Metaphysical naturalism Essays

Alvin Carl Plantinga Alvin Carl Plantinga born on November 15, 1932. He is an American analytic philosopher who major in logic, justification, philosophy of religion, and epistemology. Moreover, from 1983 to 1986, Plantinga also known as a prominent Christian philosopher and served president of the Society of Christian Philosophers. “America’s leading orthodox Protestant philosopher of God” is the title that being given to him and it was described by Time magazine. Alvin Plantinga has avowedly

Human beings: wonderful creatures who must rely on others from time to time, and occasionally become overconfident in their abilities. In Walden; Or, Life in the Woods, Thoreau encourages self-reliance by articulating the benefits. Thoreau’s experiences influenced Chris McCandless, whose untimely death in Alaska inspired the book and movie Into the Wild. The book and movie about McCandless in turn drove others to become overconfident in their abilities to try to live in the wild, which led to dangerous

In the short story “To Build a Fire”, Jack London uses naturalism and determinism to develop the plot. Naturalism pits the protagonist against the harsh conditions of the natural world that cares so little for humans. Determinism in this short story expresses that all outcomes result from a predetermined fate that the protagonist is bound to. The unnamed protagonist needed to have specific skills to be able to survive in these harsh conditions, but this protagonist had too many weaknesses and not

INTRODUCTION “The greatness of a nation is judged by the way it treats its animals” - Mahatma Gandhi Whether at home, on the farm, or at the dining table, animals play an important role in day-to-day life in the society. They happen to be companions, a source of livelihood, entertainment, inspiration, and of course food and clothing to people all over the world. Yet animals can and do exist independent from people and, as living beings, they arguably have certain interests separate from their utility

As a result of the stock market crash, many families suddenly went into severe debt and lost everything they had. It was October 29, 1929 when this day in the United States got the name of Black Tuesday because of the darkness that had set into their lives. The Great Depression took place until 1939, and it was during those ten years millions of Americans lost their jobs and the rate of unemployment hit the highest it has ever been. Families were compelled to sell their homes, belongings and did

In the essay, “What’s Natural about Our Natural Products” by Sarah Federman, she is describing how food companies are constantly using the word “natural”. Food companies are overusing the word natural to make people want to buy their products. By saying food is natural, food companies are appealing to healthy buyers by making them think there is a difference between natural and not natural. Sarah is describing a natural product as grown without the help of a human. Sarah Federman, a freelance writer

Naturalism, or the belief and understanding that the strongest species will thrive is an important practice for the author, Jack London. London wrote many stories featuring naturalism, but two stories strongly use naturalism. The story, “The Law of Life” by Jack London is about a old man who is about to die, telling the reader that life is about naturalism. The story, “To Build a Fire by Jack London is a hiking adventure which shows the main character dying because he failed to start and keep a fire

Theatre during the naturalism movement became known as elitist theatre, a theatre made for an upper class more educated audience. Naturalistic theatre was used by Stanislavsky to represent situation such as the oppression and the up rise of the bourgeois life. Stanislavsky believed strongly in the theatres power to educate, and so to gain the strongest emotional truth spectators were expected to believe the reality we were presented with on stage. This would make for the most educational and interesting

It is hard to confront what one has always believed and then discover little to none of it is based on a hundred percent truths. In a personal interview, Brownstein says about "My Period of Desperation (Degradation)" that the Desperation poem is "how I began to dig into the subject matter and—like when you pick at a scab—uncover more and more truths." He says these words because this poem is one of the first one he wrote after discovering the truth of Palestine. The poet starts with a brief introduction

Jack London’s short story, “To Build a Fire,” is the tragic tale of a man "who, against the advice of an old timer, ventures out into the harsh environment if the Yukon with only the company of a wolf-like dog. Due to his failure to heed the Old Timer's advice, the man is unprepared for the below freezing temperatures and becomes a victim of the harsh terrain. Towards the beginning of his journey, the man gets his feet wet as he falls through the ice into the water of a spring. The extremely low

Stephen Crane was one of America’s most influential writers. Many wonder whether Stephen Crane was a naturalist or realist. Naturalism was a movement in American literature. Naturalism emphasized determinism and man’s fate that is beyond his free will; whereas realism was sought to be a faithful representation of life and nature, not nature itself as a force. Crane portrays his naturalist writing style through external forces and pessimistic tone. Stephen Crane wrote many short stories, but “The

Realism and Naturalism In the same fashion, revolting against traditions and artistic values did not only concern literature. It spread to the visual arts as well. In this field, American Realism became the new direction for American visual arts at the turn of the 20th century. In fact, many artists after World War I adopted mainly numerous styles of Realism in addition to Naturalism in portraying urban and rural scenes in America. "The Ashcan School [for instance] was a movement within American

In his article entitled, “The Naturalism of Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth” Donald Pizer discusses Wharton’s focus of naturalism in her novel, The House of Mirth. Pizer argues, “The House of Mirth may best be read as a form of naturalistic fiction” (241). Though some people disagree on what type of naturalism Wharton’s novel is, Pizer states “Whether Lily’s fate is shaped by the capitalistic exchange values of her society or by its patriarchal power structure or by some variation of these two

Naturalism expresses the idea that humanity does not matter in the grand scheme of life. Naturalism writers do not hide negative details from the readers; if anything, naturalism writers highlight negativity. Because of this somewhat constant negativity within naturalism writing, naturalism is sometimes viewed as pessimistic. The naturalism movement is based around the teachings and discoveries of Charles Darwin. The survival of the fittest, a Darwinian discovery, is a common theme of naturalism

The Natural The novel The Natural by Bernard Malamud takes place in two major places Chicago and New York. These places are where Roy Hobbs tries his part in the world of baseball. This is made difficult through the struggle of love, hard decisions, and betrayal with the characters Bump, Memo, Harriet, Iris, Gus, and the Judge. In my opinion, The Natural was a great book that had characters and struggles that made it feel relatable. Roy Hobbs the main character of the book finds himself falling

Realism, the attitude or practice of accepting a situation as it is and being prepared to deal with it accordingly. The two stories being compared are; “A Mystery of Heroism”, by Stephen Crane, and “To Build a Fire”, by Jack London. The author’s purpose and focus of this era, was to show the sacrifice and struggle that many humans make. The first story, A Mystery of Heroism, was about a lieutenant in the army who was thirsty. He went across the battlefield to fetch water. When he returned, his comrades

Stephen Crane’s inspiration for writing was his family. He attended Syracuse University in New York, while he was there he discovered that humanity was more of a thought-provoking study. Crane first attended military school which inspired his interest in The Civil War. “The Red Badge of Courage” was his most famous book that caught the attention of many people. Stephen Crane shows realism in “The Red Badge of Courage” and “Maggie: A Girl of the Streets”. Realism is shown through the portrayal of

Crane Opens the Eyes of the Nation In the late nineteenth century, a significant movement was taking place within the world of literature. At this time, many classic works of literary naturalism were shocking Americans. Stephen Crane is argued to be “the greatest of the naturalists, however, precisely because his works transcend their genre” (Canada). Through his works, Crane addressed many sensitive topics surrounding the time of his life. Due to the realities of the world that Crane experienced

Stephen Crane once quoted, “Sometimes the most profound of awakenings come wrapped in the quietest moments.” I find this quote to be very true in the way Crane lived his short but remarkable life. Stephen Crane was a prolific writer of fiction and poetry, whose realistic style influenced American literature for many years after his death (“Stephen Crane” 123HelpMe.com). His life was considered spontaneous, adventurous, and spunky compared to other famous American authors. He was able to change the

theme. London illuminates the idea that man shall never think he is more powerful than nature. To understand why “To Build a Fire” represents naturalism rather than realism we must first understand what each of these terms mean. First being aware that naturalism is only an extreme form of realism, therefore they are very similar in their themes. Naturalism is focused on the environment, and nature and what role they both play