my paper

Molly Hughes

Mr. Sexton

21 April 2010

The Effect Quick Decisions Have on Our Lives

According to the Webster On-line Dictionary, the definition of a decision is the act of making your mind up about something. The definition of a reaction, according to the same source is a bodily reaction to a stimulus.

Whenever a person acts, they make a conscious choice or decision. What happens as a result of this decision is their responsibility. An easy way to explain this is when a person acts or makes a decision, they are like a puppeteer, when they react they are the puppet.

Sometimes we have to make decisions quickly, other times, our decisions are made after careful thought. Neither way is perfect all of the time. Many times, decisions that are made quickly have life altering consequences.

During this semester we have read many stories whose characters made quick decisions which dramatically affected their lives. In “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Conner, the grandmother’s spur of the moment idea to visit a plantation she remembered from her childhood gets the family lost, and ultimately murdered. Dmitry and Anna’s decision to have an affair in Joyce Carol Oates’ story, “The Lady with the Pet Dog” certainly changed the course of their lives. Lott’s wife absolutely made a bad decision when she looked back on Sodom, and was turned into a pillar of salt. Even as far back as 43 B.C., Icarus’ rash decision to ignore his father’s warning and fly to close to the sun cost him his life. In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, Connie’s decision to stay home from a barbeque, and talk to Arnold Friend through her screen door probably led to her murder. Anyone who made the foolish decision to have anything to do with Smitty in “The Pied Piper of Tucson,” by Don Moser probably lived, or died, regretting their decision. Cinderella and Little Red Riding Hood both made decisions which had a huge, but much different, outcomes. One thing the characters in these stories all had in common is that their lives were affected in a major way by chance, or decisions they made.

Quick decisions have definitely affected my life. My birth, following my biological parents’ probable quick decision to have sex, was definitely a life altering decision for everyone concerned. I hope they gave careful thought to the decision to give me up for adoption. It was a great for me personally, but I think the decision would have been easier for them to live with if it had been well thought out.

A spur of the moment decision I made in high school changed how much I trust people. It was a warm spring evening several years ago, and I decided to go for a car ride with a guy I knew, but not well. The experience didn’t end well, and I am amazed at how that quick decision has affected my life and relationships since then.

Some of the most turbulent events in our history have happened by chance, or through a quick decision someone made. If Rosa Parks had not decided to stay in her seat in that Montgomery, Alabama bus in 1955, the civil rights movement might not have happened, or at least not when, or the way it did. Her decision that day changed the world we live in. Martin Luther King Jr. might not have been as big a part of the civil rights movement as he was, if his chance to be involved had not presented itself that first evening of the boycott (Dove). President Bush’s decision to invade Iraq looking for weapons of mass destruction has changed our world and the lives of millions of people forever. Even Tiger Woods might now regret the quick decisions he made because they certainly have had a huge affect on his family, his finances, and seemingly, his ability to play golf.

Of all the talents we are born with, and those we can learn, I think the ability to make an informed and educated decision is the best way to give individuals the confidence and the ability to have control over their lives There will certainly be times when we need to make decisions from the gut, as well as times that even a well-thought out decision doesn’t work out. However, I would much rather live with a thought-out bad decision than make a foolish decision in haste.

Work Cited:

“decision.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2010. 8 Apr. 2010 http://www.merriam-webster.com.

Dove, Rita . "Rosa Parks Her simple act of protest galvanized America's civil rights revolution." Time 12 Jun 1999: n. page. Web. 15 Apr 2010.

“reaction.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2010. 8 Apr. 2010 http://www.merriam-webster.com.

Clark, M. B., and A. G. Clark. Retellngs A Thematic Literature Anthology. 1st Edition. New York, NY: McGrqw-Hill, 2004. Print.