StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

The Value of Working from the Teachings of Thomas Carlyle - Book Report/Review Example

Cite this document
Summary
Name Professor Date The Value of Working from the Teachings of Thomas Carlyle Many philosophers offer valuable ideas to improve human life and social systems. However, classical philosophers impart some of the best ideas to reform views and social behaviors…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER97.1% of users find it useful
The Value of Working from the Teachings of Thomas Carlyle
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "The Value of Working from the Teachings of Thomas Carlyle"

Download file to see previous pages

Despite the fact that the work was written for the people in his time, the message of the author may still be relevant in the contemporary time. Carlyle wrote Past and Present to criticize the society he was in. He observed from St. Ives Huntingdonshire the idleness of the men due to “Poor Laws” in the English society (Tennyson 407). Thus, comparing the life in the past as depicted in the work of the monk Jocelin Brakelond and his observation of the people of his time, he wrote Past and Present, which comprises four books.

In Book III Chapter XI, Carlyle uses a sermon-like tone to emphasize the value of work. Carlyle characterizes work as a virtue. He deductively declares that, “There is perennial nobleness and sacredness in work” (Carlyle 147). These descriptions may be considered an exaggeration to the modern readers. Working hard to earn a family’s living may be considered a virtue but working alone cannot be considered a virtuous deed in itself. Working alone is plain; it is a means of living, a preoccupation to the idle, and a way of life to others, especially those who attend to their children’s needs or the needs of their countrymen.

As such, work should be qualified before judging it to be a virtuous act. It should be coupled with hardship, patience, and all the other virtues related to accomplishing a task before calling it a virtue. Carlyle deductively exaggerates in his chapter introduction to move his readers to act. He criticizes the idleness that he observed during his time, thus says that “there is perpetual despair” in idleness. Nevertheless, he illustrates what he truly means by working in the next lines of the chapter.

As if delivering a sermon, Carlyle refers to working earnestly as the “latest Gospel” and the “truth”. Calling his teaching a gospel, Carlyle aims to make his idea appear like a requirement, a must that each of his readers should obey. He believes that “the real desire to get Work done will itself lead one more and more to truth” (147). Truth here may be the meaning and essence of life; hence, the desire to accomplish one’s work and performing work itself will make one achieve the real essence of existence.

Carlyle equates existence with working, thus implies that life is nothing without work. It is clear from his context that the work he is referring to is not limited to a job or profession, which can make a person earn a living. Rather, it is work in general, which may include housework, individual projects or group activities. For him, the desire to accomplish work will itself lead people to recognize their value or “Nature”. Working will make people discover their “appointments” or the reason behind their existence.

He adds that submitting oneself to the completion of a work will result in completing the work. Indeed, it is true that by doing a task, one can expect the job to be done in time, whereas leaving the task behind will result in incompletion. Carlyle emphasizes two things to do when working. First, he advises his readers to, “Know thy work and do it. 'Know thyself… know what thou canst work at; and work at it (147). To work well, people must know their strengths and focus on those strengths.

For example, if people deem that they are good at constructing houses, then they should pursue a job related to construction. Likewise, if they believe that they are goo

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“The Value of Working from the Teachings of Thomas Carlyle Book Report/Review”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/literature/1428082-reading-report
(The Value of Working from the Teachings of Thomas Carlyle Book Report/Review)
https://studentshare.org/literature/1428082-reading-report.
“The Value of Working from the Teachings of Thomas Carlyle Book Report/Review”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/literature/1428082-reading-report.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF The Value of Working from the Teachings of Thomas Carlyle

Application of Communication Theory to Nursing

(Haslett, 1987) Communication was present right from the time of man's civilization however what changed are the methods in which the process is carried out.... It is the exchange of thoughts and feelings from one person to another that determines the efficiency of communication....
16 Pages (4000 words) Essay

Management in Context

1 – 2) As a result of the rapid improvements on communications technology, economic freedom and the continuous romotion of trade liberalization (World Trade Organization, 2008), the modern business trend has gradually shifted from multinationalism to globalization.... ?? (The Levin Institute, 2008) In other words, the concept of globalization allows business people to maximize their available financial resources by taking advantage of the low-cost products and services that are readily available from developing countries....
14 Pages (3500 words) Essay

Rugby House-ARP

Middle-level managers generally gather insight from the lower level support groups for any internal changes to programmes which are of concern, making the organisation more efficient internally.... The author of the following paper under the title 'Rugby House-ARP' focuses on a not-for-profit organization that provides non-medical (holistic) treatment for people in London who are suffering from alcoholism or homelessness as a result of alcohol involvement....
14 Pages (3500 words) Case Study

Practice of Teaching: Self-esteem in Dyslexic Students within a Classroom Setting

This paper outlines that during the practice of teaching, teachers come across several types of challenges, the effective management of which determine success in teaching.... Dyslexic students pose one of the most difficult challenges in the practice of teaching.... nbsp;… According to the discussion, it is essential for educators to make instructional adjustments in order to make dyslexic students cope with and be successful in an academic environment....
20 Pages (5000 words) Essay

CRJ 422 Week 5 paper

Both corrective and distributive justice purposes to ensure that individuals within a community fulfill their community roles and obligations to gain effectively from the… Nevertheless, in the American society, skeptics of social justice have argued that the provision of the law of equal treatment of all citizens in the country is applied impartially in relation to social justice....
20 Pages (5000 words) Term Paper

Organizations and Curriculum of Educational System

The paper 'Organizations and Curriculum of Educational System' presents the modern society which experiences global changes that influence all spheres of social life.... Some theories regard new approaches to state regulations as a way of solving old problems with the help of new methods.... hellip; Total traditional state control over various institutions has been replaced by open democratic public establishments, competing for the customers, a number of institutions that are functioning on a base of free-market appeared....
10 Pages (2500 words) Case Study

Types of Governments

The following paper highlights that government, from the Latin word “gubernare,” was originally derived from the Greek term for steering a ship, “Huberman.... In the early part of the Industrial revolution, capitalists earned enormously from investing in the production of goods and services, as well as new technologies, in both domestic and international markets.... It gears toward the emergence of free markets that primarily protect the interest of investors over the welfare of the working class (Nagel 3)....
8 Pages (2000 words) Research Paper

African Americans Citizenship and the Economy of Reconstructed Louisiana

Basically, as elaborated by the statement of Julie Saville (1996), “in the wake of Sherman's march, it required a fine eye to distinguish the twilight of slavery from the dawn of freedom” (p.... The aim of this research is to analyze the impact of the granting of citizenship to African Americans on the economy of reconstructed Louisiana....
10 Pages (2500 words) Term Paper
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us