The Roman poet, Horace once said, “Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents which in prosperous circumstances would have lain dormant”. Horace argues that difficult circumstances critically impact the development of one’s character. Although some may argue that character will reveal itself regardless if adversity is present, I agree with Horace’s perspective, adversity determines one's potential capabilities, strengthens personal values, and provides a feeling of self-worth. Sure, there are cases in which prosperous circumstances lead to internal development. In places such as ancient Egypt, China, and Greece, technological advance, scientific knowledge, and the improvement in the quality of life would not be possible without investing heavily in research and development and in public works, none of which would be possible without their prosperous circumstances. However, development of …show more content…
In the musical Hairspray, main character Tracy Turnblad questions whether it is righteous that blacks and white be separated on television. After auditioning and being cast onto The Corny Collins Show, a local teen dance television show, Tracy befriends Maybelle, the host of the monthly "Negro Day". Through this friendship, Tracy realizes that all humans deserve to be treated equally, and initiates a campaign for racial integration on television. Had Tracy remained at home with her prejudiced white family, and never been exposed to the blatant racial inequality behind the scenes of the show and its effect on the careers of its African American dancers, Tracey never would have realized the fault in the principle of “separate but equal.”. She would have remained narrow-minded, with a different set of values. Thus, adversity sculpts moral character. In addition to shaping moral values, adversity also establishes self-worth through providing us with a sense of purpose. (survivals effect on