"Animal I Have Become"

            “So what if you can see the darkest side of me? No one will ever change this animal I have become; help me believe it's not the real me; somebody help me tame this animal.”  Everyone deals with their own demons within them at least at one point in their lives.  Some people deal with this fact in a much better way than others.  For example, Dorian Gray, had he been real, would have been tactless in this matter; giving into one’s demons is not the best way to go about dealing with one’s life.  Dorian Gray becomes deranged due to his own “animal” inside of him.  Dorian became the animal, and to restore himself, he stabs the picture of himself to destroy, and not “tame”, the animal that he had become.  This raises the question of whether or not everyone has such an animal inside them and if people just deal with it in different ways.

            Humans are powerless when pitted against their overwhelming emotions and conscience.  Does this prove that everyone has an uncontrollable animal within them?  In a way, I suppose everyone has their own “animal” inside them, but likely not to the same extent that, for example, Dorian Gray had.  In fact, what Dorian Gray became was more of a monster than an animal.  Not all animals are monsters (how could a puppy be a monster?).  This unit was about monsters within ourselves, which is very fitting in Dorian Gray and when talking about the animal within us all.  Everyone has a choice of whether or not to let that animal or those monsters within us control us.  Do we let out the bad and give into the consequences, or do we fight it off and remain our true selves?  That is what defines us and what makes us who we all are.

            Dorian Gray is seen as an evil, terrible person because of how he acted.  If he had not given in to his dark side, then he would have been seen by all in a different light.  People define you by how you act.  But what matters is how you define yourself.  If you see yourself as a monster, then you probably should “tame” that animal inside.  If you don’t see yourself as doing anything too wild, then you could stay how you are.  Obviously you should trust the evidence, even if you are in denial, but you are not necessarily an animal, even if society says you are.  Society is the reason why people think there are monsters within people more often than not; if anyone deviates from their accepted norm, then you are a beast, and likely a violent beast at that.  However, there are cases where society is right, and you should change, just like in Dorian Gray. 

            Whether you decide if you’re a monster or not is up to your own discretion; society is usually wrong in this matter.  Humans are inclined to give in to their emotions because they are what empower us to do everyday things.  Emotions can be seen as primal or could be seen as gifts to humanity.  Being an animal is natural, being a monster, however, is far from natural.  You have to work to become a monster; it is not easy to be a beast.  Even if you become a monster, there is always time to change yourself; Dorian Gray changed at the end, even if it did cost him everything.  No one is ever permanently a monster unless he/she chooses to be so.  Everything we are is decided by us and our own freewill and our decisive actions.