Kyra Balls
Ms. Lehmann
English 1-3
8 November 2018
Survival is Selfish
According to Yann Martel, “When your own life is threatened, your sense of empathy is blunted by a terrible, selfish hunger for survival.” In order to survive, we must put ourselves first and focus on our own needs. Survival is selfish; authors Laurence Gonzales, Lane Wallace, and Elie Wiesel prove this in their stories. They all explain why and/or how survival is a selfish thing.
Gonzales provides many examples of scenarios in which survivors had to be selfish in “Deep Survival.” Gonzales shows that many survivors only survive by being selfish. He tells a story of a 17-year-old girl who survived a plane crash writing, “Tough and clearheaded, this teenage girl, who had lost her shoes (not to mention her mother) on the first day, saved herself; the other survivors took the same eleven days to sit down and die” (Gonzales 326). The only reason the girl survived is she went on by herself, leaving the others to die. Gonzales provides other examples of why survival is selfish. He points out that those who refuse to follow the rules survive. Gonzales writes, “In the World Trade Center disaster, many people who were used to following the rules died because they did what they were told by authority figures” (Gonzales 327). He explains that those who broke the rules put in place for public safety survived. Their selfishness saved them. Lane Wallace also cites many times when survival was selfish.
Another author that gives examples of being selfish to survive is Lane Wallace in “Is Survival Selfish?” Wallace argues that survival requires people to be selfish. Wallace writes, “There is a fine line between brave and foolish. There can also be a fine line between smart and selfish” (Wallace 320). Wallace explains that being brave and saving others before yourself is a foolish thing to do in a survival situation. As a result, being selfish is the smart thing to do. Survival requires that people be selfish. Wallace also cites another story about why survival is selfish. Wallace tells the story of a woman who saved herself from a plane crash. The other passengers were frozen, unmoving, and she crawled over them to safety. Wallace asks, “Could she really have saved the others? Probably not, and certainly not from the back of the plane. If she’d tried, she’d probably have perished with them. So why do survivors berate themselves for not adding to the loss by attempting the impossible?” (Wallace 318). Wallace points out that the woman in the story had to be selfish to survive, and it was only by looking after herself that she was able to make it out alive. Elie Wiesel also shares his story, which proves that survival is selfish.
Elie Wiesel explains that survival is selfish in Night. Wiesel shows readers that the survivors in the concentration camp have no sympathy for the other prisoners. Wiesel writes, “The veterans told us: ‘You’re lucky’” (Wiesel 308). The veterans are not becoming emotionally attached to anyone, because they had to be emotionally guarded to survive. The men could not become invested in friends who would only die soon. We see a similar situation when Weisel’s father is marked in a primary selection for death. Wiesel writes, “My father had remained near the block, leaning against the wall. Then he began to run, trying to catch up with us. Perhaps he had forgotten to tell me something... But we were marching too fast” (Wiesel 312). In order to survive, Wiesel had to leave his father, knowing he would be killed. There is substantial evidence that survival is, indeed, selfish.
Not everyone agrees with this point, however. Some may argue that survival is not selfish, giving examples of people who risked their lives to save others. This seems like a compelling argument on the surface, but it falls apart with closer examination. For example, in Laurence Gonzales’ story “Deep Survival,” he writes, “Many people who survive alone report that they were doing it for someone else (a wife, boyfriend, mother, son) back home” (Gonzales 332). Even if survivors think of others, they still need to focus on their own needs in order to get back home to the people they think of. People can only save others if they put themselves first. You need to be alive to help others.
Survival is selfish because we must put ourselves first and focus on what our needs are in order to survive. Authors Laurence Gonzales, Lane Wallace, and Elie Wiesel provide many stories in which survival is selfish. Laurence Gonzales writes about two stories, the 17-year-old girl and the World Trade Center, in “Deep Survival.” People had to be selfish in order to survive. Lane Wallace also writes about selfish survival stories in “Is Survival Selfish?”. Elie Wiesel tells about his own survival story, in which there are times when he had to be selfish to survive. Like Montel explains, when our lives are threatened, we have a selfish need to survive. Our sense of empathy is blocked out and we focus on our own lives instead of others.
Works Cited
Gonzales, Laurence. “Deep Survival.” Collections, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017, pp. 325-334.
Wallace, Lane. “Is Survival Selfish?” Collections, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017, pp. 317-320.
Wiesel, Elie. Night. Collections, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017, pp. 307-312.
Ms. Lehmann
English 1-3
8 November 2018
Survival is Selfish
According to Yann Martel, “When your own life is threatened, your sense of empathy is blunted by a terrible, selfish hunger for survival.” In order to survive, we must put ourselves first and focus on our own needs. Survival is selfish; authors Laurence Gonzales, Lane Wallace, and Elie Wiesel prove this in their stories. They all explain why and/or how survival is a selfish thing.
Gonzales provides many examples of scenarios in which survivors had to be selfish in “Deep Survival.” Gonzales shows that many survivors only survive by being selfish. He tells a story of a 17-year-old girl who survived a plane crash writing, “Tough and clearheaded, this teenage girl, who had lost her shoes (not to mention her mother) on the first day, saved herself; the other survivors took the same eleven days to sit down and die” (Gonzales 326). The only reason the girl survived is she went on by herself, leaving the others to die. Gonzales provides other examples of why survival is selfish. He points out that those who refuse to follow the rules survive. Gonzales writes, “In the World Trade Center disaster, many people who were used to following the rules died because they did what they were told by authority figures” (Gonzales 327). He explains that those who broke the rules put in place for public safety survived. Their selfishness saved them. Lane Wallace also cites many times when survival was selfish.
Another author that gives examples of being selfish to survive is Lane Wallace in “Is Survival Selfish?” Wallace argues that survival requires people to be selfish. Wallace writes, “There is a fine line between brave and foolish. There can also be a fine line between smart and selfish” (Wallace 320). Wallace explains that being brave and saving others before yourself is a foolish thing to do in a survival situation. As a result, being selfish is the smart thing to do. Survival requires that people be selfish. Wallace also cites another story about why survival is selfish. Wallace tells the story of a woman who saved herself from a plane crash. The other passengers were frozen, unmoving, and she crawled over them to safety. Wallace asks, “Could she really have saved the others? Probably not, and certainly not from the back of the plane. If she’d tried, she’d probably have perished with them. So why do survivors berate themselves for not adding to the loss by attempting the impossible?” (Wallace 318). Wallace points out that the woman in the story had to be selfish to survive, and it was only by looking after herself that she was able to make it out alive. Elie Wiesel also shares his story, which proves that survival is selfish.
Elie Wiesel explains that survival is selfish in Night. Wiesel shows readers that the survivors in the concentration camp have no sympathy for the other prisoners. Wiesel writes, “The veterans told us: ‘You’re lucky’” (Wiesel 308). The veterans are not becoming emotionally attached to anyone, because they had to be emotionally guarded to survive. The men could not become invested in friends who would only die soon. We see a similar situation when Weisel’s father is marked in a primary selection for death. Wiesel writes, “My father had remained near the block, leaning against the wall. Then he began to run, trying to catch up with us. Perhaps he had forgotten to tell me something... But we were marching too fast” (Wiesel 312). In order to survive, Wiesel had to leave his father, knowing he would be killed. There is substantial evidence that survival is, indeed, selfish.
Not everyone agrees with this point, however. Some may argue that survival is not selfish, giving examples of people who risked their lives to save others. This seems like a compelling argument on the surface, but it falls apart with closer examination. For example, in Laurence Gonzales’ story “Deep Survival,” he writes, “Many people who survive alone report that they were doing it for someone else (a wife, boyfriend, mother, son) back home” (Gonzales 332). Even if survivors think of others, they still need to focus on their own needs in order to get back home to the people they think of. People can only save others if they put themselves first. You need to be alive to help others.
Survival is selfish because we must put ourselves first and focus on what our needs are in order to survive. Authors Laurence Gonzales, Lane Wallace, and Elie Wiesel provide many stories in which survival is selfish. Laurence Gonzales writes about two stories, the 17-year-old girl and the World Trade Center, in “Deep Survival.” People had to be selfish in order to survive. Lane Wallace also writes about selfish survival stories in “Is Survival Selfish?”. Elie Wiesel tells about his own survival story, in which there are times when he had to be selfish to survive. Like Montel explains, when our lives are threatened, we have a selfish need to survive. Our sense of empathy is blocked out and we focus on our own lives instead of others.
Works Cited
Gonzales, Laurence. “Deep Survival.” Collections, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017, pp. 325-334.
Wallace, Lane. “Is Survival Selfish?” Collections, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017, pp. 317-320.
Wiesel, Elie. Night. Collections, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017, pp. 307-312.
Argumentative Essay Reflection Questions
1. List one thing you’ve learned from writing this paper that you can apply to other writing assignments. What will that look like?
1. List one thing you’ve learned from writing this paper that you can apply to other writing assignments. What will that look like?
- I learned how to introduce a quote, give the quote, and to explain the quote. Doing this makes my paper look more professional and more organized. It also makes it flow better so that you’re not just throwing in a quote at a random time.
- I was asked to take out something like extra words that didn’t make my paper flow as well as it should have. I went over all the corrections she made and marked them off. Then once I finished I when back over the paper to make sure I didn’t miss anything. I learned that I should reread my argumentative essay before turning it in.
- I met these requirements by proving how the other side of the argument was wrong and why, and by listing all the works I used.
- I would provide better arguments that support my claim. I would also explain my quotes better to make my paper longer.
- I am proud of only having grammar errors when I got my argumentative essay back. It was really easy to fix and I didn’t have to change anything major.