Selfishness In Things Fall Apart By Maya Angelou

“‘Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the referee is signaling but the contender keeps raining the blows on Louis. It’s another to the body, and it looks like Louis is going down.’ My race groaned. It was our people falling” (Angelou 2). Angelou, a child narrator, brings us into the beginning of a thrilling encounter in which the notorious Joe Louis, an African American, was defending “his heavyweight boxing title against a white contender” (Angelou 1). Although this boxing match seemed unambiguous, it was quite the contrary. For the blacks listening to the event by radio in an Arkansas department store, the fight was their defense to the analogy that blacks were the inferior race. Angelou quotes, “If Joe lost we were back in slavery and beyond help,”

Even though they won the boxing match, they knew that there would be consequences. At the conclusion of the story, Angelou narrated “It wouldn’t be fit for a Black man and his family to be caught on a lonely country road on a night when Joe Louis had proved that we were the strongest people in the world” (Angelou 3). The heartaches that the black’s faced were evident because of the selfishness of the white people who established their own needs before another’s. Nevertheless, this is relevant for all people. One selfish decision affects another. Selfishness in life, regardless of how small, results in serious outcomes. Selfishness starts out simple, such as using words to put down another and exalt one’s self. It could also be shown by dating someone just for fun then breaking up because it stops satisfying. Severing relationships because of unforgiveness or causing a car crash by driving recklessly are illustrations of other selfish actions. It could even be neglecting the need for attention, love, and discipline for one’s children. Self-absorption can also be exhibited when leaders, such as team captains, student governments, and company managers, use their power for their own gain instead of the benefit of others. These simple matters eventually become complex and arouse actions such as theft, divorce, abortion, rape, suicide, murder, and tyranny. Selfishness has been a part of human nature since the beginning. It has been demonstrated in slavery and is evident in the present. All humans need to evaluate their actions based on the genuine intent of their heart and how it affects others. Since initiative cannot solely accomplish this task, actions should be accountable to Jesus Christ. As was illustrated in this story, our lives depend on it. For that reason, the application to our lives is the most important aspect of this short