The true essence of conflict is derived from the very thing we have no control over, what we fear. It often alters the way in which we act or manage situations and can provoke uneasiness.
It is in these moments we’re fear tends to make or break us.
Many of those who experience conflict often feel a sense of powerlessness and insecurity. In the text Cry freedom, conflict is the corner stone around which the text is moulded. Several factors can be labelled as a trigger for conflict, however on close examination is it becomes evident that fear is the foundation. Through fear, our human weaknesses are revealed. It situates us in a vulnerable position; an unwelcome feeling that causes unrest.
As a result of this feeling, we put up a façade and often act out in extraordinary ways, ultimately causing conflict. An example of this can bee seen through the character of Jimmy Kruger. Despite his devious and deceitful ways, it is clear his actions where not only out of spite, but also out of fear. Predominantly fear of racial equality, loss of status and authority. Being a white man on a black mans land, Kruger was well aware of the rightful owners of South Africa. In addition with the uprise of the Black Consciousness movement, he began to feel a sense of vulnerability. It threatened life as he knew and he was to make certain that such things would not take place.
This feeling of weakness in conjunction with Kruger’s apartheid beliefs fostered a certain spark causing him to act out in conflict. This can be likened the biblical times of Herod the King. Much like Kruger, Herod the Great was a schemer, who took advantage of Roman political up rest to ‘claw his way to the top’. In the gospel of Mathew, the wise men were on their way to see the ‘New King of Israel’ when Herod intercepted them in an attempt to reveal the child’s location.
The Essay on Brief Model Comparison of How Conflict is Presented in Act 3 Scene 1 of Romeo and Juliet and The Laboratory
Despite being written two centuries after Romeo and Juliet, The Laboratory by Robert Browning, taken from the 1842 collection, Dramatic Lyrics, explores many aspects of conflict that relate to both the Elizabethan and Victorian societies. Written as a dramatic monologue rather than a play, Browning uses the poem to expose how jealousy and envy lead to a catastrophic build-up of internal conflict, ...
