So many of my views
on Life were shaped and formed by everything along the
way, but many were more sharply defined, clarified and solidified by the works
I taught in school.
One such work I taught, called the original French short story, was written in 1829 by Prosper Merimee. The title is 'Mateo Falcone' (you can read it here: https://wwwclassicshorts.com/stories/mfalcone.htlm ). It is a disturbing, unforgettable story. I don't believe in spoilers, so let me just say the story absolutely stunned me!
The story's themes include: dishonor, betrayal, morality, custom, and justice.
***
There was a time when a family's name (character
and reputation) once meant something. Whether or not it worked in
practice, the contemporary wisdom was that a person's name and character
carried a lot of weight and helped define an individual for better or for worse.
I remember when I showed up for my first teacher
day 47 years ago, some of the veterans asked to see my class lists. As they saw each name,
they would say things like: "Oh, you will love this one," "This
one will work well for you," and This one is from a bad family; watch out
for him (or her)."
When I grew up (as much as I did), my family's name
was everything. It was clear that if I ever did anything bad, it would reflect
on the family name. No matter what I did, there was always the concept of not
bringing shame to the family. That was important!
Merriam-Webster defines shame as a 'painful emotion caused by consciousness of guilt, shortcoming, or impropriety... a condition of humiliating disgrace or disrepute.
Shame is a feeling of self-hate, regret, and dishonor. People are wonderful today at shaming people except the people aren't shamed. In many (most) cases, they don't care. The expression "Shame on you!" used to result in embarrassment and head hanging. Today, there is no shame. People have been empowered to be stupid (not ignorant) and proud of it and attack intelligence because they really don't know better...
...but I do, so while some will understand and others never will, I will still say it - "Shame on you!"
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