When the demon was just about to kill the merchant, he began to recite a verse on the bottom of page 567. I believe this verse represents innocence, when the merchant killed the demons son he was unaware of it, and it happened by accident. I think that this verse means that life has two sides, a good one and a bad one. When we are happy we do not think of sadness, and when we are sad we do not feel happiness. When people lead mainly a happy life full of good, they do not tend to worry about the bad that goes on in life. And sometimes do not even think that a bad incident can occur in their lives. But when people lead a more careful or scarce life, bad incidents are not so unlikely, and copping with the effects might seem more bearable. They might seem more bearable simply because one is already prone to the damages of life. I believe this verse is also saying that bad luck strikes mostly good people. “Don’t you see that the blowing, ranging storms only the tallest of trees beset, and of the earth’s many greens and barren lots, only the ones with fruits and stones are hit”. It is common that when something unwanted occurs in ones life, one might say “why me, I do not deserve this”. Yet bad luck can fall on anyone’s side whether or not it is deserved. Anything can happen to anyone at any given time, but when we are at the prime of happiness or success the last thought that runs through our minds is destruction. The merchant is saying in this verse that life is unpredictable, one might think that they are doing everything correctly and have control of what happens in their life but in a matter of a second everything can change.
Paulina Brzostowska
I think your analysis on the perspective people have on life is very interesting. I have some oppositional opinions on the idea that you proposed. You are arguing that some people are happy because they think that bad incidents don’t occur and others are less happy because they are prone to bad incidents. However, I don’t think that that it the case.
I believe that the happiest people are not unaware of the negative things that life throws at them, but they choose to focus on the good. People are not oblivious to their problems. Some just choose to be grateful for what blessings they do have, and brush off the bad stuff.
In terms of the other type of people, I don’t think that they are prone to bad situations. I think that there are just some people who make a big deal about every small problem they have. These people act like victims and think that everybody is out to get them. In actuality, nobody has a perfect life. These people just choose to have a negative outlook on it.
I agree with the fact that bad luck can happen to anyone and that anything can change in an instance. The story of The Merchant and the Demon does a great job of teaching its readers to be more grateful for what they have.
Paulina,
I think you have quite an interesting perspective in the verses that the merchant recites on page 567. But if I may, i would like to introduce a more religious aspect to it. The story is set in an Islamic republic, and as a Muslim, I perceived it differently. In Islamic culture, when one is experiencing death whether with themselves or other people, it is recommended that they say recite a verse from the Quran (Holy Book). The most important is to give respected to the Islamic God, Allah and that is exactly what he is doing here. The recommended phrase to say when someone has passed in Islam is, “Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un”. This is an Arabic phrase that translated to “To God we belong and to God we return.” And this is the exact phrase that the merchant says right before he recites another holy verse. The verse that he recites seems to be one that is reflecting the beliefs of God, and thus he is slowly trying to come to turns to what he thinks is his eventual demise.