Saturday 14 July 2012

THE ARCHIE DILEMMA

I saw Cocktail today with my family. First things first, to quench your curiosity, let me tell you that it is an entertaining movie made for college crowds and not bad for a one-time watch. The problem is its plot is way too familiar for regular Hindi movie and television serial watchers. It presents the same old Archie's Dilemma- a guy confused between the 'rich bitch' and the sweet girl, leading to a predictable love triangle with no new solution presented in the movie. This same predicament is represented in many other popular stories in different forms, be it Archie Andrews or Elena Gilbert. It is a classic dilemma- the dilemma between listening to what you desire and what is best for you. Do you choose the girl who is a better girlfriend or the one who will be a better wife? Do you listen to your heart or your mind? Do you go after what you like or after what is best for you? To you take up a profession which you are passionate about or a profession which will pay better?


The solution to this dilemma isn't very simple (that's why its called a dilemma) and is very much situation and person dependent. A pragmatist would preach that what is required is a balance between the two- between the Veronicas and Bettys of this world. Marry a girl that is rich and intelligent as well as beautiful and caring. Get a job that is your passion as well as high-paying. Interestingly, a Zen master would give you a different solution. He would ask you to remove the root cause of the dilemma. He'll tell you that your desires and your interests should not conflict at all to begin with. He'll say, remove thy conflict and thy dilemma shall vanish.

What do you usually do? Do you listen to your heart or my mind? Which is the fun thing to do? Which is the right thing to follow? Archie Dilemmas are common, we experience them everywhere. Our everyday problems are Archie Dilemmas in disguise and we need to solve them. So, do we listen to the pragmatist or the Zen master? Settle for a compromise between the two extremes or remove the conflict which made you like two extremes in the first place? That, my friends, is a question that  only you can answer for yourselves because, as always, we have landed ourselves into an Archie Dilemma.

-TheDreamer

(A small request: I would be much obliged to whoever posts a comment on this blog to plz copy the same comment in my personal blog too - http://vaibhavkarve.blogspot.in/ . Hope it won't deter anyone from commenting!)

2 comments:

  1. nice .............
    infact quite some questioons isn't it?

    let me add half an answer.:

    We leave in todays world and not in the past. Our actions and beliefs are governed by the society in which we live in, our beloveds...we are ready to compromise because of fear, ignorance and many petty little things.

    now look at my example. I had the chance to go to a football academy (Tata football academy). Football was my and still is my passion and infact everything. But i chose to take a different path. Why? Beloved's, Soceiety, pressure, and fear of the future. Whats thr in football? Yes there is nothing, but that was my heart. Unlike in the past, where everything laid low, every profession....so no matter which one u take, it hardly mattered most. People were themselves then,and listened to their heart... but now, all of us sometime or the other wear a mask, and our decisions are again the effect of societies's beliefs and all.
    we listen to our mind Dreamer....almost all the time...


    The Viento

    i would rather say we will go for something

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  2. That is the dilemma...I would go with the pragmatist approach, settle down for something of both...Maybe that would be mistake but hey, its better to have decided on something than nothing at all..

    -Natasha

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