Michelle C. Art 2 hrs · Edited · A french philosopher said, No man is strong unless he bears within his character antitheses strongly marked. Be ye as wise as serpents and gentle as doves The strong man holds in a living blend strongly marked opposites. Not ordinarily do men achieve this balance of opposites. The idealists are not usually realistic, and the realists are not usually idealistic. The militant are not generally known to be passive, nor the passive to be militant. Seldom are the humble self-assertive, or the self-assertive humble. But life at its best is a creative synthesis of opposites in fruitful harmony. We must combine the toughness of the serpent and the softness of the dove, a tough mind and a tender heart. A tough mind characterized by incisive thinking, realistic appraisal, and decisive judgment. The tough mind is sharp and penetrating, breaking through the crusts of legends and myths and sifting the true from the false . The tough minded individual is astute and discerning. He has a strong, austere quality that makes for firmness of purpose and solidness of commitment. The prevalent tendency toward soft mindedness is found in mans unbelievable gullibility. The undue gullibility for example is seen in the tendency of many readers to accept the printed word of the press as final truth. Few people realize that even our authentic channels of information- the press, the platform, and in many instances the pulpit- do not give us objective and unbiased truth. Soft minded individuals are prone to embrace all kinds of superstitions and half truths. Their minds are constantly invaded by irrational fears. The soft minded individual always fears change. He feels security in the status quo, and has almost a morbid fear of the new. For him the greatest pain is the pain of a new idea. The soft- minded individual always wants to freeze the moment and hold life in the gripping yoke of sameness. Soft mindedness invades religion. This is why religion has sometimes rejected new truth with a dogmatic passion. But we must not stop at the cultivation of a tough mind. Tough-mindedness without tender hardheartedness is cold and detached. What is more tragic than to see a person who has risen to the disciplined heights of tough mindedness but has at the same time sunk to the passionless pit of hardheartedness. The hardhearted person never truly loves. He never experiences the beauty of friendship, because he is to cold to feel affection for another. He engages in a crass utilitarianism that values other people mainly according to their usefulness to him. He is an isolated island. No outpouring of love links him with the mainland of humanity. The hardhearted individual never sees People as People. In the massive wheel of a big city life, he sees men as digits in the multitude. In the deadly wheel of army life , he sees men as numbers in a regiment. He depersonalizes life. Good life combines the toughness of a serpent and the tenderness of a dove. To have serpent like qualities devoid of dove-like qualities is to be passionless, mean and selfish. To have dovelike qualities without serpent lie qualities is to be sentimental, anemic, and aimless. We must combine strongly marked antithesis. - M L King
Posted on: Fri, 19 Sep 2014 22:23:27 +0000
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