He is promised success, which they will "slip into the cloud." His conscious, however, seems to contradict this notion of being able to reach the heavens without grace from the beginning "I believe in grace and choice." But he has seen the depths of human failure, "So come down from your mountain and stand where we've been You know our breath is weak and our body is dead." What he wishes is to be "born without a mask" to be born into truth, which wears no mask and is what is. He examines this mentality (as it is attractive, who wouldn't want to get to the heavens on their own--it is an accomplishment of all time!).
He risked his existence, his wealth, and his men. Beowulf did not think of the safety of his men, he was not aware of others' lives, but instead focused on his own victory. Through his thoughts, one may see how far Beowulf would go to be successful, and can see his selfish ways. As for modern Christian values, pride is seen as a deadly sin, in which Beowulf seem to be doomed to hell if judged on twenty-first century ethics. Excessive pride is frowned upon as for the sinner only sees himself and leaves no room for God.
The most important conclusion Shakespeare has drawn about the nature of humanity in King Lear is the fact that evil is not something the gods have cursed you with at birth but it is something that you choose for yourselfACt . The contrast he uses shows us that Edmoud had everything he needed to be good, he had the look and he had the attitude , but ultimately he chose to wrong path, he was blinded by power and his need to be treated as an equal. Later in that scene [165] after his brother is wounded Edgar affirms his belief that the gods play no hand in the evilness of the world through his dialogue “The gods are just, and of our pleasant vices make instruments to plague us” he states that the gods are fair and only punish us with our own wrong doings, even Edmoud agrees with him. Edmonds good side does make an appearance, towards the end of act 5 scene 3, “ Despite of mine own nature. Quickly send – be brief in it – to th’castle; for my wit is on the life of Lear and Cordelia” , in this remorseful dialogue Edmond`
Job 4: 7-21 is taken from Eliphaz’s speech to Job. After undergoing immense suffering for no apparent reason, Job curses his life and birth and seeks comfort from his friends. Although Job is a good and holy man, Eliphaz states that suffering is the result of sin. He is implying that Job’s suffering is a result of a sinful life, although we already know the true reason for his pains. In verse 7, “Think now, who that was innocent ever perished, or were the upright cut off?”, Eliphaz basically says that the good do not suffer.
(Job 4:17). Here Eliphaz stresses the idea that humans can’t be just. God is too superior, so that in comparison humans are not capable of being just and cannot be pure. Eliphaz also says to Job that “as I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same” (Job 4:8) This simply states the theology of the friends that good comes from good and bad from bad. Bildad words to Job are in same vein “ God will not reject a blameless person, nor take the hand of the evil doer” (Job 8:20) and Zophar agrees that God punishes the wicked and rewards the righteous (Job 11; Job 20).
This immediately sets up a conflict between as Faustus desires to achieve power which hasn’t been given to him by God but through an ultimately religious form of attainment. This conflict is then heightened by his realisation that Lucifer and Mephistophilis were once angels but have since been cast down from heaven. Faustus is therefore attempting to reach an illegitimate level of power but uses religion as a catalyst for this. The conflict in the creation his power is something that stays with Faustus for the rest of his life, even refusing to repent for his sins when he is provided with an opportunity to prevent his destined eternity in hell. This self-destructive streak portrayed by
He further explains that the evil deeds that we perform are of our own accord, and that we are punished by God’s justice because they are done out of our own free will. This argument leads perfectly into the question of free will because, like Aug, I agree that we are not taught evil. Aug explains to Ev that it is impossible to learn evil deeds. It is impossible to learn something evil because our intelligence is inherently good. Since our intelligence is inherently good it is not possible to take away from something that is good, something that is evil.
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story “Young Goodman Brown” follows a Puritan man’s nightmarish encounter with the devil, which results in the loss his faith and virtue. Flannery O’Connor’s tale “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” details how a southern grandmother is only able to discover what it truly means to be good when she is faced with imminent death. Both texts showcase the classic battle of good versus evil, and provide altering viewpoints on the possible outcomes of this faceoff. The stories by Hawthorne and O’Connor both tell the tale of what occurs when a seemingly righteous and faithful person is faced with a character of pure evil, though the stories’ starkly contrasting settings and tones build each story in a different direction. Although the themes of the stories are strikingly similar, the difference in setting helps to shape how the encounter between good and evil plays out.
Also, because of Mr. Hooper’s belief in predestination, the belief that an elect group of people are selected by God to go to Heaven, his sins do not matter. If he is chosen as one of the elect, his sins cannot send him to Hell. If he is not chosen as an elect, his sins do not make things any worse for him than they already are: “Realizing that he can never be certain whether God has elected or damned him taints a clear and uncomplicated view of worldly and spiritual things”
Othello is the story of a Moorish general of Venice, whose life is torn apart through deceit and his own faults and insecurities, leading to tragedy. The presence of the devil is quite clear in Dr. Faustus; Faustus makes a deal with Lucifer, and has Mephostophilis, another devil, as his servant. However the presence is not quite as striking in Othello. However what I intend to look at is the possibility of Iago being a representation of the devil throughout the play. To do this I will look at the language of the play, looking at references to the devil and what they can show us.