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Research through Literature: :tada: The Good…

- - - - The Reluctant Fundamentalist:
        
        Changez begins the story young and full of zest for his new journey in America but soon learns that the America behind the facade of Capitalism and mobility is one of racism, corruption, and meaninglessness. In lieu of finding contentment with American society, he finds himself lost and out of place.
      - Madame Bovary:
        
        Though she continuously collects more things and experiences, Emma never truly feels content with her life and instead falls into a series of feelings of disillusionment. The good life for her would avoid these, of course, but at times it seems her undying desire makes this impossible.
    - - The novella takes a deeper, controversial look at tourism, questioning why one from a richer country (where they should be content) would need a vacation to a poorer, unhappy country. This complicates our idea of contentment and what's needed to really have a satisfying, good life.
    - - Annarres is a world of thrift and modesty. The people there must content themselves with the bare minimum, and they do. As a collectivist society, being content in this way is a core value that everyone chooses to uphold to live the good life.
    - - Charles can easily find and maintain contentment with a rather modest life, whereas Emma struggles to stay content with each new rung of the ladder she climbs. For each of them, contentment and living a good life mean very different things.
  - - - The Reluctant Fundamentalist:
        
        Both Erica and Changez desire sex, making it an element fundamental to their happiness in life. However, various things stand in the way of their receiving it. For Erica, the connection she requires to have and enjoy it (which necessitates her late lover) bars her from enjoying that part of her life. For Changez, his inability to be accepted by both American culture and Erica is what halts this.
      - The Dispossessed:
        
        Sex on Annarres is neither taboo nor restricted by social norms. It's a desire that can be fulfilled at will and runs in stark contrast to Urras. This value was held with intention when the settlers created the new colony, making sex a important element of living a good life for them.
      - Madame Bovary:
        
        Emma uses sex as a proxy for fulfilling desire. It's unclear whether she actually wants the sex, or just everything that comes along with it, but it seems sex (likely, short term) is important for her life.
    - - As Changez searches for the good life in America, he associates his American love interest, Erica, with all the splendor he assumes America to have in store for him. His desire for and romanticization of Erica mirrors that which he feels for his illusionary assumptions of America.
    - - Emma's life is run on her unending desire for more. Fulfilling and moving on the more desire is a crucial element to her forever suspended happiness. If a good life can exist for her, it would be through this.
  - - - Antigone goes against the State law to bury her brother, declaring her autonomy from mortal law and instead finding it in herself and her religious values.
    - - A big gripe Kinkaid holds in this novella concerns the lack of governmental autonomy Antigua has in the global economy. A good life for Antiguans would mean stability and global power for the country
    - - In theory, Annarres gives its people an exceptional level of autonomy, especially because of the lack of economic pressures on them to stick with a certain job. This autonomy helps them live better, freer lives.
  - - - Beneatha struggles throughout the play to find her identity, whether it be through investigating her cultural heritage or trying out various hobbies. For her, living a good life must be synonymous with understanding one's identity.
    - - Changez must find where he fits in in an America polarized by terrorism. As someone who looks a lot more like the enemy than his fellow citizens, he finds himself outcast and must rediscover his identity in this new political landscape.
      - Changez lives between two cultures, at once fitting in with and feelng ostracized by each. He must create an identity for himself that seamlessly negotiates the demands of each. For him, a good life would mean finding this identity.
    - - The identity of the Tourist and the Local is contrasted heavily in this work, aligning the Tourist with globalism, power, and capitalist wealth, whereas the locals are poor, powerless, and used to spur the economies of other countries. The visual effects of the camera and the use of the second person brings the audience in to really question which side of this identity question the fall under and whether the quality of their life comes at the expense of others'.
    - - Shevek must reconcile his two identities when visiting Urras; he's from Annarres and holds all of those associated values, but at the same time, he feels a connection to his roots on Urras. Further, he has to navigate his various identities as a scientist, a collectivist, a father, and a partner. For him, finding this balance is fundamental to living a good life.
    - - Emma is one thing; a middle class wife, but she wishes and tries to be another; a fancy upper class lady. As she tries to bridge the gap between these two, her life is thrown into turmoil, but her unrelenting desire to adopt this new identity even in the midst of all that happens because of it leads us to believe it is a core facet of her happiness in life.
    - - Each Kim family member has to take on a new, polished identity as a servant to keep their jobs. At the same time, they're reaching for a higher class identity they hope to one day assume. Defining and achieving an identity that they're content with is crucial to having a good life for them.
  - - - Antigone:
        
        Antigone fights against the State to uphold her religious value of giving her brother a proper burial. For her, living a good life means living an honorable one that will set you up to thrive in the Afterlife.
      - A Raisin in the Sun:
        
        Mama turns to her religious values frequently throughout the play, depending on God to make sure things turn out well in her life.
        
        Beneatha, college-educated and of a younger generation, abandons religion as a core value and looks to other things, like her cultural heritage, as the foundations for her Good Life.
    - - A Raisin in the Sun:
        
        The dreams shared by most of the characters in the story have to do with bettering the lives of their family members; Ruth and Mama want a house for Travis, and Walter wants to make money to support his wife and kids. The achieving of this value is crucial to the quality of their lives.
      - The Dispossessed:
        
        Family values on Annarres are completely optional for people, and Shevek chooses to keep a solid family unit even when not socially required to. This shows that, for him, family is an important part of leading a good life.
      - Madame Bovary:
        
        For Charles, family values may be the most important element for creating a good life for himself. Unlike Emma, he needs to uphold these values to feel fulfilled in life.
      - Parasite:
        
        In their quest for upward mobility, the Kim family keeps their family unit in the forefront of their minds. The schemes they play are inherently about bettering not just themselves, but their family entirely. These values make creating a good life worth it for them.
    - - Antigone:
        
        Antigone risks her life to maintain her brother's honor. Perhaps for her, a 'good life' is not so important as maintaining honor in preparation for the Afterlife.
        
        Creon's fatal flaw comes when he passes unfavorable laws to flex his own power and prove his honor to his people. For him, the good life is one of absolute and widely-acknowledged social honor
      - A Raisin in the Sun:
        
        Walter takes a final stand against bigotry when he affirms his family's right to live in the all-white neighborhood. This honor ultimately restores his faith in himself and his family, making it critical to the quality of his life experience.
    - - Changez comes to America and quickly adopts the American economic values of success, business, and academia. However, he soon realizes the system is not one he intends to participate in, and must redefine the values he wants to hold. The Good Life for him must include values, but they have to be those he carves out for himself rather than inherits from the culture around him.
    - - The society on Annarres values collectivism and equality above all else. They formed a new society (a dangerous and risky feat) specifically to uphold these values.
- - - - Antigone:
        
        Part of what makes Antigone's rebellion so poignant is her status as a woman. She's caught in the fray of a male dictator, dealing with the repercussion's of men's wars, and trying to please majority male gods. Antigone's life (and purpose) is balanced across the demands of men over whose desires she has little control.
      - The Dispossessed:
        
        Coming from a truly egalitarian society, Shevek is shocked to see how women are treated on Urras. This sexism, which limits the productivity and functionality of the society, but also the fulfillment of the lives of the women, stands at a discord with what it takes to create a good life.
    - - Disenfranchisement
        
        A Raisin in the Sun:
        
        The Youngers continually fight against inequality, ultimately coming close to failing at achieving their dream because of it. Even on the periphery, you can see their struggle with it through their resentment of working for upperclass white people.
        
        Life and Debt:
        
        Jamaica is left crippled in economic turmoil after the globalist, capitalist, and neo-colonial forces make it so that economic mobility is essentially impossible for its people. The result is inescapable poverty that halts people from living a better life.
      - Privilege
        
        The Reluctant Fundamentalist:
        
        Changez can only come to school in America via a scholarship, and so must navigate the economic inequality between him and his wealthy, American-born peers. The privilege they don't share with him becomes yet another thing that stands n the way of him feeling at home in America.
        
        The Dispossessed:
        
        When Shevek goes to Urras, he's confronted with the idea of Privilege for the first time and finds how harmful it can be to the well-being of a society. The immense wealth and status that the upperclass of Urras hold, in comparison to the lower classes, makes it difficult for the needy to live fulfilled, fair lives.
        
        Madame Bovary:
        
        Much of Emma's constant dissatisfaction comes from the fact that she's seen others living much more glamorous lives than she does. This inequality leads her to desire more and more so that her life can ressemble theirs. This privilege leaves Emma's life feeling dull and unfulfilling.
        
        Parasite:
        
        The Parks live with an immense privilege, which is never more clear than when we see how differently the rains affect them and the Kims. For them, it's a slight inconvenience, but for the Kims, of course, it's much more than that. This privilege leaves the Kims unhappy with their situation and desirous of the Parks'. It also indirectly perpetuates the poverty faced by the Kims because of the unfair economic system.
      - The Dispossessed:
        
        The Settlers of Annarres escaped the inequality of Urras to build an egalitarian society against all odds, showing that immense financial and social inequality bars them from living a good life.
      - Parasite:
        
        The immense wealth inequality in South Korea leaves some with abundance and others barely making it by. The needy, like the Kims, can't live a good life until their needs are met, and will further always desire more as long as the uber rich, like the Parks, exist around them.
    - - A Raisin in the Sun:
        
        The Youngers face housing discrimination that threatens their dreams and their ability to fulfill the goals that will help them achieve a good life for themselves.
      - The Reluctant Fundamentalist:
        
        As the US basically sanctions racism against people who look like Changez after 9/11, the fear and prejudice he experiences from his peers and fellow citizens becomes unlivable for him. Racism ultimately bars Changez from living the good life in America.
      - Parasite:
        
        More so classism, the upper class Parks repeatedly show prejudice against the Kims, turning up their noses at their smell, eroticizing their fantasies of lower-class sexuality, and admonishing them from 'crossing the line.' This behavior lacks the sympathy needed to create real change and help people live better lives.
  - - - The Dispossessed:
        
        Annarres is a collectivist society, and it seems that this is better for the quality of its inhabitants' lives, especially when we see how it is on Urras. The capitalist, unequal system highlights how collectivism may help people live better lives.
    - - A Raisin in the Sun:
        
        The Younger family struggles against a capitalist system not designed for them to thrive in. Though they try various methods of achieving social mobility, the racism and cyclical poverty built into the system continuously halts their progress.
      - The Reluctant Fundamentalist:
        
        Changez struggles against the capitalistic American culture that ultimately leaves him feeling purposeless and ostracized. Instead, he turns to education outside of America to cultivate a purposeful life for himself.
      - A Small Place:
        
        Antigua, a nation burned by colonialism and unjust globalism, suffers and ultimately collapses in economic turmoil. Those who live there are blocked from living better lives because of the constant inequity they face.
      - Madame Bovary:
        
        Though this isn't necessarily the economic system at play here, Emma does end up falling into the uniquely capitalistic obsession with consumerism. This problem plagues her throughout the story as she can no longer feel content with the things she currently owns; she needs more.
      - Parasite:
        
        The capitalist system in their society leaves some families rich off the profits of new globalized technology and others barely making it by. This unequal structure stands in the way of the Kims living their best lives, as their quality of life is greatly diminished by their poverty.
    - - Antigone:
        
        Antigone struggles against the State and ultimately rebells against an unfair law in order to hold true to her values. Here, the State causes political turmoil that prevents the individual from doing what they need to live according to their values.
      - The Reluctant Fundamentalist:
        
        9/11 irrevocably alters American society and turns New York into an unwelcoming and unlivable space for people who look like Changez. This political turmoil stands in the way of Changez cultivating a good, American life for himself as he hoped to do by moving to the US.
      - The Dispossessed:
        
        The political turmoil on Urras both highlights how their unequal society has failed the people and how this unrest disrupts their lives. The violence exercised by the government has a lasting psychological and bodily impact on the people, barring them from leading good lives. The inequality and poverty of the country only adds to this.
    - - Life and Debt:
        
        Jamaica is thrown into economic turmoil at the hands of globalism, which can be seen as both the effects of colonialism and a new iteration of modern colonialism. This ultimately handicaps the country's economy and makes the good life all but impossible to achieve for its inhabitants.
      - A Small Place:
        
        Antigua has been touched by colonialism that has crippled the country's economy such that most there live under immense poverty, barring them from living better lives.
      - Parasite:
        
        Parasite references the American colonial history that has shaped much of Korean life. This colonialism has introduced capitalist inequality which leaves much of South Korea below the poverty line, as is shown through the metaphorical use of the different levels of the city.
- - - - Mama's dream is essentially the American Dream-- the white picket fence version of it. Her contentment in life will come from owning a home for her family to thrive in.
    - - Changez holds the American Dream when he moves to America in search of a good life but quickly becomes disillusioned with the country and its ideals. Though perhaps unachievable in reality, the good life may be theoretically possible in the idyllic view many hold of the American Dream.
    - - The American colonial influence on South Korea gives its people the notion of the American Dream, which comes to be represented through home ownership in the Kim family. For them, owning that home and living together in it would constitute a good life.
  - - - America becomes somewhat of an ambiguous utopia about halfway through the novel, in the transitionary period between it being the ideal for Changez and it being something Changez wants to escape. This portrayal of the US complicates our understanding of the parameters needed to create a good life.
    - - This novel is interesting in that it essentially creates a perfect world to contrast to all of the issues with the original world (one that reflects our society and many before it). But then it questions that utopia throughout, exploring the ways in which Urras is actually good and Annarres may be bad. Things are sparse and stagnant on Annarres, and they don't actually have that much freedom. Egoism still exists there and Urras is ultimately the only place Shevek can go to have his work seen. The ambiguity here suggests that there is no perfect way to create a good life, for in combatting one social ill, you create another.
  - - - Antigone:
        
        Antigone gives up her life to maintain her values. This rebellion against the forces blocking her from serving her purpose ultimately ends in her death, but she rests assured knowing she'll go on to thrive in the Afterlife due to her piety. Her rebellion, if it doesn't give her a good life in this life, ensures a good life in the Afterlife.
      - The Reluctant Fundamentalist:
        
        Changez' rejection of America can be seen as a type of rebellion against all the things there that stand in his way of achieving the good life. Further, his shift towards polemic (rebellious) education supports this, as he's cultivating the next generation of those to follow in his steps
      - Madame Bovary:
        
        Though not very noble, Emma's actions to secure the type of life she wanted can be seen as a sort of rebellion against a society that assigns her a position and offers her no social mobility. The rebellion does not turn out as she'd have liked by the end, but it is certainly employed to try to create a better life.
      - Parasite:
        
        The Kims' scheme can be seen as a sort of rebellion against the stagnancy they're forced to submit to under their unfair economic system. Though this ultimately fails, it is a means to secure a better life for them.
    - - The Dispossessed:
        
        The colony created on Anarres was a type of revolution against the inequality of Urras, Further, the rebellion on Anarres when Shevek arrives there is an attempt to overthrow the inequality that keeps people from living a good life there.
    - - The Reluctant Fundamentalist:
        
        Changez opens the story with a feeling of idealism towards his view of American culture; one of success, capitalism, and equality. However, he soon finds that this is not the case. His idealistic view of the US helps him see the country's shortcomings and eventually abandon it in creating his own good life.
      - Madame Bovary:
        
        Emma's idealism is largely what pushes her to fight for what she deems the good life. However haphazardly, it's her idealism that [tries to] win her the best possible life, which could make the argument that idealism aids in the creation of one.