34
5. Value of Freedom for the Individual
American people have a value of freedom for the individual. Fichter 310 says the freedom directs a man to moral responsibility, his inviolability, and his
dignity. This value is expressed in Brandeis University, a university where Morrie teaches. One day, the Faculty of Sociology maintains this value well for antiwar
actions. In the year 1960, the faculty is attended by radical students. This is because the campus gets involved in real actions instead of simply teaching. The faculty
chooses to hold discussions instead of lectures and experiences instead of theory. From this policy, the students are taught to express and experience their individual
freedom such as doing protest marches in Washington Albom 111-112. The value of freedom for the individual also appears when the union of
newspaper where Mitch works goes on strike to demand rise for their salary. His office is shut down and Mitch loses his job Albom 44.
Sometimes, this value is violated as described in the story. In their daily lives, American people are fond of watching
news of O. J. Simpson‟s trial on televisions. Many people are absorbed by this show,
even though they do not know who O. J. Simpson is and do not know people involved in his case. They put too many interests
in another person‟s life Albom 42. This, actually, constitutes a violation of someone‟s dignity, in this case, O. J. Simpson‟s dignity because his private life is
exposed and enjoyed by other people through television broadcasting. When Morrie‟s illness has become worse, he loses his ability of a human to do
daily life activities, such as going out from the car and dressing. For this condition, Morrie feels ashamed.
PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
35 “I‟m an independent person, so my inclination was to fight all of this – being
helped from the car, having someone else dress me. I felt a little ashamed, because our culture tells us we should be ashamed if we can‟t wipe our own
behind.” Albom 115-116 Morrie feels ashamed because the culture tells that if someone cannot do
something for himself, it destroys his dignity which causes a sense of being ashamed.
Thus, the culture they share violates Morrie‟s freedom for the individual, in this case,
violates Morrie‟s dignity as a human. In conclusion, American people share the value of freedom for the individual.
This value supports American people to voice their mind and idea about anything. However, this value sometimes is violated and thus violates
someone‟s dignity.
6. Individualism Value
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