Eng. Lit. response paper - 02/17/03

Our lives can be summed up in one word: mutability. That is exactly what Shelley writes his poem on - a small summary of what life is like.

It is the same! - For, be it joy or sorrow,
The path of its departure still is free;
Man's yesterday may ne'er be like his morrow;
Nought may endure but Mutability.

To be mutable is to be changeable, variable, fluctuating and inconsistent. Isn't that exactly what life is like when we stop and think about it? The reason that I selected this passage is because it is overwhelmingly full of truth. This particular stanza says that although all the days are filled with joys and sorrow they are all different. Everyone has different kinds of things that make you happy and different kinds of things that make you sad, but you will never have two of the exact same day. The only thing in life that will not change is change itself.

Something that stirred up my thoughts in this passage was how sometimes I go through a day and by the time I wake up the next morning and think about what the past twenty four hours has held for me, it seems wasted, futile; and I will never gain it back. If Shelley thought that in his society and day things were always changing, what would he think to live in the United States today? We are so quick about our business that we don't even realize we are quick. We don't take time to step back and evaluate that there is joy and sorrow and every day holds something different and unexpected. At least Shelley has the logic to slow down and take a step back and examine what life is really like. Sure this poem reminds me of microwaves, instant messengers, and cell phones, but it also reminds me of my homework. I am so "rushed" to do my homework because I supposedly have so many other things to accomplish that it seems as though sometimes I forget to learn. We're hardly very knowledgeable in this day and age; we've simply learned to think quickly and memorize. How sad! I remember answering a question for Biblical Fundamentals last year that asked about our academic standings and goals and so forth. I remember writing that I wanted to learn, learning so that I know, not just so that I will get good grades was my goal. I want to know things so that even though the world may change I will build up my knowledge and know truth and fact and wisdom.

Change is inevitable. It is and always has been a part of human life. "Mutability" reminded me of the verse in James 4:14 that states, "For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes." We need to be so careful that our days are not wasted. In the entire realm of humanity change includes new people being born and old people dying. I'm going to die (unless Jesus comes back). That is for sure a change, for me, my family, my friends, and everyone else I encounter in life. And yet the same joys and the same sorrows will continue throughout people's lives. Perhaps we should be like Shelley and examine what reality is really like sometime. If we don't examine life at all, we'll be gone before we know it.