Alternatives in Life in A Summons to New Orleans by Barbara Hall

"Things are not quite so simple always as black and white. "― Doris Lessing. (Doris Lessing quotes). Choices are more than black and white, so is a person’s conscious.

The notion of choice in an individual’s life is subject to constant questioning. We have what we like to call the freedom of decision-making, but often it simply seems like a facade. Many believe that one’s morals and ethics are solely responsible for the decisions they make, major or minor. Others attribute the external pressures surrounding them and societal factors as the facilitator of choices. Unquestionably, both personal characteristics and societal factors influence the the majority of choices of individuals everywhere. We must consider, however, that one plats more of a role than the other. Pieces of writing such as Christopher Browning’s Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland, Michael Bess’ Choices Under Fire: Moral Dimensions of World War II, and Milton Mayer’s No Time to Think explore the idea of both influential aspects. Nonetheless, more influence can be attributed to societal factors and this idea is supported throughout all of the pieces of writing. Societal factors, for the most part, are composed of a plethora of external pressures that we either actively acquiesce to or subconsciously conform to. Societal factors play a much larger role for the average individual in regards to decision-making and this goes for individuals of all backgrounds and beliefs. This is shown in the lives of the Chambonnais, the Reserve Police Battalion, and the two famous experiments known as the Milgram Experiment and the Stanford Prison

Choices, the story writen by Susan Kerslake is about how the choices that we make everyday affect who we are and how our life can change by making the wrong decission. But is it always a bad decission? is it always our fault?

As human beings, we should always be given a choice. Unfortunately, not all of us are given a choice because of the situation we are put in. There are times when other people decide our decisions. In the memoir, Night, written by Elie Wiesel, Jews are given choiceless choices while they are in the concentration camps during the Holocaust. Choiceless choices in the Jews case meant that they had a choice, however, the most obvious choice was already chosen before they could process it.

Upon returned to the United States Oswald moves around quite frequently, eventually ending up in New Orleans. This is where the most mysterious and perplexing chapter of his life took place. In 1963, Oswald is employed at the Reily Coffee Company, where he is fired from only months later. He also starts a one-man chapter of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee and began pro-Castro propaganda in New Orleans. Oddly enough, the return address on Oswald’s pro-Castro leaflets was 544 Camp Street, New Orleans. This happened to be the same building where Guy Banister, a former FBI agent, was working to overthrow Castro. A close comrade to Banister was the familiar David Ferrie. Both Banister and Ferrie did investigative work for Carlos Marcello, the mafia chieftain in New Orleans and the prime target of the Kennedys’ war on organized crime. Was Oswald playing a kind of double game in New Orleans? His actions raise important questions about his true attitude toward Cuba and whose side he was really on. In September of 1963, Oswald was seen on a bus heading from Houston to Mexico City, where he tries to defect once more. He plans to fight for Castro and return to Russia. He attempts to obtain a visa to Cuba, and he was told that he could only enter Cuba under a temporary visa, and only in transit to the Soviet Union. Oswald is later informed by KBG officers that it would take several months to obtain a Soviet visa and that without one he would not be able to go to Cuba.

Billions of years ago, an asteroid destroyed nearly the entirety of life on Earth, wiping out various species of dinosaurs, fish, and other animals. However, life managed to survive the apocalyptic setting and evolution bested natural disaster in the same struggle fought today. Every natural disaster tests human and environmental abilities to recuperate from damage and turn desolation into a thriving ecosystem, which requires a pointed effort on the part of humans. Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in 2005, and recreated an environment that forced the instinct to flourish to battle with unpredictability once more, as the question of rebuilding the city became prominent. Though many oppose efforts to rehabilitate the regions devoted by the

Since the beginning of time, the environment in which one is accustomed to provides them with the choices that lead down paths that make their legacy. This environment can be negative or positive, structured or chaotic, rich or poor, all which give a variety of choices. Regardless of the different trials and tribulations we face ultimately, it is the choices we make in response that make us the person we become.

Is it fair to hold individuals responsible for a choice society pressured them to make?

Everyone has choices in life, and these choices are what define us. Sometimes they can affect not only the decision maker, but it can affect others too, whether it is just a few people or it is millions of people. This is why a choice

Having a plethora of choice may appear to promote the freedom of individuals, but when the quantity of choices a person is required to make becomes overloaded, the pressure builds and that “sense of freedom” becomes a sense of entrapment. There are so many choices available that there are going to be both

Our circumstances do not determine our lives. Instead, our lives are determined by our choices. That is not to say that our lives are not impacted by the country in which we were born, the family which we were born to, or the tragedies which touched our lives. We are given a choice of how we respond to those things, and the power of choice means that the lessons and value of our lives is not determined by outside influences, but instead it is determined by our reaction to those influences.

One cannot have good life if there is no freedom involved in that life. If they do not have the option to choose their life will not be ‘good’. In ‘The Truman Show’, Peter Weir, portrays the character of

Accepting only the best decisions in life is not always the right choice. Experiencing new things can increase people’s knowledge, and become someone of new and different value during their time in this world. They are able to obtain something that everyone will cherish when they face horrific situations, and overcome it. With all those successes, people are then given the chance to go down a new road. The change may be good, or may even be something terrible, but in the end, people will become their own person with a unique mindset of things. Taking opportunities can lead to positive or negative change.

Choices are an important part of everyone’s lives and the choices we make can reflex who we are as individuals. Choice and the ability to choose are excellent and can represent a sense of freedom. Schwartz’s and Iyengard’s analysis on choice focused on the effects of choice in people and how people react and deal with it. Schwartz’s Official Dogma and explanation of how Americans act in response to choice making is the most relatable to individuals and clearly chows the consequences of too much choice. His analysis can assist to people realize that maybe because we have more choice doesn’t necessarily mean we will make us happier or the best decision will be made. Understanding the consequences of too much choice can possibly make individuals improve the negative effects it can have and make us happier with our

People deal with plenty of choices in their everyday lives. At the moment we open our eyes, we have to make decisions. For instance, should we get up and prepare ourselves for a new day, or should we continue resting in our beds? Even after when we have made this decision, we will still face choices after choices. However, we cannot get all the things we want as according to Mankiw, scarcity exists in our society. In other words, scarcity means that society has limited resources and therefore cannot produce all the goods and services people wish to have. To get one thing that we like, we usually have to give up other things that we like. Making decisions require trading off one goal against another. This phenomenon is also called