impossible to satisfy each and everyone's personal beliefs.