Greed Study Guide

This scene from the movie No Country for Old Men displays a few examples of greed. One of the men left behind in the desert at the scene of the crime is dehydrated. This man had previously begged Llewelyn for water while he was questioning him about the last man standing. He questions the thirsty man to try and find out who had killed all of the men left behind in the drug deal.

Some people may say that human nature is to be greedy, whereas others say greed is developed over time. Whichever way it is, needless to say both Mrs. Loisel and General Zaroff, in The Necklace and Most Dangerous Game, natures were to be greedy. Bored of simple things Mrs. Loisel longed for a life of a queen. One day she got to live out her dream, she got a fancy dress, but it didn’t end there, she wanted more, she wanted jewels, which she then lost. Bored of normal hunting General Zaroff invented his own version of hunting where he hunted humans, which led to his battle of life or death with Rainsford. Even though in both the Most Dangerous Game and The Necklace, the antagonists, Mrs. Loisel and General Zaroff, experienced greed, and boredom of their lives, and neither got away with their actions, paying for their greed in the end, the two antagonists differed in their conflicts.

Greed can really affect how someone acts, and to understand how it affects the characters it’s helpful to understand what it means. According to Dictionary.com, the definition of greed is “excessive or rapacious desire, especially for wealth or possessions” (Dictionary.com). Greed is a desire that someone will go to an extent to get for their own benefit; a character trait most of the characters have in the book. For example, Abigail shouting names to accuse because she can’t handle not having the attention on her. In her case, she is greedy for attention and is willing to let others suffer in jail so she can get it. “I saw Goody Sibber with the Devil...I saw Goody Hawkins with the Devil… I saw Goody Booth with the Devil”(Miller 48). She is putting all these poor people in jail, for she is greedy for attention.

The sin of greed encompasses the desire for more power and attention than ordinary as one’s selfish lust drives their greed. The hunger of greed is not easily satisfied as portrayed in the novel, “The Lord of the Flies”, and the television series, “Pretty Little Liars” and Gossip Girl”. In William Golding’s, “Lord of the Flies”, Jack is the novels antagonist, who was a thrust for power. His lust for power and complete control consumed him, making him the representation of salvage and inhumane. Even after he became leader, it was not enough for Jack. He realized that to control the group and maintain he rule, he must enforce fear. With the fear he created, he controlled the boys; thus, power and control were his greed. In the television series, “Pretty Little Liars”, Charlotte DiLaurentis, more commonly known as CeCe Drake,

One of the people’s traits affected by human nature in many stories is greed. As shown throughout, greed is an evil sin. This

Throughout the story he hides his greed in order to trap his traveling party. But eventually we see his greed in a few instances such as when Ambiades steals all the rations, leaving nothing for the others. Nevertheless I believe the greatest show of greed was when the traveling party learned that Ambiades sold secrets to their enemy, Attolia, leading to the party’s capture. After being captured, the party “realized he was the one who had told the Attolians about the trail up the mountain.” Ambiades had sold the party’s traveling plans to the Attolian Queen in order to gain more money and a better social standing.

One specific tale, in The Canterbury Tales, centers entirely around greed and how it can lead to an eventual downfall. The Pardoner’s Tale tells how a group of three men go looking for “Death” because he has been killing all their friends. An old man warns them to stop, but they do not listen, so he tells the group of men where they can find death. When the men reach where the old man told them to go, they find multiple bushels of gold. A plan is made amongst them for one of them to go into town and get wine and bread and then late into the night they would all bring the gold into town so nobody would see them. While one man went into town to get the wine and food, the other two men plotted against him. They decided to

Greed started out in FullMetal Alchemist Brotherhood as a antagonist and later became a anti-hero, soon after his death by the hands of Wrath he returned to Father where he would soon become part of Ling Yao. He started to have inner conflicts with himself after he killed one of his past henchmen and began to remember his past life and what was done to him. He soon after betrayed Father and attacked Wrath, but after his defeat he ran away and joined up with Edward's group. He was still his usual self and didn't have any interest in the goal that Ed wanted to complete but he did want revenge against Father and Wrath so he helped Ed in order to get revenge. He showed to be a very interesting character since it was hard to tell what side he was on but in the end it just ended up being whatever side he wanted to be on since he just wanted to attain power and to get revenge.

The Bible states that pride, envy, gluttony, lust, anger, greed, and sloth are the seven deadly sins. It says that these characteristics are spiritually fatal and lead to unhappiness. One particular sin noticeable in today’s society is greed, defined as the desire for material wealth or gain. Jesus warned to not value one’s self in possessions that can be destroyed. He also says that the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Many people are greatly influenced by the Bible and live their lives according to its teachings. If it is so morally wrong and is addressed in one of the most historically famous books, why do people still possess greedy qualities? What ultimately happens to greedy people over time? In “The Bet,” a fictional short story, Anton Chekhov uses character development and symbolism to convey the theme that greed drives humans to act in irrational ways.

To the protagonist, greed must have seemed an even bigger motivation than the

First, greed is a powerful motivator because it causes people to be selfish. Hugo Baskerville caused the curse of the Baskerville family because he kidnapped a girl and locked her up in his house. For instance, “When they had brought her to the Hall the maiden was placed in an upper chamber, while Hugo and his friends sat down to a long carouse, as was their nightly custom,”(7). This emphasizes shows that Hugo is

Although greed cannot be seen as a vice, it also

An excellent example of greed consuming people are the attackers. They were willing to do whatever was necessary to get the pearl from Kino and become wealthy. “Greedy fingers went through

Greed can also be the reason for idiotic and irrational decisions. It influences one’s decisions and could lead to their downfall. One example Irving gave was Tom’s choice to make a deal with the devil. The “black man” told Tom about the hidden gold that was buried in the woods, and a deal Tom could make to get this gold(246). At first Tom rejected the offer due to the fact that he would have to split this fortune with his wife, but after his wife’s disappearance he went back to search for the devil. When he found the devil the terms for the deal were negotiated. Tom would have to trade his soul and open a broker shop in exchanger for the money(248-249). This is where Tom’s greed made him irrational and influenced him to make a bad decision. He made the deal, not thinking of the others he would have to hurt in the broker business and without consideration that his soul will then belong to the devil. Greed made Tom not think rationally and make a decision that would lead to his downfall in the near future. The other example Irvin gave was a greed-based decision that Tom’s wife made the ultimately led to her death. After Tom’s first encounter with the devil he came home and told his wife about his experience and the offer the devil made. Tom’s wife was all for it but Tom did not want to accept his the offer(246). Her greed came into play when she decided that she would steal some valuables and go out and make the deal herself. This greedy decision was

Greed is a bottomless pit which exhausts the person in an endless effort to satisfy the need without ever reaching satisfaction. In the novella, The Pearl by John Steinbeck, Kino lives with his wife, Juana, and his child Coyotito. The family lives in a small village in a town where the Spanish colonized. Coyotito goes through something striking and in order to fix it, Kino finds something life changing. Throughout the story, Steinbeck shows that materialism and greed left unchecked can lead to immoral behavior shown through the unnamed trackers, the doctor, and the main character Kino himself.