A Tree, A Rock, A Cloud by Carson McCuller

A Tree, A Rock, A Cloud by Carson McCuller Philosophy of the modernism and postmodernism period takes twists and turns at every chance it can. As the world begins to change at a speed previously unseen, people all over the world are confused and scared of what might come next. Though today writers have taken to the internet to show the world their ideas, writers during these periods expressed the emotions human beings felt through many different genres of literature. First a man must help those around him but then the philosophy shifts to a man must help himself to gain meaning in this life. As each man struggles to find a place for himself in the world, each man is also subject to the actions of others. So each man is a master of his own destiny but yet he is also a slave to the whims of others. This knowledge scares men, women and children all over the world. Yet human beings continue to find themselves among the fear. We all find meaning for ourselves yet sometimes questions arise after we find the meaning which defines o ur life. Some questions being: Is this the meaning I wasted my time on? Is this worth all the time I spent alone? In â€Å"A Tree, A Rock, A Cloud† by Carson McCullers these questions pop out to me after reading the tramp’s so called â€Å"science of love†. The tramp in the story had his heart broken by a woman so severely he believed he could never love again. While the philosophy of love today would suggest otherwise, the tramp wandered the country in isolation, searching for his lost love and searching for love itself. He believes he has discovered the science of love, his own personal philosophy he uses to define his life in the world. He never finds the woman he held to be so dear nor does he find another woman he loves as much as her even after he develops his â€Å"science of love†. The disillusionment the tramp faces after losing his first love tears down the natural beauty of what love really is. Natural not scientific I should say. Science can t ell many things and uncover many truths but one thing science has no power over is the ability we have to love freely. This I believe the tramp fails to understand. The tramp tried to fragment love. That’s like trying to tear Mount Everest apart with a rubber mallet. It can’t be done. Nor can you apply logic to love. You cannot apply logic to something that contradicts itself as much as love does. Yet the tramp did not realize this as he tried to break down love. The tramp tells the boy he speaks to â€Å"I meditated on love and reasoned it out†. All he reasoned out was how to believe he loved something or someone. He believed love was only one love. According to his â€Å"science† you could love a rock as easily and as deeply as you loved a woman or your child. This is not the case as most would agree. I myself have never loved my iPod or my car as much as I have loved my girlfriends or my family. The tramp failed to realize many things but chief among t hem was that love comes not from what others can give you to make you happy but rather love exists when your desire to make another happy match’s your own desire to make yourself happy. An inanimate object could never return the love that men chase, so this science of love is base on false beliefs.