Yes, it's a cliched expression, but there's an immeasurable amount of truth in it. One of society's biggest problems is that people allow pride to get in the way of reason. I can think of quite a few good examples from literature in which choices that characters make out of pride and selfish desire go horribly wrong. One of the best examples of this type of consequence comes from the story of Beowulf.
Beowulf, lead hero of the epic poem Beowulf (go figure), starts out as an orphan and works his way up in society until eventually he reaches the ultimate position as king of the Geats. Beowulf is known virtually everywhere for his courage, valor, strength... oh, and let's not forget pride. This small character flaw is arguably what leads to Beowulf's downfall in his last battle against a ferocious dragon that has been terrorizing his people. Determined to face the beast alone, Beowulf does just that. He even takes the bare minimum of armor and weapons with him into battle. In the end, our hero pays a mighty price for his decisions: his own life.
From the fifth grader caught cheating on her math test because she forgot to study and was afraid of showing her mom anything less than an A+ to the politician refusing to sway to the arguments of the other side despite the fact that he knows they make much more sense than his do, everyone makes a foolish decision based on pride at some point in their lives. Why do so many promising marriages fail within the first few years? Why do distant and neighboring countries that have virtually nothing in common except that they share the same earth war with each other? Why do the closest of friends allow one tiny disagreement to unravel the threads of a relationship that has lasted for decades? Why do churches, places that are supposedly founded on the concepts of of forgiveness and harmony, split over petty arguments regarding the dress code for Sunday school? Oftentimes the answer to these questions lies in the fact that both parties involved are too stubborn and proud and rooted in their own opinion to try to see through the other's eyes.
In the biblical book of Philippians, chapter 2 verse 3 says to "do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves." The key word in this passage is "humility." The concept of being humble has never been a popular one. Put simply, humility means stepping down from the pedestal of pride and taking others' opinions into consideration, even if you don't necessarily agree with them. Selfishness is an innately human characteristic, and it's one that we all struggle with, even though we often preach the concept of humility to others. "Treat others the way you would like to be treated." I mean, who really follows that rule without bending it or twisting the words to meet their own desires every once in a while? I've yet to meet that person. When I do, I'll let you know.
Before provoking the dragon into battle, Beowulf says so himself that his purpose for fighting solo is "for the glory of winning." Others may argue that the decision was made out of regard to lives of his men, but it sounds to me as though our hero was simply too blinded by the prospect of fame and victory to think reasonably. In my opinion the great king Beowulf, as well as the rest of our real-life society, could use a pretty large helping of the dreaded h word.
-Kati Davis
Very well done Kati!
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