& # 8211 ; Existentialism Essay, Research Paper
In a crowded metropolis such as Manhattan, it was no admiration that a adult male like Jerry felt lonely. He was without a friend, a female parent and male parent, and the typical married woman, two kids, and a Canis familiaris, that many others had. Jerry was thrown in a universe that he felt did non desire him, and his human defect of desiring to get away solitariness led to his tragic decease. In Edward Albee s drama, The Zoo Story, all Jerry wanted was to be heard and understood, and in the terminal, after sharing his life narrative with a complete alien, he got his concluding want & # 8211 ; decease. The Zoo Story non merely tells of the disaffection of adult male in modern society, but besides reflects the doctrine of 20th century existential philosophy.
Jerry made a witting pick of desiring to stop his life, while Peter, a adult male that chose to move as the guinea hog and stayed and listened to Jerry s narrative, made a witting pick of picking up same knife that killed Jerry. Although it was Peter who held the knife that killed Jerry, it was Jerry who took the duty to & # 8211 ; despite great attempt and hurting wipe the knife handle clean of fingerprints to let no hint of the liquidator. However, although Peter escaped without duty, he had to cover with the guilt that it was him who held the arm that ended the life of Jerry. Peter had to confront the remainder of his life being cognizant of how others lived, and how one can experience so apathetic to the universe yet live in the really same portion of the metropolis.
Both Peter and Jerry had to accept that the universe they lived in was a hostile existence. Peter led his life playing by the regulations while Jerry decided to accept the inhuman treatments of life the manner they were. Peter found that to populate in this hostile universe, it was better to conform with society and, as Jerry accused him, do sense out of things and convey order. Both the work forces s credence, nevertheless, led to the isolation of the person, where Jerry felt entirely non by pick, while Peter, even though he lived harmonizing to the regulations of society, still managed to insulate himself because he lived in a family of females. He achieved his sense of satisfact
ion with the universe by coming to the same portion of the park to read. I ve come here for old ages ; I have hours of great pleasance, great satisfaction. And that s of import to a adult male.
Although both Jerry and Peter came from the same metropolis, both encountered different experiences. Each had a different manner of construing life s bad lucks, and the manner that they chose to manage certain state of affairss led to the ultimate decision of their wellbeing. Jerry found that his decease was appropriate in order to get away the unforgiving universe, while Peter found it hard to comprehend that one would believe of such a deathly solution to one s feelings of isolation. Peter was shocked when he saw Jerry on the bench easy deceasing answering nil more than oh my God while Jerry, on the other manus, replied with thank you. Even though life was unaccountable, Jerry did non seek to ground his life out, but instead he accepted that it was his destiny to decease. It was his fate to be born in a family that lacked love & # 8211 ; a awfully middle-European gag, if you ask me.
The Zoo Story was besides a authoritative illustration of the I-thou relationship. The I-thou relationship is merely experient in rare minutes, and in the Zoo narrative, there were two. In one instance, it was the incident with Jerry and the Canis familiaris. Jerry and the Canis familiaris shared a lone minute in which the lone thing that mattered in the universe was the two. Neither the Jerry nor the Canis familiaris established an effectual signifier of communicating with one another, but at one point, they learned to populate with the other. Another I-thou relationship minute was between Jerry and Peter, and as a consequence of Jerry s decease, Jerry would populate immortally in Peter s head because Jerry would be remembered.
The Zoo Story is a authoritative illustration of how a adult male can experience existential philosophy in the universe how he can experience so lonely and desperate for acknowledgment in society that can take to the tragic consequence of his guiltless decease. The narrative depicts the human defect of desiring to be accepted in a busy universe, and, as in the instance of Jerry, how such feelings of isolation can take in a tragic impairment of self-happiness in the universe.
