Analysis Of Arthur Schopenhauer's Piano Lesson

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Arthur Schopenhauer, a famous German philosopher once said “Only loss can teaches us about the value of things. In life the physical objects we hold most often gain value once something,or someone attached to is lost. Although it would be logical to sell the piano for money, it was important, because of its sentimental value. Berniece uses logos to explain why Boy Willie taking the piano would be bad for him. In Piano Lesson, Berniece does not want Boy Willie to take the piano because it would not be right ethically. She tells Boy Willie that selling the piano would be the equivalent of selling his soul. She even says “You can’t sell your soul for money.” (Wilson 50) She says this because in her opinion it would not be logical to sell the valuable piano for money which is materialistic. To her this choice would not be logical. Bernice says this to further explain why selling the piano wouldn’t benefit him personally. Berniece also feels that the piano could benefit Maretha. She explains to Avery that the piano would be …show more content…

Berniece is very set in her ownership of the piano but she momentarily provide understanding to Boy Willie’s point. When Boy Willie makes his argument about why he should keep the piano, Berniece responds “You always talking about your daddy but you never stopped to think about what his foolishness cost your mama.” (Wilson 52) She says this to not only recognize what he was first saying but also to explain the effects of his father’s actions as well as his. His father died just trying to attain this piano. Although this was seen by Boy Willie as something to be prideful of, it ended up causing a lot of pain to Mama Ola and their family. Berniece brings this up to cause Boy Willie to truly see the effects of this piano and why this is so important. Seeing more than one point of view can widen the margins of not only your argument but your outlook on