For Monday, let's focus on the first five chapters of Samuel Johnson's romance,
Rasselas, on pages 2680-87. In the first two chapters, the Happy Valley is described as a man-made paradise. Rasselas, a prince of Abyssinia, has everything anyone could desire. Or does he? Why do you think Rasselas wants to leave the Happy Valley?
In Rasselas, by Samuel Johnson it starts by describing Abyssinia as the perfect land called paradise, which has everything a person could ever desire and more. However, the only problem is that Resselas is not content with his life in Happy Valley, and has an aspiration to cross over the mountains that draw a line between Abyssinia from the rest of the world. This is because he learned that his life is in a fixed routine and because of that, he does the same things every day and not producing happiness. “But possessing all that I can want, I find one day and one hour exactly like another” (page 2684). This is why Rasselas wants to go out and experience the rest of the world so he can find some answers specifying the way to obtain happiness. “ I shall long to see the miseries of the world, since the sight of them is necessary to happiness." (Page 2684). This just shows how everyone wants something they cannot have, but realizes later how grateful and lucky they are when they step away from their lifestyle and join another, which is what I think will happen when Rasselas leaves Happy Valley. Overall, Rasselas learns that happiness is not always having everything you want, which is what he experiences in Happy Valley. Instead, it is about branching out and experiencing a new life outside the “walls of his prison” (Page 2687).
ReplyDeleteFeathery Friend:
ReplyDeleteRasselas and his brothers and sisters are the heirs to the throne of Abyssinia and are raised in the luxury of Happy Valley, a remote mountainous valley whose only entrance is closed by a guarded gate. The royal children live a life of pleasure and entertainment, which everyone but Rasselas finds sufficient. At 26, he finds his mind unchallenged by his life of pleasure and wants to see the outside world.
I agree with Lola that Rasselas learned that his life is in a fixed routine and because of that, he does the same things every day and not producing happiness. While Rasselas blames the happy valley for his discontentment, it is his state of mind that actually produces his unhappiness. Yet in order for Rasselas to experience happiness, he must first "see the miseries of the world, since the sight of them is necessary to happiness." In chapter 4 "The Prince Continues to Grieve and Muse" Rasselas finds comfort in activity focused at an aim. He spends his time imagining himself in various difficult and dangerous adventures but realizes that a whole year has passed without his doing anything to make his dreams come true. After he spends several more months grieving his idleness he decides to find out a way to escape from the valley in chapter 5. Although he initially worked hard for months to escape from Abyssinia, he eventually returns to it. This illustrates how despite man's best attempts, he cannot escape himself.
In Samuel Johnson's "Rasselas", he writes of a man named Rasselas who is on a journey to discover something more than what he was ever known. Rasselas grew up in a very privileged family in Happy Valley, and wants nothing more than to get out and see the unhappiness of the world. You could say that he has a bad case of cabin fever. On page 2684 in chapter 3, Rasselas says, "I have already enjoyed too much; give me something to desire." I agree with Feathery Friend in that even though he blames his upbringing for his unhappiness, it is really just his state of mind that brings him his true feelings. His wastes time daydreaming about the possibility of him going out and living a dangerous and adventurous lifestyle; however, he has yet to do anything about it for an entire year. This proves that though he may long for something like this lifestyle, he is comfortable where he is, and is too frightened to make the change to do anything about the longing of a different life. Finally, in chapter 5, "The Prince Meditates His Escape", he finds a way out. Like Feathery Friend pointed out, he worked hard on a plan to escape from his perfect life, but he gives up after he has gotten out, and returns to Abyssinia and his life of happiness. In my opinion, it is characteristic of people to go back to the life that they know best because it is comfortable and they know how to live it. Rasselas is no different.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Feathery Friend in the statement that for Rasselas to truly experience happiness and appreciate the Happy Valley he must see the miseries of the world because although Rasselas may have it all, he still yearns for more out of life. In Chapter 2 on page 2683, He compares himself to goats, “ Every beast that strays beside me has the same corporal necessities with myself; he is hungry and crops the grass, he is thirsty, and drinks the stream, his thirst and hunger are appeased, he is satisfied and sleeps; he rises again and he is hungry, he is fed and is at rest. I am hungry and thirsty like him, pained with want, but am not, like him, satisfied with fullness” He is bored with the day-to-day patterns of pleasure. He believes that there may be some way that humans can balance pain and pleasure. It is as though he seeks for some sort of chaos/ cause of pain, because it would bring him excitement in a way. It would be something different then what he is normally used to experiencing for the past 26 years of his life. Growing up in a paradise land, where everything is given to you in order to produce pleasure and you are shunned from the realities of the world, where you are only shown the good and never introduced to the evil aspect of life causes you to wonder and become intrigued in exploring the outside world. The prince of Abyssinia may have everything anyone could ever desire, which is peace, limitless food and water, entertainment, but he wants to leave the Happy Valley because he desires adventure.
ReplyDeleteIn Samuel Johnson's "Rasselas" JOhnson talks about a place, Happy Valley, in which the royal family resides. He describes it to be the perfect place in which anyone should be happy. Rasselas and his whole family live there with all the animals of the world and plants and rivers; they get whatever they want. I agree with Esperanza when they said that it would get boring with the day-to-day patterns becaue everything is routine. They do the same basic thing everyday which makes living there less than pleasurable for Rasselas. He says, "I fly from pleasure, because pleasure has ceased to please; I am lonely because I am miserable, and am unwilling to cloud with my presence the happiness of others."(2684) He clearly states that he is only not pleasured by all his riches, but he is miserable. He has never experienced the outside world before and he wants to see what it is like. He does not know any different than being pampered and doing his everyday routine so he wants to go out, over the mountains, and adventure to see what it is like out there. As everyone else said to appreciate what he has he needs to see the miseries of the outside world. That is how things are today as well, people usually do not appreciate what they have until they are in someone elses shoes and see what their life could be like.
ReplyDeleteRasselas is being raised in a palace where he has his every want and need granted called the Happy Valley. He has everything in the world and yet he is still not happy or pleased with life. After twenty – six years of living out the same day – to – day routine is becoming so repetitive, pleasure ceased to please Rasselas. With that being said, I agree with Esperanza when she says that Rasselas is bored with the day – to – day patterns. In a certain amount of words Rasselas says it himself, “ I should not then repine to see the sun move so slowly towards the western mountain, or lament when the day breaks” (Chapter 3 p 2684). I think that Rasselas wants to leave Happy Valley because he longs for more than pleasure. As humans, we have many emotions and feelings and Rasselas desires to experience more than just pleasure. One of the feelings that he actually wants to experience is desire. He seems a bit happier when the sage gives him something to desire. Rasselas longs to see the miseries of the world. He thinks the sight of them is necessary to happiness. With his new desire, “…rekindled youth in his cheeks, and doubled the luster of his eyes” (Chapter 4 p 2684). Staying in his current situation being excluded from the rest of the world will no longer satisfy him. Ultimately Rasselas needs adventure in his life to really experience the happiness that having all the treasures of the world used to give him.
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