' "What do you see?"
"Everything.... That is my curse." '
"Everything.... That is my curse." '
The above lines appeared in a not so recent movie and were delivered by one of the most famous fictional characters ever. I dunno about you, but my first reaction was blank disbelief. They shook even my 'nerves of steel'. In case you haven't 'deduced'(yeah that's another clue) who I'm talking about, don't read further, you are only disgracing yourself. In case you have, I congratulate you, my dear fellow. I'm talking about Sherlock Holmes.
Of course, the above lines are absolute absurd and out of character for the great detective. The movie itself was lame. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle described him as a person who lived for the art's sake. His life was devoted to the detection of crime, so much that he was willing to sacrifice his life if he could bring to justice the greatest criminal mind who ever lived. But those lines portray him as someone who is tired of his profession and end it. Again, totally out of character.
But this presents a line of thought that is very intriguing. At what point does a gift become a curse? What dictates how you use your gifts? Sherlock Holmes always said that he could have chosen the profession of being a criminal. Also, can you get tired of doing something you love?(The most depressing of all thoughts) What life is this then, and is it worth living?
Also the age old debate of Nature vs. Nurture, i.e, hereditary aspects vs. physical and psychological environment comes into question. Most experts believe that both have an equal part to play. With Sherlock Holmes, as he believed, it was his genes that gave him his powers. As he himself put it, "Art in the blood is liable to take the strangest of forms."
But the environment also has a big part to play, as his brother Mycroft aptly displays. What I'm asking his, can a gift become a burden?
Hmm, it seems like I've raised a lot of questions that have been plaguing me since long. I really should blog more often. But you, my fellow humans, must ponder over the above questions. Please comment if you find any solutions. Food for thought!
Of course, the above lines are absolute absurd and out of character for the great detective. The movie itself was lame. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle described him as a person who lived for the art's sake. His life was devoted to the detection of crime, so much that he was willing to sacrifice his life if he could bring to justice the greatest criminal mind who ever lived. But those lines portray him as someone who is tired of his profession and end it. Again, totally out of character.
But this presents a line of thought that is very intriguing. At what point does a gift become a curse? What dictates how you use your gifts? Sherlock Holmes always said that he could have chosen the profession of being a criminal. Also, can you get tired of doing something you love?(The most depressing of all thoughts) What life is this then, and is it worth living?
Also the age old debate of Nature vs. Nurture, i.e, hereditary aspects vs. physical and psychological environment comes into question. Most experts believe that both have an equal part to play. With Sherlock Holmes, as he believed, it was his genes that gave him his powers. As he himself put it, "Art in the blood is liable to take the strangest of forms."
But the environment also has a big part to play, as his brother Mycroft aptly displays. What I'm asking his, can a gift become a burden?
Hmm, it seems like I've raised a lot of questions that have been plaguing me since long. I really should blog more often. But you, my fellow humans, must ponder over the above questions. Please comment if you find any solutions. Food for thought!
Great food for thought indeed! To answer your first question, yes I think we can definitely get tired of doing what we love. We hate monotony. Sherlock Holmes never got tired because to him, every case was a new challenge. A new puzzle to be solved. There was no repetitiveness. And that's what kept him going.
ReplyDeleteAnd for the next one, in matters of the mind, I guess nurture has a much bigger role than nature. If a kid from a family of hardcore terrorists is put into a monastery, he will grow up to be a monk. If a normal kid is raised in an environment of violence and hatred, he will be shaped accordingly. Genes can only direct specific qualities such as IQ, memory, special talents and so on.. and that too, to a limited extent. The direction that we give to these qualities is settled in the brain almost entirely by nurture, more so in the first 10 years of life. (of course, there are contradictory evidences too though - as in every other psychological field)