This essay agress with Roland Barthe's quote "all reality is a myth a form of narrative."

Essay by akbar_27High School, 12th gradeB, May 2004

download word file, 3 pages 4.5

From the beginning of time, narratives have been a part of human culture. Narratives are used to translate a certain picture of reality but with many narratives, depicting reality may seem difficult. Roland Barthe's quote, "All reality is myth, a form of narrative," is an important because it reminds everyone that the reality of the narrative is subjective. Each person's view of reality is unique and is influenced by a variety of factors. Colossal events attempt to project a uniform reality but fail due to the subjectivity. Society is constantly changing, thus no consistency can ever exist.

Very few aspects of life are kept static; society is no exception. Various characteristics of society are responsible for moulding people's views of reality. Last year, the president of the United States of America repeatedly pleads his case to the world for invading Iraq. Various people in the world supported his case because they believed that Iraq truly possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMD).

Once the war was over and the supposed WMD were not found, many began to question the initial reason for war; justification for the war began to change. The reality was that Iraq had WMDs in the past and destroyed them after the second Gulf war. Thus, ideologies shift with time and are never absolute.

Significant events may project a reality that no single person can deny. World War II is an example of a colossal event that undisputedly occurred in the late 1930s. There are countless statistics that depict casualties and economic spending throughout this timeframe. However, within this event, there were many different perceptions formed. Adolph Hitler, who was the leader of the Nazi Party, believed the war was about cleansing the world of people he believed were subhuman. He assumed it was his moral duty...