yuikegawa
Dec 30, 2009
Undergraduate / stanford intellectually engaging thought essay -- healing powers [4]
could someone edit this for content?
i'm aware it's over the character limit, i'm just starting to edit it myself.
thanks! :)
Stanford students are widely known to possess a sense of intellectual vitality. Tell us about an idea or an experience you have had that you find intellectually engaging.
If you had the ability to heal any sickness or injury with just the touch of your hand, what would you do?
The Japanese drama Orthros no Inu is a story of two men, an apparently evil person, Ryuzaki, who possesses the aforementioned power, and a virtuous person, Aoi, who has the power to kill with a single touch. Their encounter in the first episode leads to a series of struggles for power between the two and their surrounding characters.
When I was first introduced to Ryuzaki, I disliked him. Throughout the drama, he stood by most of the time, watching people suffer from illnesses and refusing to heal them. I didn't understand- with such an awesome power, how could he be so selfish and unhelpful? If I had his power, surely I would go around trying to save as many people as I could.
After a while, I found myself holding a viewpoint opposite of my previous one. Ryuzaki wasn't evil- by his lack of action, he was actually attempting to maintain the peace in society. If I had his power, I certainly wouldn't do anything with it either. Yes, it would be great to restore people back to health and to bring them back their happiness. But the people I help would only comprise of a small percentage of the total amount of sick people existing in the world. Even if I were to devote the rest of my life to the cause, it would be virtually impossible for me, as a single person, to heal every single person in physical pain. As soon as I was to heal someone, another person would fall sick, or perhaps another baby would be born with a disease. The happiness I would bring to some would be overcome by the hatred and jealousy I would conjure up from the rest. Pharmaceutical companies and doctors would run out of business; medical science would be abandoned and replaced by dependency on me to fix everything. Work towards medical advancement would be halted, as people quit their efforts and expect a solution to come to them. Society would fall into chaos, as people begin to war against each other in order to climb the priority ladder to be healed.
Everything happens for a reason. Perhaps a mother falling sick allows her rebellious daughter to become grateful for her existence, and their relationship is strengthened. Or maybe a child becoming ill with a new disease spurs people to work harder towards better cures and technology. Hard work brings solutions, and solutions bring happiness and peace. The perfect society is strictly idealistic, but with the efforts and cooperation of everyone, something close can be achieved.
could someone edit this for content?
i'm aware it's over the character limit, i'm just starting to edit it myself.
thanks! :)
Stanford students are widely known to possess a sense of intellectual vitality. Tell us about an idea or an experience you have had that you find intellectually engaging.
If you had the ability to heal any sickness or injury with just the touch of your hand, what would you do?
The Japanese drama Orthros no Inu is a story of two men, an apparently evil person, Ryuzaki, who possesses the aforementioned power, and a virtuous person, Aoi, who has the power to kill with a single touch. Their encounter in the first episode leads to a series of struggles for power between the two and their surrounding characters.
When I was first introduced to Ryuzaki, I disliked him. Throughout the drama, he stood by most of the time, watching people suffer from illnesses and refusing to heal them. I didn't understand- with such an awesome power, how could he be so selfish and unhelpful? If I had his power, surely I would go around trying to save as many people as I could.
After a while, I found myself holding a viewpoint opposite of my previous one. Ryuzaki wasn't evil- by his lack of action, he was actually attempting to maintain the peace in society. If I had his power, I certainly wouldn't do anything with it either. Yes, it would be great to restore people back to health and to bring them back their happiness. But the people I help would only comprise of a small percentage of the total amount of sick people existing in the world. Even if I were to devote the rest of my life to the cause, it would be virtually impossible for me, as a single person, to heal every single person in physical pain. As soon as I was to heal someone, another person would fall sick, or perhaps another baby would be born with a disease. The happiness I would bring to some would be overcome by the hatred and jealousy I would conjure up from the rest. Pharmaceutical companies and doctors would run out of business; medical science would be abandoned and replaced by dependency on me to fix everything. Work towards medical advancement would be halted, as people quit their efforts and expect a solution to come to them. Society would fall into chaos, as people begin to war against each other in order to climb the priority ladder to be healed.
Everything happens for a reason. Perhaps a mother falling sick allows her rebellious daughter to become grateful for her existence, and their relationship is strengthened. Or maybe a child becoming ill with a new disease spurs people to work harder towards better cures and technology. Hard work brings solutions, and solutions bring happiness and peace. The perfect society is strictly idealistic, but with the efforts and cooperation of everyone, something close can be achieved.
