After reading "Like the Sun" by R.K. Natayan, think about the question #6 on page 853.
Answer in your comments below:
Do you agree with Sekhar that truth generally requires "as much strength to give as to receive"?
Why or why not?
Consider examples from your reading, the news, or life experience to support your answer.
I do agree with Sekhar that the truth does require "as much strength to give as to receive." I think he is right because being honest can make you feel bad inside if you have to insult someone. In the story, Sekhar feels bad that he has to insult his wife's cooking and the headmasters music, but he told himself that he would tell the truth all day, so he did it. Even though it hurt him to say it, he did it anyway.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Sekhar that it requires the same amount of strength because sometimes its hard to tell the truth and it can also be hard to hear it. When someone asks you for the truth you have to be strong enough to tell them it and when you ask someone for the truth you have to be strong enough to hear it, even if its not what you expected. He knew that by being truthful for a whole day that he might hurt some people but he figured he was strong enough to tell everyone no matter what.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Sekhar when he states that the truth requires "as much strength to give as to recieve." He knows that telling the truth will definitely hurt people he cares about, but that is why he does it. Sekhar feels bad when he gives the honest truth to his wife and boss. The truth is hard to hear and although Sekhar does not want to hurt anyone close to him he still says what needs to be heard.
ReplyDeleteLikewise, I agree that Sekhar was correct in stating that truth requires "as much strength to give as receive." I believe this because when someone tells you something that is truthful, but maybe hurtful or something you didn't want to hear you can do whatever you want with that information, take their advice or just shake it off. But when you give this advice you never know how someone will react to it, and it could be in a bad way and because of their reactions their could be repercussions. Like in the story when he tells his wife her food isn't good, that could lead to anything, she might stop altogether cooking for him, who knows.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Sekhar in that it requires equal strength to tell the truth an except it. Sometimes it is really hard to tell the truth because you are afraid of hurting someones feelings and sometimes when someone really tells the truth to you, you may get hurt because you were sad or mad someone lied or you heard something disturbing. In some cases, you should always be prepared for the worst things to be said or done. I have been in some situations where I was hurt by the truth, but at the same time I was happy and thankful that the other person had the courage to tell me what was really going on.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sekhar's statement, as sometimes telling the truth means insulting someone and alienating them. For example, Sekhar tells his wife that her food tastes bad and she is insulted and doesn't speak to him. He tells his boss that his music is bad and his boos makes him grade 100 papers overnight. That hurts him as much as the truth hurt his boss and wife.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Sekhar because when you ask for the truth you know what's coming, but when you tell the truth you don't know how the person is going to react and it's hard telling someone something that can hurt another person. When people ask how they look they know if they look good or not but once they hear the truth about looking bad it makes the person giving the truth horrible.
ReplyDeleteLike Sekhar says, I think truth certainly does require "as much strength to give as to receive," as it is often equally hard to tell someone the truth, as it is to hear it about something that may be wrong with you. When receiving a truth that may be harsh, but you know it's true, you have to suck it up and accept it, or try and change, which is hard. When giving the truth to a person, you must muster up courage to do so as you know it may upset them, and may have negative consequences for you, like Sekhar had in the story.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sekhar that it takes the same amount of strength to tell the truth as it does to receive the truth. I think so because it hurts to be told the truth especially when it is something you dont want to know or hear. Also it takes just as much strength to give the truth as it does to receive because it can it be a painful truth to tell someone. Like telling a friend that their clothes dont look good on them. The truth in general can make or break a persons emotions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sekhar when he says telling the truth requires "as much strength to give as to recieve". Telling the truth to someone can be tough, especially if they are close to you and you don't want to hurt their feelings. It can be hard if you know it will hurt them but you think it is the right thing to do, telling them what they need to hear. Being on the recieving end of the truth can be tough also. You may ask someone's opinion about something and they say something that you didn't really want to hear can be hard. Learning the truth about yourself and how people see you can hurt you so you need to be strong when both giving and recieving the truth.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Sekhar's statement that it takes the same amount of strength to tell the truth as it does to recieve the truth. Sometimes hearing the truth hurts more than a lie would. For example, if someone tried really hard to look good and asked for someone else's opinion and they said that they did not look good then that can be very hurtful to the person that put the effort in and thought that they looked good. I think that the truth can also be hard to give. This is because in some circumstances people dont want to get involved or hurt someone that may be a close friend.
ReplyDeleteUnlike everyone's opinion, I disagree with Sekhar's statement that the truth requires "as much strength to give as to recieve." I believe that in most cases people can easily tell the truth and not feel guilty that they are effecting the decision making and future of the receiver. Giving someone the information that they wanted to hear may not only take a weight of your shoulder, but it will also make the receiver realize the issue and how to fix it. For example, on the tv show 'American Idol' the judges are straight forward with the performers and they sleep fine at night while the ones getting judged are the ones that are sobbing in the arms of their loved ones. I understand that it depends on the situation and what type of person one is, but I feel giving the truth is easier than to recieve it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sekhar in saying tht the same strength is needed to give truth as to receive it. This is true because the truth can hurt, if it isn't what you want to hear, but also, it can be equally as difficult to tell someone the truth as it is to receive and accept it.
ReplyDeleteIs there a way to tell difficult truths more constructively?
ReplyDeleteFor instance, would it have been possible for Sekhar to tell his wife, "You know, I think it needs more salt today?" or " I would rather have some fruit instead" ?
Can a person who doesn't like an outfit say, " You know, I like that green sweater so much better with those jeans" or " Another piece of jewelry might accent your eyes" ?
Can someone say, " You know, I think you are a better drummer than guitarist," or " I am in the mood for more mellow music right now" ?
Does the truth always have to be blunt?
Can we bring some imagination to bear?
Some consderation for the person who might profit from more constructive criticism?
Think about it.
I agree with Sekhar that truth generally requires as much strength to give as recieve. You want people to know the truth, but sometimes it can be really hard because you don't want to hurt someone's feeling especially if you care about them. I've had friends ask me if they are good at piano or sports, or if an outfit looked good on them and it's hard to give them the truth if they're bad or it doesn't look good. There are nice ways to give some criticism, but personally, I've been afraid to tell the truth in a nice way before as well because you don't know how people will react even if you say it in the nicest way possible.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Sekhar's statement that the truth requires "as much strength to give as to recieve". Telling the truth is sometimes hard, especially if it might get you or someone else in trouble or if it may hurt someone's feelings. Recieving the truth can sometimes be pretty hard to take and what the person said may sort of weigh on you because it's hurtful.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sekhar that the truth requires "as much strength to give as to recieve." It is hard to tell someone the truth if it means that you're going to hurt them. Nobody wants to hurt anyone initally, and sometimes the truth is hard to tell. If you recieve some hurtful news, then you could get hurt. For example, if someone tells you that your outfit isn't necessarly "attractive", it could ruin your self esteem and confidence. Truth can be good or bad, it can hurt but also make things better.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Sekhar that "truth generally requires as much strength to give as to receive". I agree with this because it is hard to handle the truth sometimes but it is also hard when you know you have to tell the truth when you don't want to, you just want to sugar coat it. An example from life could be when you are at school and are a wittness to something like bullying and your friends the bully and you get called to the principle you don't want to throw your friend under the bus but you can't lie to the principle about what happend.
ReplyDeleteI also am going to agree with Sekhar that when it comes to the truth you need "as much strength to give as to recieve". It took a lot of strength for him to tell him boss how he really felt because he had to let him know that he isint a very good singer but doesnt want to lie to him and tell him that he is good. Its hard though because you want them to hear the truth but you dont want to hurt them and try not to be so harsh.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Sekhar when he says truth genrally requires "as much strength to give as to recive" but i also think that its not hard to tell the truth all the time but when its something that can isnt nice it defidently takes alot of strength to recive. But to give it i dont think it requires strength unless its a friend or someone you are not trying to hurt while telling the truth. I belive people who tell the truth just to be mean have no strength at all. For example in the story Sekhar is caring for his wife and his boss, he tells them the truth because of that, in order to help them.
ReplyDeleteI believe Sekhar's statement that truth generally requires as much strength to give as to recieve, for the most part. It is difficult to give someone the truth because you don't know how somone is going to take it. Recieving the truth can be just as bad because as most people say, the truth hurts. The truth might be true but that doesn't mean it can't affect people in a bad way. In some situations, giving the truth could be easier because some people don't have a problem being honest and straight forward.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sehkar when he said that giving the truth requires "as much strength to give as to recieve". I agree because I feel that since the truth hurts sometimes people feel guilty if they hurt someone by telling the truth and therefore refrain from telling the person the truth bluntly. However, Sehkar understands that sometimes people need to hear the truth directly and that is why he does it for a day.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Sekhar that telling the truth requires "as much strength to give as to recieve". Often times, it is more difficult to tell people the truth than it is to recieve the truth. Mostly because we don't have a choice in recieving it, but it is hard to tell someone a difficult fact. A real life example would be when a doctor/surgeon has to tell the patient's family that the patient will likely die or already has dies.
ReplyDelete