The Concept of Destiny in Literature

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No one has complete control over their destiny but they can however, influence it in some way. In books such as Feed by M.T. Anderson, Miracle in the Andes by Nando Parrado, The Alchemist by Paul Cohen, MoneyBall by Michael Lewis and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck there has been some way in which the characters influenced their destiny - even though it might have only been something small it made a big impact.

In books such as Feed, Miracle in the Andes, The Alchemist, MoneyBall and Of Mice and Men the characters did something to influence their destiny.

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In the book Feed, although it is not much, Violet does attempt to influence her destiny in a small way. She does this by petitioning to FeedCast asking them to pay for her feed repairs. She does this in order to save her life. Although her request is rejected, it is an attempt to influence her destiny. Another way Violet attempts to influence her destiny is by continuing to fight.

At any point in the book she could give up but she chooses not to give up. She keeps trying to hold on even when Titus doesn’t. For example she makes a list of things she wants to do (229-233). That list, plus Titus is what keeps her going.

The way Violet tries to influence her destiny is also seen in Miracle in the Andes by Nando Parrado. Just like Violet, Nando keeps on fighting as well. Nando has so much determination and courage.

His determination and courage has a major impact on his destiny. One example of when Nando shows determination is when he promises his friends he will get them out of the Andes by Christmas. These traits are attributed to Nando making it out of the Andes alive. A similar type of thing is seen in MoneyBall and The Alchemist as well. Both Billy Beane and Santiago want to change their lives and possibly even influence their destiny.

In MoneyBall, Billy Beane is determined to build the best baseball team with the least amount of money. He does this through determination and perseverance. These traits are also seen in Santiago from The Alchemist. Just like Billy Beane, Santiago is determined - for a different reason though. Santiago wants to find his Personal Legend. His Personal Legend is his destiny, as explained by King Melchizedek. The first thing Santiago does to influence his destiny is put his trust in King Melchizedek, a complete stranger (35).

By trusting King Melchizedek Santiago changes his life and his destiny. Anything Santiago did on his way to find his Personal Legend could have altered whether or not he found it. For example he almost gives up on it because of love. Even in Of Mice and Men Lennie, one of the main characters, does something to influence his destiny. Lennie kills a puppy, even after the countless times George tells him he has to be gentle with small animals. Lennie also kills Curley’s wife because she witnesses him kill the puppy. After these two incidents, George realizes that Lennie will never learn and he kills him.

Any human can have some control over their destiny. Any actions, decisions and traits can alter our destiny. Someone could change their destiny because of love like Santiago almost does. They could also influence their destiny because of determination or courage like Nando, Violet and Santiago do. Anything, small or large, can influence or even change our destiny. It could be for the better or even take a turn for the worst.